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Social Sciences Department

Criminal Justice
Course Descriptions

The Processing of a Crime Scene

Course Descriptions

For a listing of when the following courses are offered, consult the current course schedule or WebAdvisor.

CJ 101 - Introduction to Criminal Justice

3 credit hours.
A survey of the criminal justice system. Focusing on historical, developmental and philosophical overview of the development of law as a means of social control. (IAI: CRJ 901)

CJ 102 - Introduction to Criminology

3 credit hours.
A multi-disciplinary approach to analyzing the nature, causes and control of crime in the United States. (IAI: CRJ 912)

CJ 103 - Law Enforcement Organization and Administration

3 credit hours. A survey of the principles of organization and management used in law enforcement agencies.

CJ 106 - Introduction to Corrections

3 credit hours.
An overview of the American correction system, including the history, evolution, and philosophy of punishment and treatment. (IAI: CRJ 911)

CJ 108 - Probation, Parole and Community-Based Correction

Prerequisite: CJ 106 3 credit hours.
The organization and operation of probation and parole systems, including their legal basis, history, and ideologies.

CJ 110 - Community-Based Policing

Prerequisite: CJ 101 3 credit hours.
The philosophical and practical applications of community-based policing are presented.

CJ 120 - Introduction to Homeland Security

3 credit hours.
This course examines the programs and activities that have been implemented to improve the safety of our country. Special emphasis is placed on the threat of terrorism and strategies to address that threat.

CJ 201 - Introduction to Criminal Law

3 credit hours.
This course examines and analyzes the structure and functions of substantive criminal law. The principles of criminal law are presented, including the acts, mental state and attendant circumstances that are necessary elements of the crime. (IAI: CRJ 913)

CJ 202 - Civil and Criminal Law/Procedures

3 credit hours.
This course examines legal concepts and criminal procedures in the areas of arrest, force, search and seizure, interrogation, and obtainment of physical evidence. Also included are studies on trials, indictments, bail, grand and petit juries, and the rules of evidence in the State of Illinois.

CJ 203 - Principles of Criminal Investigation

Prerequisite: CJ 101 3 credit hours.
The fundamentals of procedures of investigation.

CJ 204 - Juvenile Justice

3 credit hours.
The history and philosophy of society's reaction to juvenile behavior and problems, including theoretical perspectives on causation and control. (IAI: CRJ 914)

CJ 208 - Principles of Criminalistics

3 credit hours.
This course covers the application of the natural and physical sciences to crime solutions in law enforcement. All aspects of crime scene processing including evidence recognition and evaluation of physical evidence, and identification and comparison of crime laboratory procedures are included. The role of the crime laboratory in modern law enforcement is also studied.

CJ 299 - Criminal Justice Internship

Prerequisite: Completion of 12 credits of CJ courses and consent of program coordinator.
3 credit hours.
Students are assigned to a criminal justice agency for supervised exposure to work experience.

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