NCJ Number
87953
Date Published
1981
Length
11 pages
Annotation
Many types of workers in the criminal justice system can benefit the students in a law-related education program by using their expertise to expand student knowledge of criminal law and justice.
Abstract
The insights these professionals provide give meaning to issues that are often lost with a more traditional approach. Introducing professionals in the field to a class can also help counter the distortions found in media portrayals of law enforcement and the courts. Professionals who could be used include law enforcement personnel, court personnel, attorneys, medical examiners, technicians from police labs, correctional staff, and criminologists. The Constitutional Rights Foundation has organized many groups of resource people in California through its program entitled Youth and the Administration of Justice. The program began with letters and phone calls to criminal justice agencies. The next step in organizing a program is a meeting attended by school officials and representatives of criminal justice agencies. Schools can use a resource form to allow each agency to define its involvement in the program and its rules for student visits. Students can also help contact agencies and arrange activities and visits. A lawyer-in-the-classroom program and a law day conference are two activities which can be components of a law-related education effort. Guidelines for developing each of these activities are provided.