Racism in the criminal justice system
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Although all races commit crimes, there are a large percentage of those crimes committed by blacks. This might be a factor due to the socioeconomic conditions such as low-income jobs, few job opportunities, urban density, or few community support services. Also such factors as single-parent families and inadequate childhood education can all influence these statistics.
Although some have conflicting ideas about the matter the facts are blacks do have a higher arrest rate than any other race. Authors such as D. Free, Jr. claims, "That the fact that blacks are underrepresented as criminal justice professionals results in their being over-represented in arrest statistics." Other writers disagree. William Wilbanks states, " Although the practice of American criminal justice may have been significantly racist in the past, and while some vestiges of racism may indeed remain, the system is today by and large objective in its processing of criminal defendants".
It is said the police regularly use harsher measures against the black community and courts hand down tougher sentences to black offenders...