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Level 2: Human Rights, Values & Ethics

Module Description

This module aims to:

1. Enable students to identify the key issues which lie at the core of a fair and just Criminal Justice System
2. Introduce students to the concepts of human rights, values and ethics
3. Introduce students to the inherent conflicts within and between personal, operational and organisational ethics in a criminal justice context
4. Using practical examples, demonstrate the challenges presented to governments and practitioners in balancing the rights of individuals with those of society at large
5. Enable students to describe and critically assess an organisational culture where ethical decision making and respect for human rights underpins practice

Module Content

1. Human Rights

2. Ethics and Values

3. Personal ethics and values

4. Covert measures – ethical or not?

5. Organisational ethics

6. Performance management

7. The Crime and Disorder Act 1998: Communitarian protectionism versus individual rights

8. The Crime and Disorder Act in relation to Anti‐Social Behaviour Orders

9. Terrorism

10. The National DNA Database

11. Prison overcrowding

Intended Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module the student will be able to:

• Define human rights, values and ethics in the context of criminal justice
• Recognise the conflicts within and between personal, operational and organisational values and ethics
• Identify the need for personal and organisational accountability in the Criminal Justice System
• Identify and critically evaluate practical examples where the balance of rights and responsibilities between individuals and the wider society have been questioned in the Criminal Justice System
• Critically evaluate some ethical conflicts faced by criminal justice practitioners

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