Contemporary Issues in Criminal Justice

• Credit value: 30 credits at Level 7
• Convenors: Dr Amy Kirby and team
• Assessment: a 4000-word essay (100%)

In this module we introduce you to a range of contemporary issues and debates within the field of criminal law and criminal justice. The module is organised through a set of case studies, with each topic chosen because of its substantive significance to the field and to showcase the world-leading research expertise of Birkbeck staff. Together the seminars examine various aspects of the contemporary criminal justice institutional landscape, policy and practice from a range of theoretical and methodological perspectives.

Indicative syllabus 

• Critical approaches to contemporary issues in criminal justice institutions
• Postmodern penality? Neoliberalism, punishment and current trends in women’s imprisonment
• Institutions of control: the criminalisation of homelessness
• Racialising crime and criminalising race: policing 'gangs' in England and Australia
• The criminal courts and questions of legitimacy
• The cultural politics of violence: thinking critically about #MeToo
• Constructions of victims and perpetrators
• Borders of punishment
• Drug laws and drug wars

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• identify bodies of literature and key scholars working on a range of criminal justice topics that reflect contemporary issues and developments in criminal justice studies and practice
• understand the key components of a range of theoretical and methodological perspectives and explain their different strengths and weaknesses.