Assignment task:
The concept of the "Crime Funnel" provides a framework for grasping the intricacies of the legal system workings as it tracks the progression of crimes from inception to various stages like reporting and conviction, through a lens focusing on attrition at each phase due to factors like plea bargaining practices leading to a significant drop in arrests or convictions, for serious offenses. It is known that 95% of convictions in U.S. Courts come from guilty pleas rather than trials. This shows that plea bargaining is a crucial part of the criminal justice system, not just an afterthought (Lerman et al., 2021). This highlights the difficulties law enforcement and the judicial systems encounter in upholding accountability and delivering justice for crimes. In response to the concerns raised by the Crime Funnel report¸, law enforcement agencies are now emphasizing preventative measures to combat crime (Ratcliffe, 2016). These approaches entail gathering and evaluating intelligence to pinpoint wrongdoers and take action before criminal acts take place¸, which is particularly effective in dealing with recurrent offenders and crime-ridden regions¸ enabling authorities to deploy resources with greater precision and impactively. Collaborative partnerships between university researchers and law enforcement have improved data collection and analysis methods. This collaboration has been instrumental in developing strategic crime prevention approaches (Burkhardt et al., 2016).