Discovering Justice in a Digital World: Reimagining intro Criminal Justice Education
Faculty Mentor
Qiping Zhang
Area of Research
Interdisciplinary - Criminal Justice and Information Studies
Major
Ph.D. in Information Studies
Description
INTRODUCTION: This poster presents the published textbook, Introduction to Criminal Justice in a Technological Age, authored by Elizanne Warren-Russell, MS (2026), PhD student at LIU Post, and adjunct faculty at Farmingdale State College. It addresses the urgent need for introductory materials that integrate digital tools, data systems, and information infrastructures across lower-level undergraduates and interdisciplinary education.
METHOD: The textbook followed the traditional introductory pattern with history and foundation: definition of crime, law, and justice. It then introduced the concept of crime, data, and technology in the criminal justice field. The textbook then moves to specific fields and how technology is deployed: police (roles, culture, and legitimacy; technology, patrol and investigation, predictive policing, AI, and ethics), courts (court structures, personnel, and process, pretrial justice, risk and bail, trial, sentencing, and technology), and corrections (prisons and jails and institutional correction, community corrections and technology, reentry), ending with a chapter on the future of criminal justice. This textbook integrates core criminal justice content, including history, institutions, and processes, with technology themes like surveillance, AI decision-making, digital evidence, and cybersecurity, modernizing each chapter with features such as scenario-based case studies, discussion questions, practice activities linking theory to real-world applications, and end-of-chapter library exercises that guide students through scholarly databases, government reports, and professional resources to build research skills.
RESULTS: The textbook integrates digital tools, data systems, and information infrastructures across core criminal justice topics and provides structured learning features to support student engagement and skill development.
DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: Introduction to Criminal Justice in a Technological Age aligns criminal justice education at the intersection of law, technology, and information studies by positioning how data, digital records, and information infrastructures shape contemporary justice work. By engaging students with library resources to evaluate sources and navigate databases, it fosters information literacy vital for evidence-informed policy, practice, and advocacy. This book equips learners to thrive as critical consumers and producers of information in digital environments, bridging criminal justice with information science for innovative, interdisciplinary career paths.
Discovering Justice in a Digital World: Reimagining intro Criminal Justice Education
INTRODUCTION: This poster presents the published textbook, Introduction to Criminal Justice in a Technological Age, authored by Elizanne Warren-Russell, MS (2026), PhD student at LIU Post, and adjunct faculty at Farmingdale State College. It addresses the urgent need for introductory materials that integrate digital tools, data systems, and information infrastructures across lower-level undergraduates and interdisciplinary education.
METHOD: The textbook followed the traditional introductory pattern with history and foundation: definition of crime, law, and justice. It then introduced the concept of crime, data, and technology in the criminal justice field. The textbook then moves to specific fields and how technology is deployed: police (roles, culture, and legitimacy; technology, patrol and investigation, predictive policing, AI, and ethics), courts (court structures, personnel, and process, pretrial justice, risk and bail, trial, sentencing, and technology), and corrections (prisons and jails and institutional correction, community corrections and technology, reentry), ending with a chapter on the future of criminal justice. This textbook integrates core criminal justice content, including history, institutions, and processes, with technology themes like surveillance, AI decision-making, digital evidence, and cybersecurity, modernizing each chapter with features such as scenario-based case studies, discussion questions, practice activities linking theory to real-world applications, and end-of-chapter library exercises that guide students through scholarly databases, government reports, and professional resources to build research skills.
RESULTS: The textbook integrates digital tools, data systems, and information infrastructures across core criminal justice topics and provides structured learning features to support student engagement and skill development.
DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: Introduction to Criminal Justice in a Technological Age aligns criminal justice education at the intersection of law, technology, and information studies by positioning how data, digital records, and information infrastructures shape contemporary justice work. By engaging students with library resources to evaluate sources and navigate databases, it fosters information literacy vital for evidence-informed policy, practice, and advocacy. This book equips learners to thrive as critical consumers and producers of information in digital environments, bridging criminal justice with information science for innovative, interdisciplinary career paths.