Criminal Justice Courses

CJ 101    5 credits
Introduction to Criminal Justice
Overview of the scope of the law enforcement officer’s role. Jurisdiction of local, state and federal agencies, career opportunities, and qualifications for recruitment are emphasized. Includes administration of justice concepts.

CJ 110    5 credits
Police Organization and Administration
Introduces principles, concepts and theories relating to a police organization and administration within line and staff functions in the uniformed and investigative units.

CJ 120    5 credits
Introduction to Criminal Law
Basic concepts of Titles 9 and 9A of the Revised Code of Washington are presented in this course. Elements, purposes and functions of criminal law are emphasized.

CJ 130    5 credits
Introduction to Juvenile Justice
Course covers the elements, functions and purpose of juvenile law. Arrest, detention, petition, records, interviewing interrogation, overview of contributing factors to delinquency and the officer’s role in prevention are emphasized.

CJ 140    5 credits
Criminal Justice Report Writing
Presents technical writing content specific to the criminal justice system including standard grammar/punctuation and basic composition skills. Content includes forms such as traffic citations, traffic accidents or evidence tags, and a variety of technical reports for which information may be obtained from investigations, interrogations or other written reports.

CJ 150    5 credits
Laws of Arrest, Search and Seizure
Concepts of how to conduct a lawful arrest; search and seizure of suspects and evidence; and practicalities of conducting a search of persons, cars and houses are emphasized in this course.

CJ 201    5 credits
Criminal Investigations
Origins and development of criminal investigation. Emphasis on the scientific method, interrelationship of criminal investigations with criminalistics; recognition, documentation and collection of physical evidence; rules of evidence including admissibility, chain of custody and hearsay. Case studies will be used to illustrate the methodology of criminal investigation.

CJ 210    5 credits
Introduction to Corrections
Principles and practices of the corrections field are explored in this course. Objectives of probation and parole with an overview of rehabilitation methods and institutional settings are emphasized.

CJ 220    5 credits
Crime Scene Investigation
All aspects of crime scene investigations. Areas of emphasis include fundamentals and techniques of investigations; crime scene search; field applications in the development, collection and preservation of physical evidence. Classification and rules of evidence, admissibility, weight and value of evidence, witnesses, and presentation of evidence in court also are included.

CJ 230    5 credits
Crisis Intervention
Theories of perception, emotion, motivation, personality and nonverbal communication used as tools by police officers in everyday contacts. Understanding and predicting human behavior in common police situations. Students develop objective approaches to human relations problems and the ability to exercise skills in personal power and nonjudgmental communication.

CJ 240    5 credits
Introduction to Traffic Investigations
Students gain basic skills and knowledge in traffic accident investigation. Practical applications and techniques required to conduct a field investigation are emphasized. Basics of traffic control and traffic laws also are presented.

CJ 250    5 credits
CJ Professional Development
Self-development activities are provided to assist students in gaining employment after graduation. Activities include civil service examinations, both written and oral, and exercises in professional conduct. Each student will go through initial physical assessments, physical training and final physical assessment in preparation for hiring standards and academy level testing standards.

CJ 260   5 credits
Introduction to White Collar Crime
Examines concepts, extent and costs of white-collar and organized crime. “Upperclass” offenders are described/contrasted to the common “street” criminals. Individual/organizational forms of white-collar crime are reviewed and assessed. Special attention is paid to the use of criminal law in the control of what was once a civil arena.

CJ 261    5 credits
Law Enforcement Research Methods
Introduces concepts, approaches and methods for conducting and analyzing empirical research for criminal justice settings. Topics covered include: quantitative and qualitative research, surveying, sampling, data tabulation and assessing how to choose the appropriate method for specific law enforcement situations.

CJ 262    5 credits
Criminal Justice Interpersonal Communication Skills
Interpersonal communication skills and with practical applications for criminal justice settings. Topics include: effective listening, techniques for diffusing emotionally charged situations, recognizing criminal behavior dynamics, effective confrontation strategies, and identifying problematic behaviors. Designed to increase observation and articulation skills used in emotionally charged situations common in criminal justice environments.

CJ 196    1-5 credits
Cooperative Work Experience
Cooperative work experience is intended to provide authentic experiences in the world of work by applying knowledge and skills learned in the classroom to a working environment. Variable credit class. Prerequisites: instructor’s permission.

CJ 296    1-5 credits
Cooperative Work Experience
The second level of Cooperative Work Experience is intended to continue providing authentic experiences in the world of work by applying knowledge and skills learned in the classroom to a working environment. Variable credit class. Prerequisites: instructor’s permission.