Hope Within The Legal Field by Rachel

Hope Within The Legal Field by Rachel - June 2020 Scholarship Essay

My intended career field is to work in the legal field and my ultimate goal is to become a lawyer or attorney. With this intended career, there is a great deal of change that I hope to bring. One of my greatest hopes is to be an integral part of reforming weaknesses in the criminal justice system. My major is criminal justice and criminology, so I hope that the knowledge and experiences I garner in those fields during my undergraduate years will bolster my insight into the many flaws of the system and provide me the tools to identify and fix them.
For most non-violent crimes, I believe that rehabilitation is usually a more optimal approach versus incarceration. Rehabilitation can help a person learn how to behave differently and provide tools to correct their wrongs, thus making it much more likely they make better future choices. Another critical component of reforming the criminal justice system is working to reform stigmas associated with parole officers and police officers.
Parole officers are unfortunately often underpaid and overworked. The job would likely attract stronger candidates if it paid more and parole officers would perform better if they did not have the enormous case load they often do. This would be a crucial step to help criminals who come out of prison better transition into their normal life again, with a smaller chance of them breaking parole and returning to the system.
Law enforcement, particularly police officers also needs reform. If officers were required to endure more schooling and training, and pass stringent requirements to curb current bias based on race, gender, or sexuality, it would greatly increase the trust that the public currently has with the police. More schooling would help police officers to better understand the history of policing and decrease the amount of mistakes that they make on the job. I believe that this is necessary as they often have people's lives in their hands and they should not be legally allowed to treat people differently just simply based on the color of their skin in a fair justice system. Community based policing is another fantastic way for police to help increase trust from the public in law enforcement. I would greatly advocate for that as it helps to reduce crime, makes neighborhoods feel safer, and builds stronger communities.
My goal is to use the power that I have as a lawyer for good. Successful lawyers often have the connections and means to create change in their community. I want to work on pro bono cases where the criminal justice system appears unjust. I want to work to reform the law enforcement and criminal justice systems that we have in place right now. I want to work to create a greater sense of trust in the police. I want to be a lawyer who redefines the hope in humanity. I want to be that type of lawyer.