What is accumulated disadvantage? In your opinion, how significant an effect does it have on the U.S. justice system?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Varies. A sample answer follows. "Accumulated disadvantage" means that seemingly small differences in how law enforcement officers, judges, corrections staffs, and others treat people can add up to a significant impact over time. If police officers in a neighborhood stop, question, and conduct searches of people of a certain ethnicity, then people of that ethnicity are more likely to be caught doing something wrong. And if that wrongdoing leads to charges and the justice system is also biased against people of that ethnicity, then people of that ethnicity will end up being convicted more often and will serve longer sentences. If that bias is in prisons, then corrections officers will punish that group more harshly and parole boards will deny parole to that group more often. Accumulated disadvantage has a serious and harmful effect on the justice system because it means that people are treated unfairly. It also contributes to prejudice in the larger society because many people say, "They must be bad people--look how many of them are in prison."