Criminology

CRM 100 - Introduction to Canadian Criminal Justice
Course DescriptionThis course introduces students to the administrative and institutional components of the Canadian criminal justice system and the principles that govern it. The course will be organized around the police, courts, correctional systems, and will take a critical approach to both the formal principles of justice as they apply to this system, as well as how they are woven into the process at various stages. (Formerly JUS 300.)
Weekly Contact:Lecture 2 hrs. Lab 1 hr.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
CRM 101 - Understanding Crime in Canadian Society
Course DescriptionThis course provides students with practical and theoretical knowledge to think critically about crime and the social response to it in Canada. Students will learn how to analyze and theorize about crime and criminalization. The course will conclude with a detailed analysis of one or more specific crimes in order to apply the concepts and materials presented throughout the term. CRM 101 is not available for credit to students who choose CRM 102.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Liberal Studies:LL
Antirequisites:CRM 102
CRM 102 - Introduction to Criminology
Course DescriptionThis course provides a foundation for the theoretical, conceptual and policy considerations related to crime and justice in Canada. Students will be introduced to the main theoretical approaches to understanding crime (classical, positivist and critical theories), and the various ways in which each has shaped criminal justice policy in Canada. These issues will be brought together through an in-depth analysis of one or two current topics.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 2 hrs. Lab 1 hr.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Antirequisites:CRM 101
CRM 200 - Criminal Law
Course DescriptionStudents are introduced to the basic concepts and substance of the criminal law in Canada. The historical and theoretical foundations of criminal law, elements of an offence, and criminal defenses are considered. The role of criminal law in society, and its intersection with other forms of social regulation are highlighted. This course is not a technical legal course in criminal procedure; rather, it provides students with basic knowledge of criminal law in Canada.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 or (LAW 534 and in Law and Business or Law and Business Co-op program)
Antirequisites:LAW 400
CRM 201 - Making Public Order in Canada
Course DescriptionThis course examines the historical evolution of the project of creating and fostering public order in Canada. It will examine institutions and practices adopted for this purpose, including policing, prisons, quarantine stations, internment camps, schools and orphanages. It will contextualize these developments in larger processes, including colonialism, urbanization and shifting attitudes towards human rights and inequality. This historical framework will be used to initiate discussions on contemporary debates around public order.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 202 - Victims and the Criminal Process
Course DescriptionThis course has two emphases: theory and research on the nature of criminal victimization in Canada, and the role and experiences of victims of crime in the Canadian criminal justice system. The intersection of victimization with gender, race, class and other forms of social inequality will provide the context for an analysis of the extent to which the current criminal justice system does, or can, meet the broad range of victim needs. (Formerly JUS 601.)
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 204 - Criminal Justice Research and Statistics
Course DescriptionThis course gives students the practical research methods needed to statistically describe and analyze criminal justice phenomena. Emphasis throughout the course is on practical uses and application of these techniques to understand criminal justice issues, rather than on their mathematical derivations.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 2 hrs. Lab 1 hr.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 205 - Gender, Sexuality and the Law
Course DescriptionThis course explores gender and sexuality within the context of Canadian law and the criminal justice system. Students are introduced to the ways in which gender and sexuality structure legal thinking and practice, as well as how they intersect with race, ethnicity, class, and disability. The course employs a feminist socio-legal perspective on gendered and sexualized experiences of the law, and draws from diverse disciplines, including criminology, political science, sociology, history, disability studies, and women's studies.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
Antirequisites:CRM 515
CRM 206 - Race, Ethnicity and Justice
Course DescriptionThis course explores the connections between racialization and criminalization. Students are introduced to critical anti-racist and anti-colonialist perspectives on the role of race/ethnicity - and its intersection with gender, sexuality, class and age - in shaping social, political and legal ways of understanding 'crime' and 'justice'. We consider a range of avenues through which people and spaces are racialized and linked to crime as well as the possibility of using the law to obtain social justice.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 250 - Criminalizing Blackness
Course DescriptionThis course examines how the criminalization of Blackness operates through criminal justice and other institutions. It historicizes contemporary anti-Black state violence by tracing the logics of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, the years following emancipation, and neo-colonial relations. The course employs an interdisciplinary approach to understand how anti-Blackness intersects with ethnicity, gender, sexuality, citizenship status, and class to construct notions of criminality,deviance, and punishment. We explore liberatory possibilities drawn from community-led acts of resistance and mobilization.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 300 - Policing in Canada
Course DescriptionStudents are introduced to the concept of "policing" and the institutional and non-institutional forms it may take. The intersection of the uniformed, public police with other policing bodies, police discretion, culture and issues of accountability and governance are central to this course. The role of communities and developments in the global context provide the context for analysis of the future of democratic policing.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 302 - Criminological Theories
Course DescriptionThis course is an in-depth consideration of the main criminological theories of crime. We begin with the historical roots in positivism and classical thought. We then move toward contemporary theorists, including critical, feminist, and post-modern approaches, and their impact on how we understand and respond to crime.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 303 - Immigration and Refugee Protection in CJS
Course DescriptionThis course introduces students to the contemporary issues and challenges related to immigration and refugee law and policies as they intersect with the criminal justice system. It focuses on the increasing use of criminal law measures against migrants. The reasons of the criminalization are explored together with the impact of this process on the criminal justice system and on the situation of migrants. The course critically examines the role of criminal justice agents and discusses the best practices and strategies in advancing protection of migrants.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 304 - Youth Justice in Canada
Course DescriptionThis course considers the theoretical and policy issues which relate specifically to young people in conflict with the law and their intersection with legal systems in Canada. The focus of the course will be on an analysis of the historical development of a separate legal system for dealing with youthful offenders and the changes in discourses around youth crime that have been reflected in reforms to that system.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 306 - Corrections in Canada
Course DescriptionStudents are introduced to the philosophical trends and approaches within the correctional system in Canada. The focus will be on understanding the historical and political context of correctional practices and their impact on specific populations, such as women, Aboriginal people, and racialized communities. We end with an analysis of correctional practices in other jurisdictions, including capital punishment and the development of alternative approaches.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 308 - Criminal Courts in Canada
Course DescriptionThe focus of this course is on the structure and function of the criminal courts in Canada, with particular emphasis on the points of tension at various stages. Rather than being a course on the technical aspects of criminal prosecution, points of tension in the process will be considered through an analysis of a variety of topics, including pre-trial detention, sentencing, plea discussions and the wrongfully convicted.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 310 - Advanced Qualitative Research Methods
Course DescriptionThis advanced-level course will help students refine their research skills and enhance their research imaginations through skill-building activities and assignments. Students will utilize diverse qualitative research approaches, and will develop a critical awareness of their limitations and possibilities. The goal of the course is to teach students how to read, interpret, and conduct research so that they can eventually design and implement their own independent study.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:(ACS 301 or SSH 301) and (ACS 401 or CRM 204 or POG 230)
CRM 311 - Regulating Public Space
Course DescriptionThis course examines the regulation of public space. It traces the historical evolution of the state's efforts to place restrictions on the public's right to occupy spaces like streets and parks. By focusing on issues such as crowd control, vagrancy laws and public protest, the course will address broader themes, including the intersection of policing, power and the law, while demonstrating how contemporary approaches to these issues are socially and historically constructed.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 312 - Representing Crime
Course DescriptionThis course examines the ways in which crime is represented in a range of social and political institutions, such as the media, cultural arenas (museums, film, novels and the true crime genre, politics), within government institutions (police, prisons) and in the community. Particular emphasis will be placed on underlying themes and symbols that represent various dimensions of crime, including fear, offending, victimization, crime prevention, punishment, retribution and justice.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 314 - Criminal Justice and the Charter
Course DescriptionThe impact of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms on the criminal justice system in Canada is examined. Both individual members of society as well as the agencies of criminal justice (police, courts, corrections) are considered.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 315 - Advanced Quantitative Research Methods
Course DescriptionThis course provides an overview of key practices and applications of quantitative research methods as well as more advanced descriptive and inferential analyses, data modification techniques, and diagnostic tests. There will be an emphasis on critically applying these tools to understand criminal justice phenomena and interpreting statistical findings, rather than on their mathematical derivations. An important element of this course will involve a research project where students carry out an independent quantitative research study.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 2 hrs. Lab 1 hr.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101) and (CRM 204 or POG 230)
CRM 316 - International Perspectives
Course DescriptionThis course provides a critical analysis of international developments in criminal justice. We consider various models of criminal law and its administration across jurisdictions. An important component of this course will be the consideration of international crimes such as crimes against humanity, genocide and the establishment of the International Criminal Court.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 317 - Special Topics in Criminology/Law
Course DescriptionThis course will focus on a defined subject area with the field of Criminology or Law. The substantive course content will be based on the specific expertise and interest of the professor and current issues in the field.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 318 - Violence and Communities
Course DescriptionThis course explores a variety of issues related to the topic of communities in terms of denoting both geographic space and social networks and crime. Students will critically evaluate such topics as the stereotypes associated with and representations of certain communities, the spatial distribution of violent crime, gentrification and crime, the effects of policing and punishment on communities, and the efficacy of area-based crime prevention initiatives that are currently popular in many North American jurisdictions.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 322 - Ethics in Criminal Justice
Course DescriptionThis course introduces students to the ethical foundations of justice, and their implications and applications at various junctures in the criminal justice system. Ethics in public and private policing, the legal profession (defense, prosecution, judiciary), and punishment are given in-depth consideration. Emphasis will be placed on a case study approach, and student-led analyses.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 324 - Security Threats
Course DescriptionThis course introduces the students to some traditional as well as non-traditional security threats currently challenging Canada and the global community. Students will critically evaluate such topics as transnational organized crime, international terrorism, human trafficking, money laundering and drug trafficking in order to assess the effectiveness of current legal and non-legal methods in dealing with these phenomena.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 335 - History and Politics of Abolition
Course DescriptionThis course will examine the case for abolishing criminal justice systems and institutions. We will explore the roots of abolitionist work and thought, highlighting resistance to slavery and colonization, and critically engage contemporary movements for the abolition of policing, prisons and other carceral spaces of containment. The course will take a broad range of approaches to understanding arguments in favour of abolition, foregrounding alternatives and the work of those most impacted by unjust systems of power.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100
CRM 350 - Cyber Criminology
Course DescriptionThis course asks critical questions about the nature of crimes (e.g. hacking, pirating, cyber fraud, and online hate and harassment) and criminal justice responses that have emerged as a result of the invention and popularization of technologies such as the computer, internet, and smartphone.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 or CRM 101
CRM 400 - Indigenous Governance/Justice
Course DescriptionThis course examines the social, political and historical context of Aboriginal peoples in Canada, their experiences of colonialism, assimilation and genocide, their contemporary struggles for sovereignty in relationship to the Canadian state with special focus on the institutions of criminal justice.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 or (POG 110 and POG 210) or POG 240 or (POL 101 and POL 102)
Antirequisites:POG 440, PPA 124
CRM 402 - Criminal Justice and Social Inequality
Course DescriptionThis course examines various form of social inequality as they intersect with the criminal justice system in Canada. The course will challenge the notion of an objective, value-neutral criminal justice system, and will consider the impact of operational and policy decisions on race, class, gender and other forms of social inequality. Topics will include systemic racism, gender discrimination, the over-representation of people who live in poverty and other relevant issues.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
Antirequisites:JUS 400
CRM 404 - Debates In Justice Policy
Course DescriptionThis course will examine the development and implementation of controversial criminal justice policies, and the impact of these policies on various communities. We approach this examination through policy case studies, some examples may include drugs, sex work, HIV/AIDS, immigration, prisons, etc. Consideration will be given to the socio-political context in which the policies emerge and as the influence of various levels of government, interest groups, and the broader public in shaping the policy area
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and (CRM 102 or CRM 101)
CRM 406 - Seminar in Criminal Justice
Course DescriptionThis course will provide an in-depth examination of a specific area of criminal justice. The instructor will determine content, based on emerging issues that are not covered in detail in the curriculum. Students are expected to take a lead role in this course and are required to make at least one presentation.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Prerequisites:CRM 100 and CRM 322
CRM 515 - Gendering Justice
Course DescriptionThis course draws on feminist theoretical frameworks to explore gendered experiences of the Canadian criminal justice system. Students will be introduced to gender and the law through feminist and socio-legal scholarship on a range of topics, which may include marriage and the family, violence and sexual assault, work and labour, prisons and other spaces of confinement, and more. The course will advance an intersectional approach that examines how the law structures and is structured by race, class, and sexuality. (This course is not available to Criminology students)
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Liberal Studies:UL
Antirequisites:CRM 205
Custom Requisites:Not available to Criminology Students
CRM 601 - Violence in Society
Course DescriptionThis course is designed to provide students with the skills to think critically about various forms of interpersonal violence and the social response to it. The course will conclude with a detailed analysis of the major policies which have emerged to deal with violence, such as zero tolerance policies, traditional approaches to crime prevention, increasing criminal sanctions and, finally, the implementation of alternatives to the criminal process.
Weekly Contact:Lecture 3 hrs.
GPA Weight:1.00
Billing Units:1
Count:1.00
Liberal Studies:UL