Administration of Justice
11 courses · Napa Valley College · 2026-2027 Catalog
Classes: Fall 2026 · Spring 2027
ADMJ-120 Introduction to the Criminal Justice System
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours total
- Transfers to
- UC, CSU
This course presents the evolution, history, and philosophy of the administration of justice. Topics presented include the American system of justice and the various sub-systems, Constitutional Rights, the roles and interrelationships of criminal justice agencies, theories of crime causation, concepts of crime accusations, punishments, and rehabilitation, and issues pertaining to ethics, bias, education, and training for participants in the criminal justice system. The course examines contemporary crime problem solving strategies and current issues facing the criminal justice system.
ADMJ-121 Introduction to Criminal Law
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours total
- Transfers to
- UC, CSU
This course offers an analysis of the doctrines of criminal liability in the United States and the classifications of crimes against persons, property, morals, and public welfare. Special emphasis is placed on the classification of crime, the general elements of crime, the definitions of common and statutory law, and the nature of acceptable evidence. This course utilizes case law and case studies to introduce students to criminal law. The completion of this course offers a foundation upon which upper-division criminal justice courses will build. The course will also include some limited discussion of prosecution and defense decision making, criminal culpability, and defenses to crimes.
ADMJ-122 Introduction to Criminal Procedures
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours total
- Transfers to
- CSU
This course examines the roles and responsibilities of each component of the criminal justice system when interacting with violators of the law. The students in this course will become familiar with the procedural rights of an accused from the time of an accusation until the completion of the sentence.
ADMJ-123 Introduction to Community Policing
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours total
- Transfers to
- UC, CSU
This course examines the complexities in the relationship between the criminal justice system and various demographics. The course emphasis relates specifically to the theoretical relationship between communities and the institutions of the justice system. The course examines the role and interplay of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, social class, culture, and the justice system from a historical and contemporary perspective. This course analyzes the challenges, including bias, and prospects of administering justice within a diverse, multicultural population in the United States and offers a comparative perspective of nonwestern societies.
ADMJ-124 Introduction to Investigation
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours total
- Transfers to
- CSU
This course addresses the techniques, procedures, and ethical issues in the investigation of crime, including organization of the investigative process, crime scene searches, interviewing and interrogating, surveillance, sources of information, utility of evidence, scientific analysis of evidence and the role of the investigator in the trial process.
ADMJ-125 Introduction to Evidence
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours total
- Transfers to
- CSU
The origin, development, philosophy and constitutional basis of legal evidence; constitutional and procedural considerations affecting arrest and search and seizure; kinds and degrees of evidence, rules, and case studies. This course covers categories of evidence as well as legal rules governing its admission or exclusion in the criminal process.
ADMJ-130 Introduction to Juvenile Procedures
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours total
- Transfers to
- UC, CSU
This course is an examination of the origin, development, and organization of the Juvenile Justice System as it evolved in the American Justice System. The course explores the theories that focuses on Juvenile Law, courts and processes, and the constitutional protects extended to juveniles administered in the American Justice System.
ADMJ-140 Introduction To Crime Scene Investigation
- Units
- 4
- Hours
- 54 hours lecture; 54 hours lab; 108 hours total
- Transfers to
- CSU
This course introduces an in-depth analysis and discussion of the nature and significance of various types of physical evidence commonly found at a crime scenes. The course combines theoretical concepts associated with the use of physical evidence in the forensic setting with student involvement in the processing of simulated crime scenes.
ADMJ-190 Administration of Justice Internship
- Units
- 3
- Hours
- 18 hours lecture; 108 hours work experience; 126 hours total
- Transfers to
- CSU
A program designed to permit Administration of Justice students to work as interns inside various agencies associated with law, law enforcement, courts, corrections, probation, Fish and Game, and private security. Students are evaluated by the agency and college staff. Internships frequently lead to employment in the agencies where assignments are made. Course requires 108 hours of paid or volunteer work experience. This course is repeatable up to 3 times.
ADMJ-199 Independent Study in Administration of Justice
- Units
- 1-3
- Hours
- 54-162 hours lab; 54-162 hours total
- Prerequisite
- Assessment by the Instructor.
- Transfers to
- CSU
An independent study course for students with an interest in projects outside the regular curriculum.
ADMJ-200 Criminal Justice In Action In The U.S. And Abroad
- Units
- 1-3
- Hours
- 18 hours lecture; 18 hours total
- Transfers to
- CSU
This course is a survey of criminal justice systems here in the United States and abroad including law enforcement, judicial systems, and corrections. It includes an examination of related historical landmarks, community policing and a comparison of foreign systems of justice to those in the United States.