Role of the FBI in the United States Criminal Justice System Research Paper

Role of the FBI in the United States Criminal Justice System - Research Paper Example Moreover, the FBI may also conduct investigations abroad but only if possible and if permitted by the government of the country in which it will conduct its investigation. The main concern of the FBI and the core of its mission is providing â€Å"criminal justice services to federal, state, municipal, and international agencies and partners† (â€Å"Overview,† 2012). This means that the role of the FBI encompasses and overlaps that of any law enforcement agency of the United States provided such a case is of a federal or national concern. The history of FBI began in July 1908 when then Attorney General Charles Bonaparte called for a small group of investigators that will report directly to the Department of Justice. This small group became known as the Bureau of Investigation or the BOI, and the first types of cases handled by the BOI included land fraud, copyright violations, prostitution, auto theft and other less serious crimes. In World War I, President Woodrow Wilson ordered the BOI to include among its tasks he investigations of possible espionage, sedition and sabotage. In 1924, when the BOI was under Director John Edgar Hoover, there was intensive demand for strict professionalism within the organization and this system of discipline has been implemented until now. In 1935, the BOI was renamed as the Federal Bureau of Investigation or FBI, and it was then that its tasks included the investigation of kidnapping cases and the new provision provided for FBI officials to carry weapons and make arrests. In the 195 0s, the FBI became very active in the suppression and control of riots and organized crimes during the Civil Rights Movement. However, it was only in 1995, after the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, that the FBI began its work against domestic and international terrorism for the purpose of national security of the United States. In December 2004, the DI or Directorate