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THE CRIMINAL CASE
Mr. DeMario
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THE TWO SYSTEMS OF OF CRIMINAL
COURTS
The Federal Courts
Circuit Court of Appeals
The State Courts
State Supreme Court
State Trial Court
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THE TWO SYSTEMS OF OF CRIMINAL
COURTS
Criminal Lawyers
After law sch
ool (7 years total) lawyers must passthe bar exam in the state they practice law
Lawyers can practice in all areas of the law, but
most specialize in particular fields
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PROSECUTORS
Government employees
Represent the public and present the
governments case against th
e defendant
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PROSECUTORS
Represent the public and present the
governments case against a defendant incriminal cases
Must also decide wh
eth
er to bring ch
arges,what the charges are, and whether or not to
change or drop charges
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DEFENSE ATTORNEYS
Prepare and present the defendants case at a
trial
Public defender work full time for the
government representing criminals wh
o cannotafford a lawyer
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THE CRIMINAL CASE PROCESS
Basic to every criminal case are facts
Evidence facts, tangible and non-tangible,
used to prove a case
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INVESTIGATION AND ARREST
What it is:
Arrest is the taking of a criminal suspect into
custody to charge the suspect with a crime
What is required: An arrest must be based on probable cause and
must be made:
Or
Without a warrant under one of the judicially
recognized exceptions to the fourth amendment
warrant requirements
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ARREST
Who may arrest:
Depending on the jurisdiction, arrests may be
carried out by:
Check out chart on top of page 125 FelonyDefendants (by most serious arrest charge)
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POLICE CRIME INVESTIGATION
REPORT
Page 124
Step 1: read report P124-125
Answer discussion questions on page 126 #1-2
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PRETRIAL
Purpose:
To make sure t
hat t
he criminal knows t
heir rig
hts
and are not abused by authorities
States may require that this first appearance
happens within a specified time range (48 hours)
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PRETRIAL PROCEDURE
The judge informs the suspect of the right to
counsel (lawyer)
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BAIL
Judge sets bail for both misdemeanors and
felonies
in felony cases, th
e judge must eith
er
Release the arrestee without bail
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BAIL
If they do not, they need a bail bond company
to post th
e necessary amountHave to pay them a fee usually 10-20%
If defendants post bail and show up for trial,
they get bail money back
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CRITERIA FOR SETTING BAIL
The likelihood that the defendant will remain inthe state and appear in court
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RELEASE ON OWN RECOGNIZANCE
Second method of pretrial release is release on
ones own recognizance
Judge releases a criminal suspect after t
hesuspect promises to return for trial
Must be convinced that the defendant will not
leave town
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PLEABARGAINING
Can occur at almost any stage in the criminal
case
Typically, plea bargaining only occurs between
the two sets of lawyers and does not involve the
judge
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CRITICISMS OF PLEA BARGAINING
Eliminates safeguards that are guaranteed
during a trial Lets defendants off the hook too often
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SUPPORTERS OF PLEA BARGAINING
Saves money and time
Keeps police and investigators on the streetand out of the courtroom
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PLEA BARGAINING DISCUSSION
QUESTIONS
Try to answer #1-2 on page 137 on your own
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PROBABLE CAUSE HEARING
Purpose
Before trial, court must find there is probable cause
that a crime was committed and the arrestee
committed it
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TYPES OF HEARINGS
Preliminary hearings
Grand
Jury
If the majority of jurors find probable cause, then
the court moves on with the indictment
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ARRAIGNMENT
Either not guilty, guilty or no contest (same asguilty BUT does not hold up in a civil case)
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TRIAL
Procedures
Opening statements
Closing arguments
Instructions to the jurors
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JURY SELECTION
Prosecution and defense attorneys pose
questions to jurors in order to select a jury
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OPENING STATEMENTS
Both the prosecution and defense prepare
opening statements
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PRESENTING EVIDENCE
Prosecution presents evidence first, questions
witnesses
Direct Examination:
Cross-Examination: opposing lawyer questions
the same witness, looking for weaknesses in
the testimony
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CLOSING ARGUMENTS
Each lawyer summarizes what has beenestablished, or what has not been established
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JURY DELIBERATIONS
Jurors meet in the jury room to talk about the
case
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THE COURTROOM SETTING
Page 142 #1-3
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DIRECT VS. CIRCUMSTANTIAL
EVIDENCE
Direct evidence: one or more elements of a
given crime
A witness hears the suspect say they are going to
kill the victim
Circumstantial evidence: indirectly supports
one or more elements of a crime
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EVIDENCE RULES
Review the rules on pages 153-157
Class activity: Objection
For cases A-L1. should an objection be made (yes or no)
2. give a reason for each answer