Jury Trial Analysis Outline Taylor Drake CJA 364 April 21, 2014 Roderick Shelton Jury Trial Analysis Outline I. Introduction A. When a crime has occurred and a person or persons are arrested, the criminal process begins. B. After booking, the accused will have an initial appearance where right to counsel is applied and the defendant will be notified of why they are being detained.
Justification and excuse will be described as well as the outcome of each case. Types of Defense A defense consists of evidence and arguments offered by a defendant and his or her attorney to show why a person should not be held liable for a criminal charge. There are two types of defenses, factual and legal. Factual defense is when an individual insist he or she did not do it. Legal defenses can have a signification effect on disposition of the case.
As you can see by the definition, there are big differences between interview and interrogation. The main difference is that interview is asking the witnesses of the crime and interrogation is questioning the ones that are said to have committed the crime. 2. Identify the rule when Miranda warnings are required. “The Miranda rule is to be conducted when the suspect is in custody and the officer is about to conduct the interrogation.” (Hess Orthmann & Hess, 2013).
Prosecutorial Discretion Prosecutors play very important roles in the courtroom. Prosecutors are granted the right by the courts to have discretion upon a case. Although, prosecutors are obligated to execute the law at both federal and state levels, they still hold the discretion of what charges to try and convict the defendant on. Prosecutors have a wide range of authority in the courts; therefore, the active prosecutor(s) must efficiently analyze any evidence being presented in a case in order to determine if the case will be strong enough to withhold a trial or even if the accused defendant is chargeable. In the case of Bordenkircher v. Hayes (1978), the court stated, “so long as the prosecutor has probable cause to believe that the accused committed an offense defined by statute, the decision whether or not to prosecute, and what charge to file or bring before a grand jury, generally rests entirely in his discretion.” Although there are many factors that come into play when a prosecutor is considering dismissing a case, the most prominent issues are state and federal resources, time, and investigative teams.
Witnesses are present in the courtroom to give testimonies about facts pertaining to the case. Witnesses can be present to help the accused proving his or her innocence or they could be there to make sure the accused punishment fits the crime they have committed. Witnesses fall into three categories; plaintiff’s witnesses, government’s
After the officers have the information they need “evidence is collected, if possible.” If the suspect is still on the scene they are arrested and brought to booking. (Schmalleger, 2009) During the arrest the suspect is read their Miranda Rights before they are questioned or took into custody. “If the suspect is caught in the act the officer can
With the information it is formal, written accusation submitted to a court by a prosecutor, alleging that a specified person has committed a specified offense. The indictment it is a formal, written accusation submitted to the court by a grand jury, alleging that a specified person has committed a specified offense, usually a felony. After you have the indictment sometimes you go in front of the grand jury. Then you go for your arraignment it is the first appearance of the defendant before the court that has the authority to conduct a trial. A trial is a criminal proceeding that examines in the court of the issues of fact and relevant law in a case for the purpose of convicting or acquitting the defendant.
The Bill of Rights Introduction to Criminal Justice March 3, 2013 There are many legal rights that we have during a trial. This Bill of Rights provides certain rights to criminal defendants during trial. There are two aspects of the U.S. criminal justice system and they are the defendant is innocent until the prosecution can prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt (NOLO: Law for All, 2013). Defendants have many other rights and here they will be discussed. The right to confront witnesses is stated that in the sixth amendment “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to be confronted with the witness against him.” They are allowed to participate in the accused’s trial process.
Going before a grand jury is favorable to the prosecutor because the jury only hears what the prosecutor has to say and will then deliberate whether the case should go to trial or not. Before a preliminary hearing ever occurs the prosecutor has to file a complaint within forty-eight hours following the defendant’s arrest. At the preliminary hearing, the hearing judge will seek to determine whether there is probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed and that the defendant committed it. All of the witnesses are brought to the court and the defense will cross examine the witnesses. During the hearing the defense will motion to suppress any evidence against them that could lead to a guilty plea.
Allen Charge-In criminal law, an instruction given by a judge to encourage a deadlocked jury to make a renewed effort to reach a verdict. Named after Allen v. United States (1896). attorney-client privilege- is a legal concept that protects certain communications between a client and his or her attorney and keeps those communications confidential.The attorney–client privilege is one of the oldest recognized privileges for confidential communications. [1] The United States Supreme Court has stated that by assuring confidentiality the privilege encourages clients to make "full and frank" disclosures to their attorneys, who are then better able to provide candid advice and effective representation. A bench trial is a trial[->0] held before