Quiz questions - Criminal Evidence and Procedure

Which of the following defines the factual elements of a criminal offense?

Substantive criminal law

Which actor in the criminal justice system has the responsibility of deciding whether to formally charge a suspect?

Prosecutor

Which of the following is not a standard sentence following a criminal conviction?

Restitution

Including the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., there are ____ circuit courts in the United States?

Thirteen

United States Supreme Court eras are typically named after:

The chief justice of that court

Which of the following is the standard by which the prosecution must prove guilt in a criminal trial?

Beyond a reasonable doubt

Which of the following was identified as a primary way for a case to reach the Supreme Court?

Writ of certiorari

List the objectives of criminal procedure

Accuracy, efficiency, respect, fairness, equality, adversarial, participation, appeals, and justice.

Which of the following is the primary source of the criminal procedure?

The U.S. Constitution

As a general rule, state constitutions:

Mirror the U.S. Constitution and grant additional rights

In which constitutional amendment is the Due Process Clause located?

Fourteenth Amendment

Striving for both efficiency and accuracy, which of the two competing models of criminal procedure?

Crime control and due process

Which of the following is the only crime mentioned by name in the United States Constitution?

Treason

Which of the following is not a provision addressing criminal procedure that can be found in the constitution?

Stop and frisk

Why was the Fourteenth Amendment added to the constitution?

To guarantee equal treatment and opportunity for African-Americans

Each of the following Amendments has been incorporated at least partially except:

Third Amendment

Name the four factors identified that are crucial in determining whether the people perceive that fair procedures are being employed in the criminal justice system.

Voice, neutrality, respect, and trust

What level of proof must be established to obtain a warrant

Probable cause

In old England, general warrants were used to search:

Any place for any reason at any time

The Fourth Amendment prohibits ______ searches without a warrant.

Unreasonable

Which of the following is not a feature that distinguishes curtilage from open fields?

Access

Prohibited substances, such as illegal narcotics, are known most commonly as:

Contraband

For an officer to seize an item via the plain view doctrine, it must be _______ that the object is evidence of criminality.

Immediate apparent

Which of the following enhancement scenarios is unconstitutional?

Using thermal-imaging equipment to measure heat emanating from a living room

Identify the two conditions that allow police to seize items without search warrants.

Legally situated and probable cause

When does a Fourth Amendment seizure of a person occur?

A Fourth Amendment seizure occurs when a law enforcement officer detains an individual and restricts his or her freedom of movement. They are not free to go.

Which of the following is not used to determine whether reasonable suspicion existed to justify a Terry Stop?

Probable cause

Which of the following is not considered a source of secondhand information?

Officer observations

Which of the following best lends credence to a tip provided by an anonymous informant?

The level of detail provided by the informant

To rely on race to stop or detail a person would be against the rights provided in the ______ and Fourteenth Amendments?

Fifth Amendment

What level of proof is required for law enforcement officers to make a stop?

Reasonable suspicion

The key element that differentiates a Terry stop from an arrest is:

The duration of the stop

As a general rule, which common law enforcement item can an officer not use while making a Terry stop?

Handcuffs

Courts have upheld frisks based on a combination of factors, which include all of the following except:

Suspect’s demographic make-up

What is a major limitation to the seizure of narcotics under the plain feel doctrine?

It must be “immediately apparent” (probable cause) to the officer that he or she is feeling illegal narcotics.

An arrest warrant is typically issued by a:

Magistrate

The United States Supreme Court has repeatedly stated that probable cause is a matter of:

Probabilities

Arrests with a warrant are preferable to warrantless arrests because magistrates are thought to be more ______ than an officer in the heat of the moment.

Informed and deliberate

Which of the following is not an observation an officer may rely on when making a probable cause determination?

Intuition

The requirement that warrants must specify what area is to be searched for which items or which items or person is to be seized is known as the ______ requirement.

Particularity

The original standard in the United States regarding deadly force was known as the:

Fleeing-felon rule

A sworn statement that is submitted by officers to the justice of the peace is referred to as a(n):

Affidavit

What must a police officer do to obtain a warrant?

Appear before a neutral and detached judge or magistrate

How may the legality of an arrest warrant be challenged?

Probable cause, Affidavit, and Procedural irregularity

Which of the following is the primary source of criminal procedure?

The U.S. Constitution

According to California v. Greenwood, can police officers look through garbage left on the curb for pickup?

Yes, if it is outside the curtilage, it has been abandoned

How far can a suspect be involuntarily moved during a Terry stop before it becomes an arrest?

Only a few feet

By what standard do the courts determine whether reasonable suspicion existed to justify a Terry stop?

The totality of the circumstances

What level of proof is required for law enforcement officers to make a stop?

Reasonable suspicion

Warrants are obtained for all but which of the following purposes?

To press charges

Which organization has the legal authority to interpret and apply the rules established on the United States Constitution?

The U.S. Supreme Court

Which of the following is the standard by which the prosecution must prove guilt in a criminal trial?

Beyond a reasonable doubt

United States Supreme Court eras are typically named after:

The chief justice of that court

In which constitutional amendment is the Due Process Clause?

Fourteenth Amendment

The concept of precedent, central to Supreme Court decision making, is based on which legal principle?

Stare decisis

Which of the following would not be considered a “house” as interpreted by the Fourth Amendment?

A restaurant dining room

Which of the following is the only crime mentioned by name in the United States Constitution?

Treason

Which of the following states that the United States Constitution and laws passed by the United States Congress eclipse state constitutions and state laws?

The Supremacy clause

To settle concerns over how the courts deal with past cases once a new rule has been decided by the United States Supreme Court, the courts apply the:

Retroactivity rule

Which of the following examples would be considered an unacceptable detention for a Terry Stop?

A traffic officer makes a suspect wait 3 hours in his vehicle for a drug dog

What level of proof must be established to obtain a warrant?

Probable cause

To exercise the plain view doctrine and seize an item, an officer must have probable cause to believe that the plainly observed object is evidence of criminal activity and:

Be lawfully positioned

An officer stops an individual for the purposes of a Terry stop; the officer has reasonable suspicion to do so. During the frisk the officer finds a small handgun, for which the person has a valid license to own and permit to carry. The officer also finds a small bag of cocaine. Can the officer seize the cocaine and use it as evidence at trial?

Yes, according to the “plain touch” rule, it is admissible

If a police officer decides not to file a charge, they are exercising:

Discretion

When may race act as the sole factor for a Terry stop?

Never

In which of the following situations does a person have a reasonable expectation of privacy?

Holding a conversation with an actual friend in a rented apartment

An individual who provides information about criminal activity to law enforcement is called an:

Informant

An accusation of criminal activity returned by the grand jury is called a(n):

Indictment

This is an area immediately surrounding the home, and it is considered part of the home.

Curtilage

A governmental intrusion on an individual’s expectation of privacy is called:

Search

This is when the entire court (all justices) from an appellate or supreme court sits and hears a case:

En Banc

When a police officer pats down the outer clothing of a suspect is called a:

Frisk

This is what occurs when a reasonable person would not believe themselves to be free to leave or to otherwise terminate an encounter:

Seizure

This is what occurs when stopping or arresting individuals because of their race, ethnicity, religion, or other characteristic rather than because of their actions:

Racial profiling

According to the text, how should facts be judged?

Facts should be judged by their ability to be verified (corroborated) with reliable evidence, presented in a clear and objective matter, rather than relying on subjective conclusions or opinions. Facts should be articulated clearly, allowing for easy understanding. 

List the four provisions that address criminal procedure in the U.S. Constitution:

Habeas corpus, ex post facto laws, jury trials, and treason

Identify the three categories of property that lack a expectation of privacy under the Fourth Amendment:

Public, commercial, and abandoned

Identify the sources of law (procedure):

U.S. Constitution, judicial decisions, state constitutions, common law, legislative statutes, court rules, agency regulations, and model codes

The procedural rule requiring officers to announce their presence before entering a home is known and the __________ rule.

Knock and announce

In which of the following scenarios can an officer not conduct a search incident to arrest/citation?

A seemingly violent man is issued a citation for speeding.

In which of the following scenarios is it most likely that voluntary consent to submit to a search will not be found?

A suspect is taken into custody and then consents to a search of his vehicle

Which of the following is a reasonable amount of time to wait before an officer forcibly enters the home after notifying the inhabitants of his presence?

The amount of time varies with the circumstances

Two roommates share an apartment, sharing all rooms except their separate bedrooms. Which of the following rooms can one roommate grant consent to a search?

Bathroom, living room, and kitchen

What standard of proof is required for police to search an automobile using the automobile exception?

Probable cause

Upon which party does the burden of proof rest and to what degree must it be established in an attempt to establish the voluntariness of a consent search?

The prosecution must prove voluntariness by a preponderance of the evidence

In which of the following cases did the Supreme Court establish the automobile exception?

Carroll v. U.S.

The United States Supreme Court decisions in Robinson and Gustafson established a bright-line rule. The fact of an arrest authorizes a search incident to arrest regardless of the offense for which a suspect is arrested. Why did the supreme court adopt this bright-line approach?

Judicial review, safety, evidence, and privacy.

This type of circumstances requires a warrant:

Absent consent or exigent circumstances, arrests in the home require a warrant.

Is it possible for an arrest to occur without an officer specifically stating to an individual that he is under arrest?

Yes, a de facto arrest may occur based on the totality of the circumstances and a reasonable person standard.

This is not a form of an arrest:

Informal arrest

These are all forms of an arrest:

Custodial, de facto, and formal

Probable cause is not based on:

Certainties

Probable cause is based on:

Practical evaluation of the totality of the facts, common sense, and probabilities.

All of the following are aspects of informant information to be considered established in Illinois v. Gates:

Future action, type of information, and corroboration

Arrests with a warrant are preferable to warrantless arrests because magistrates are thought to be more ______ than an officer in the heat of the moment.

Informed and deliberate

The requirement that warrants must specify what area is to be searched for which items or which item or person is to be seized is known as the ______ requirement.

Particularity

In which of the following circumstances must an officer obtain a warrant?

When an officer suspects someone may be engaging in criminal behavior based on his reputation alone.

The reasonableness clause is a component of the ______ Amendment.

Fourth Amendment

The particularity requirement must identify which of the following?

Place to be searched

All of the following are explanations frequently cited as justification for the knock-and-announce rule except:

 

Minimization of neighborhood fear of police