Courts and Society FINAL!!!

Most convictions result from...

From a voluntary plea by the accused

How many defendants go to trial?

Only a handful, most convictions result from a voluntary plea by the accused.

What percentage of all state and felony convictions are obtained by defendants entering a guilty plea?

95 percent

Plea Bargaining

the process through which a defendant pleas guilty (or no contest) to a criminal charge with the expectation of receiving a reduced sentence.

Types of Plea Agreements

Typically a plea agreement will take one or more of three forms:

1. Charge bargaining,

2. Count bargaining,

3. Sentence bargaining

Charge Bargaining

In return for a plea of guilty, the prosecutor allows the defendant to plead guilty to a less serious charge than the one originally filed.

Count Bargaining

In return for a plea of guilty to one or more counts, the prosecutor dismisses some or all of the remaining charges.

Sentence Bargaining

a plea of guilty is entered in exchange for a promise of leniency in sentencing.

happens when a defendant is told in advance what their sentence will be if they plead guilty.

To improve their bargaining position some prosecutors...

deliberately overcharge

Prosecutors can threaten to

Throw the book at a defendant who does not plead.

The Primary benefit of a plea

is the possibility of a lenient sentence

The defendant must decide

whether to accept the plea offer or take their chances at trial.

Trial Tax

refers to a stiffer punishment imposed on a defendant who opts to proceed to trial rather than accepting a plea bargain.

When the judge extends a plea offer which is rejected by the defendant, and the defendant is later found guilty...

if the judge imposes a harsher sentence then the sentence is presumed to be vindictive.

Who has the power to reject a plea agreement?

Judges have the power to reject a plea agreement that was reached between a prosecutor and defendant.

Factors that effect the plea offer

Seriousness of the offense- the more serious the crime charged, the harder the prosecutor bargains

defendants criminal record- those with prior convictions receive fewer concessions

strength of the prosecutors case- the stronger the evidence against the defendant, the fewer concessions there are

Jury Trial Penalty

defendants who do not enter pleas of guilty can expect to receive harsher sentences as a consequence for going to trial

Research finds that the magnitude of the jury trial penalty is

"stunningly high"

The US Supreme Court has ruled that the Jury Trial Penalty (tax)

is not unconstitutional

In Bordenkircher v Hayes, the US Supreme Court held:

"The conduct engaged in by the prosecutor did not violate constitutional protections"

Due Process is not...

violated when a prosecutor indicates during plea negotiations that they will seek a harsher sentence at trial if the defendant does not plead guilty.

Before a defendants plea of "no contest" or "guilty" can be accepted, the judge must...

question the defendant to ensure that the plea is "intelligent and voluntary"

Accepting a Plea

Judges have discretion in deciding whether to accept the defendants plea of guilty.

After accepting a plea a criminal defendant does not...

have an absolute right under the Constitution to have his guilty plea accepted by the court.

The supreme court of the United states has ruled that...

It is not unconstitutional for a judge to accept a guilty plea from a defendant who wants to plead guilty while still protesting his innocence.

Alford Plea

A plea of guilty with a protestation of innocence.

Supporters of the due process model believe that plea bargaining...

undercuts the protections afforded individuals,

may lead to the conviction of innocent defendants,

and produces few tangible benefits for defendants.

Supporters of the crime control model believe that plea bargaining...

allows defendants to avoid conviction for crimes they actually committed,

results in lenient sentences

and in general gives criminals the impression that courts and the law are easily manipulated

The overwhelming majority of individuals who are accused of crime....

forgo their constitutional right to a trial and plead guilty

Trials are...

infrequent, yet important. Roughly 95 percent of all felony conviction result from guilty pleas

The primary purpose of the right to trial by jury...

was to protect the public from abuse by the government, prosecutors, and judges

The Seventh Amendment provides...

the right to trial by jury shall be preserved

The Sixth Amendment guarantees that...

in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury

The United States Constitution provides that the trial of all crimes....

shall be by jury and shall be held in the state when the crimes have been committed.

Thomas Jefferson wrote...

"I consider trial by jury as the only anchor ever imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution"

Once selected, the jurors role is to determine...

what the true facts of the case are

assess the credibility of the witnesses

and determine if the case has been proven by the appropriate legal standard

What people accused of a crime do NOT have a constitutional right to a trial by jury

Juvenile offenders

and adult offenders charged with petty offenses

Bench Trial

Trial by judge, not jury

What is the size of a jury in state court?

SIX PERSON JURY used in noncapital cases

What is the size of a jury in federal court?

12 PERSON JURY, unless parties agree in writing to a smaller jury.

Hung Juries occur more often with...

12 person juries rather than 6 person

What juries in all cases must rule unanimously?

six-member juries

Juries are supposed to be made up of....

a representative cross section of the community in which the defendant allegedly committed the crime.

The Supreme Court has ruled that master jury lists must...

reflect a representative cross section of the community. Ideally, juries are made up of fair-minded citizens who represent a cross section of the local community.

Voir Dire

The final step in jury selection, which involves the preliminary examination of a prospective juror in order to determine their qualifications to serve as a juror.

Challenges for Cause

If a potential juror's responses during questioning suggests that the potential juror cannot fairly judge the case, the juror may be "challenged for cause" by either the defense or the prosecution.

Both sides have an unlimited number of challenges for cause.

Peremptory Challenges

Second method used by the prosecution and defense in influencing who will sit on the jury.

Each side has a limited number of peremptory challenges that can be used to exclude a juror. They are primarily used to exclude people that the lawyers believe will be hostile to their side of the case.

A peremptory challenge results in the exclusion of a potential juror without the need for any reason or explanation unless..

the opposing party questions whether that this challenge was used to discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, or sex.

Most citizens who actually serve on a jury express...

overall satisfaction with their jury service

Lawyers aggressively seek to...

identify jurors who will be biased in their favor

Scientific Jury Selection

Some attorneys have employed social scientists to aid them in a more intelligent, systematic use of their voir dire.

Trials begin with...

Opening statements by both sides.

Closing argument

Each attorney has a final opportunity to be persuasive before the judge or jury begin deliberations.

This is the final argument made by each attorney in a trial prior to deliberations.

Judges "Charge to the Jury"

After each attorney has given their closing arguments to the jury, the judge instructs the jury about the laws that apply to the case and that should guide its deliberations. The judge reads the instructions to the jury.

In meeting its burden of

persuasion in a criminal case, the

prosecution is required to

prove the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt

Hung Jury

If the jurors cannot agree on a verdict, a hung jury results, leading to a mistrial.

Criminals trials start with two presumptions:

the presumption of sanity and the presumption of innocence

The burden of production

a party must produce some evidence to put facts in issue

The Burden of Persuasion

obligation of a party to prove a fact (or facts) to a certain level

Two Classifications of Evidence

Direct Evidence

Circumstantial Evidence

Direct Evidence

is evidence that directly proves a fact, without an inference or presumption, and which in itself, if true, conclusively establishes that fact.

Circumstantial Evidence

distinguished from direct evidence

relates to a series of facts other than the particular fact sought to be proved. The party offering circumstantial evidence argues that this series of facts, by reason and experience, is so closely associated with the fact to be proved that the fact to be proved may be inferred simply from the existence of the circumstantial evidence.

Rules of Evidence

They are general propositions that judges must apply to specific instances to advance the trustworthiness and reliability of the evidence used at trial.

The Expert Witness

has special knowledge or skill gained by education, training or experience and may be summonsed to court to give an opinion during a trial based on that person's field of expertise.

A juror may accept the opinion of the expert or they may also disregard the opinion of the expert

During trial attorneys may....

make timely objections to the admission of evidence.

The fifth amendment protection against self-incrimination means that...

the defendant cannot be forced to testify, but can if they choose. If they choose not to it must not be held against them.

The Risks of Testifying as a Defendant

A defendant who takes the stand is subject to cross-examination.

Once the defendant has taken the stand, the state can impeach the defendant's credibility by introducing into evidence any prior inconsistent statements they made, any prior felony convictions and, in some circumstances, other prior misconduct.

What is contained in the sixth amendment?

The right to cross-examination

If the jury becomes deadlocked, the trial ends with...

a hung jury; a jury that is unable to reach a unanimous verdict.

The prosecutor then has the option of trying the defendant again.

Jury Nullification

Jurors reaching a verdict based upon their own consciences

Occurs when a jury substitutes its own interpretation of the law and/or disregards the law or evidence entirely in reaching a verdict.

Sometimes, a jury returns a verdict of "Not guilty" despite...

its belief that the defendant is guilty.

Limited gag order

forbids those involved in the case (police, prosecutor, defense attorney, and defendant) from talking to the press

Press coverage of the crime and the trial are protected by...

the first amendment of the constitution

Change of Venue

If a case has received such extensive publicity that picking an impartial jury is impossible, the trial could be shifted to another part of the state.

Sequestering the Jury

Is when the jurors live in a hotel, take their meals together, and participate in recreation together. Sheriff deputies censor newspapers and shut off television news. Court isolates the jury to prevent pre trial prejudice.

The Exclusionary Rule

a legal principle which holds that evidence obtained in violation of a defendants constitutional rights cannot be used by the prosecutor against the defendant at trial.

The rule also requires exclusion of evidence indirectly obtained as a result of a constitutional violation.

Discovery

is the pre-trial phase in which each party can obtain evidence from the opposing party.

The pre-trial frame for the exchange of information is known as...

the discovery period

Benefits of Discovery

Benefit of fairness: First, discovery helps to ensure that one side does not have an

unfair advantage over the other. In particular it

allows a defendant to have a fairer chance during

trial.

Benefit to the system: Additionally, by providing all evidence against a defendant, the defendant may prove more likely to agree to a plea agreement, sparing both the prosecutor's office and the courts the burden of going to trial as well as the costs associated with a trial.

Discovery in Federal Cases

is governed primarily by the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. These rules permit a defendant to request discovery and after such request, they are entitled to discovery of tangible objects that are relevant to the case

Exculpatory Evidence

is any evidence that may be favorable to the defendant at trial either by tending to cast doubt on the defendant's guilt or that would potentially reduce the defendant's sentence

The Brady Rule

'the suppression by the prosecution of evidence favorable to an accused violates due process, irrespective of the good faith or bad faith of the prosecution".

The purpose of this rule is to avoid an unfair trial to the accused; our system of justice suffers when any accused is treated unfairly.

The Brady Rule Applies only to exculpatory evidence that is...

material

Brady Violation can result

in a new trial

The prosecutor has an ethical obligation to disclose

Brady material even if it is not requested by the defendant

The Jencks Act

requires disclosure of all prior statements of witnesses, even if the prior statements are not inconsistent.

Giglio v US

Giglio mandated that the prosecution disclose any and all information that may be used to impeach the credibility of prosecution witnesses.

Prosecutorial discovery encourages pleas of guilty when

the prosecution has a strong case

Reciprocal Discovery

is the exchange of documents, lists of witnesses, and other information between the two sides of a case before trial.

Theory behind the exclusionary rule

2 principal rationales,

Deterrence

Fairness

The decision to suppress evidence...

rests with the judge

Two different situations which may result in a confession being inadmissible:

Coerced Confessions

Confessions taken in violation of the miranda rule

Miranda only applies to

Custodial Interrogation

The Miranda decision relies heavily on

the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination

Before a suspect in custody may be lawfully interrogates, the police are required to tell the suspect:

You have the right to remain silent.

Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.

You have the right to talk to a lawyer and have him or her present with you while you are being questioned.

If you cannot afford to hire a lawyer, one will be appointed to represent you before any questioning, if you wish.

The burden is on the prosecutor to

prove the defendant was advised of their constitutional rights and that the defendant knowingly and voluntarily waived those rights.

Inadmissability

Any statement obtained in violation of the Miranda rules

The fourth amendment provides:

The right of people to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures

When can an officer frisk?*******

Only if the officer has a reasonable belief that the suspect may be armed.

An officer CANT frisk*****

if they have a reasonable belief that the suspect has contraband