Courts and Adjudication

jurisdiction

an area of authority or control

what do the courts do? 3 functions

dispute processing, policy making, and enforcing the norms/societal rules

dispute processing

two parties in disagreement, the courts play a professional role in mediating, neutral adjudicator

policy making

court decisions can make new policy, defines what rights and liberties we have

enforcing norms/societal rules

by law, crime is subject to punishment, the courts mandate this, get proper punishment for crime

adversarial system

two sides in a dispute represented by lawyers who come to court, judge plays neutral role in decision making, goal is that by competing, we're better able to discover the truth

inquisitorial system

judge runs everything, asks all the questions and participates in investigation

functions of the judge

adjudicator, negotiator, administrator

adjudicator

decision making in trial motions, operates neutrally in jury trials

negotiator

works with both sides, often in private, like a referee

administrator

manage the courtroom and the staff, help make sure everything runs smoothly

judicial selection methods

appointment, election, merit system

appointment

federal judges appointed by the president, some states use this-appointed by the governor, all Article III are appointed and have confirmation hearing through Congress

merit selection

designed to remove politics, non-partisan committees filter through applications and hand through a few candidates to governor who makes the final decision

partisan election

run as a republican or democrat

nonpartisan election

no party affiliation

prosecutors

attorneys that represent the government, decides whether or not to pursue charges

U.S. attorney general

top official in the department of justice, most important prosecutorial position, only one

U.S. attorneys

primary prosecutors for for district courts, also appointed by president

assistant U.S. attorneys

appointed by Attorney General to assist U.S. Attorneys

state attorney general

chief legal officer for state, elected positions

Georgia attorney general

Chris Carr

district attorney

head prosecutor for each judicial district for the state, Georgia has 49

election vs. appointment of prosecutors

43 states elect, Huge incumbency advantage for state prosecutors-Incumbent wins 96% of the time, Incumbent wins 73% of the time when facing an opposing candidate

what does the public consider when deciding whether to re-elect a prosecutor?

conviction rates, if an incumbent, party affiliation, and types of cases pursued

prosecutor links in the system

rely on law enforcement to do investigations correctly, repeat players-see the same judges over and over again (major advantage over defense attorneys)

prosecutor discretion

deciding to prosecute, negotiating plea bargains, determining number and type of counts, determining content of discovery

deciding to prosecute

what a prosecutor should and shouldn't consider when deciding when to pursue charges

what should a prosecutor consider when deciding to prosecute

nature of crime, community, evidence, victims

what shouldn't a prosecutor consider when deciding to prosecute

personal relationships, socioeconomic status, backlash of community

negotiate plea bargains

can suggest or accept one, happens in most cases

determining content of discovery

the facts of the case, meant to be disclosed to opponent before trial

Do president statements (rhetoric) on crime lead to more prosecutions

the more presidential statements made on crime, more likely a prosecutor is to pursue charges

reform prosecutors

shift in goals of prosecutors, reform and equity-focused platforms instead of traditional law and order campaigns

defense attorneys

lawyers that represent the accused-advise and protect defendant on their constitutional rights throughout their entire time in the justice system

indigent

someone who cannot afford representation independently, most people in the justice system

defending indigents

assigned counsel, contract counsel, public defender

assigned counsel

when the court brings in attorneys that often do private practice, the government pays the fee

contract counsel

an attorney in private practice is contracted out for a specific period of time, sign contract with government, represent all or most indigents

public defender

attorneys that are employed full-time on salary basis by the government that only represent indigents

Why is it so important for defendants to have good representation?

they deserve it, it is a constitutional right

Why is it hard for indigent defense lawyers to provide high-quality representation to their clients?

a lot of clients not a lot of time, don't get paid much