Test 1 Review Sheet for Court Systems

Functions of the court system

Upholding the law, Protecting individuals, Resolving disputes, and Reinforcing social norms

Due process clause (what does it mean)

• For criminal justice purposes and particularly for a study of court the constitutional rights of interest are those that can be found in the U.S. Constitution's Bill of Rights and in the 14th amendment 

• Substantive Due process is concerned with protecting people’s life, liberty, and property, No constitutional right to privacy 

• Procedural due process is concerned with enduring fairness

The process by which a court arrives at a decision

Adjudication

This requires one party to perform certain acts or refrain from certain actions

Injunctive Relief

Blurring the line between federalism and state power

• Has evolved over time with the liene becoming roe blurred 

Stare decisis

Which is Latin for “to stand by things decided”. Is the formal practice of adhering to precedent

Dual court system

• Dual Court systems separates federal and state courts 

• Our acting as a system of cooperative federalism 

• Can promote complications and confusion

Declaration of Independence

• Criminal justice began with the declaration of Independence 

• Thomas Jefferson mentions a creator in the Declaration

Code of Hammurabi

Assembled by the sixth Babylonian king, Hammurabi, in 1760 bc the code expressed a strong “eye for and eye” philosophy

Twelve Tables

Roman 450 BC was the first secular ( non religious) written legal code. The code was written on 12 ivory tablets, strong element of retributive justice

Incorporation

• The Legal doctrine based on the due process clause of the 14th amendment that makes various protections listed on the bill of rights which is binding only on the federal government binding on the states as well. 

Explain what is mean by presumption of death

It is presumed that a person who has disappeared and is continually absent from his or her customary locations d( usually after seven years) is dead 

Know the defenses to criminal liability

• Alibi - A type of defense against a criminal wherein the defendant argues that he or she was somewhere else at the time of the crime, making it impossible for him or her to have committed it 

• Justification defense - A type of defense against a criminal charge which the defendant amidst committing  the act in question but claims that it was necessary in order to avoid some greater evil. 

•  Excuse defense -  A type of defense against a criminal charge in which the defendant claims that some personal condition or circumstance at the time of the act was such that her or she should not be held accountable under the criminal law 

Adversarial v. inquisitorial system

• Adversarial - The function construct of the American court system that features two competing sets of interest that defendants and the government working against each other in pursuit of many protections our constitution and laws afford people. 

• Inquisitorial System - A Judicial System that is the philosophical opposite of adversarial system , they do not provide the same protections to the accused, place decision making in the hands of one or very few individuals , juries are often the exceptions in inquisitorial systems, the attorneys are much more passive than in several systems and judges take on a more prominent role in the pursuant of truth

Strict liability

That there are certain criminal offenses for which people can be found guilty regardless of their intent. Examples include drunk driving, statuory rape, most traffic violations, illegal dumping, most code violations, failing to pay child support, and selling alcohol to minors.

Mens rea

• There are various types of intent, including general intent, specific intent, and negligence.

• General intent refers to a conscious decision on the offender’s part to commit a crime. General intent statutes do not specify what intent is necessary. 

• Specific intent offenses, by contrast, specify the type of intent necessary for a prosecutor to secure a guilty verdict.

Justification defense

• defendants accept responsibility for the act they are charged with, but they argue that the act was right under the circumstances

•  Self-defense is an example of a justification defense. There are two broad categories of justification defenses—those justified by necessity and those justified by consent. An example of justification by necessity is self-defense. Consent is a common defense in rape cases. The defendant argues the victim consented.

Corpus delicti

is Latin for “the body of crime,” and refers to the objective proof (i.e., the reality) of a crime. A crime must be committed in order to hold someone liable for it.

The first 10 Amendments of the U.S. Constitution

• Amendment 1 Freedoms, Petitions, Assembly

• Amendment 2 Right to bear arms

• Amendment 3 No Quartering of soldiers

• Amendment 4 No unreasonable Search and arrest

• Amendment 5 Rights in criminal cases (same right to a defendant) 

• Amendment 6 Right to a  speedy fair trial

• Amendment 7 Rights in civil cases to a jury 

• Amendment 8 No unreasonable Bail, fines, punishment

• Amendment 9 Rights retained by the People even though not listed 

• Amendment 10 States' right any power not given to the federal gov is for the states 

Differences between civil and criminal courts

• Civil courts do not deal with criminal cases and more so deal with personal wrongs 

Direct control

The ability of legislative bodies to directly control the courts through the power to create them, to set the rules they must follow and to limit their jurisdiction

Know the kinds of controls does the public have over the courts

• The American people have the control of voting which includes voting for elections for judges, elections of Executives, which involves public participations and Interest group formations which are involved in the formation of legislative for the government. 

Hierarchal jurisdiction

The courts’ distinct functions and responsibilities at different levels within a single state or federal judiciary

Original jurisdiction

The lawful authority of a court to hear or act upon a case from its beginning and to pass judgment on the law and the facts

Tennessee v. Garner

• Placed limits on the use of deadly force 

• Garner, age 15 was shot in the back by an officer who was chasing him from the scene of a residential burglary. He was killed, but his surviving family members sued, arguing the boy’s constitutional rights were violated. Specifically arguing that the boy was seized in violation of the 4th amendment

Budgeting and the Federalist No. 79

• Halmilton argued that we can never hope to see realized in practice the complete separation of the judicial from the legislative power, in any system, which leaves the former dependent for pecuniary resources on the occasional grants of the latter. 

• Alexander Hamilton argues that congress’s power over the federal budget is intentionally restricted to prevent it from using judicial salaries to manipulate or control the federal judiciary, the constitution thus establishes a critical link between congressional budgeting and judicial independence

Court-stripping

• Is the attempt to take jurisdiction away from court to review matters. 

• Examples- Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 and the Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996

What specifically does the Department of Justice do

• An executive agency is responsible for prosecuting individuals who violate federal laws and for representing the government in civil cases

Who ultimately determine who becomes a federal judge

• While the job of electing federal judges is an executive duty, the president usually does not have time for that and will consult with senators and other elected officials to determine a new judge. 

How is money appropriated for the judicial branch

Annual budget request process which has to approved by congress

Election of judges – know when it happens, when it doesn’t, etc.

A number of Judges are elected. However, Judicial elections are only held at the state level. Most often elections can most definitely be used to exert a measure of popular control over the courts. This occurs directly through the election of judges and it occurs indirectly through the election of executives who seek judges to serve on the nation's higher courts.

Interest groups

An organized private nongovernmental group whose mission is to influence political decision and policy

Test cases

• Test cases are cases that are likely to test the legality or constitutionality of a particular tactic or statute

Wisconsin v. Yoder

Wherein the Supreme Court held that Wisconsin's compulsory school attendance law violated the free exercise of religion clause in the 1st amendment.

amicus curiae

Brief is a written document that seeks to persuade a court to decide in a particular way

Know the different types of jurisdictio

• Geographical jurisdiction: refers to the organization of courts in distinct geographic regions. Within each state, courts have their own geographic boundaries. At the federal level, there are federal districts and appellate districts.The federal appellate districts overlap several states.

• Subject matter jurisdiction: is concerned with what types of cases individual courts can adjudicate.Some courts have limited subject matter jurisdiction because they only hear specific types of cases. Higher-level courts, like state supreme courts or the U.S. Supreme Court, hear mostly appeals.

• Hierarchical jurisdiction: is concerned with the courts’ distinct functions and responsibilities at different levels within a single (state or federal) judiciary. Original jurisdiction is the lawful authority of a court to hear or act upon a case from the beginning and to pass judgement on the law and the facts. Appellate jurisdiction is the lawful authority of a court to review a decision made by a lower court. Lower level courts tend to try specific cases and higher-level courts rarely try to resolve disputes between parties.

• Hierarchical jurisdiction: is concerned with the courts’ distinct functions and responsibilities at different levels within a single (state or federal) judiciary. Original jurisdiction is the lawful authority of a court to hear or act upon a case from the beginning and to pass judgement on the law and the facts. Appellate jurisdiction is the lawful authority of a court to review a decision made by a lower court. Lower level courts tend to try specific cases and higher-level courts rarely try to resolve disputes between parties.

• Diversity jurisdiction: refers to the authority of certain federal courts to hear cases where the parties are from different states. Diversity jurisdiction cases must involve disputed amounts of more than $75,000. Diversity jurisdiction also extends to disputes between U.S. citizens and foreign citizens and/or companies.

• Supplemental jurisdiction:  (also called ancillary or pendent jurisdiction), is the right to hear a case for which it would not ordinarily have original jurisdiction.

• State court jurisdiction: means that state courts have either original or appellate jurisdiction and do not have authority to decide on matters involving federal questions, diversity issues, or supplemental matters

Katz v. United States

Defined a search consisting of government actions that infringes  on a reasonable expectation of privacy.

Which state has the most lawyers per 10,000 people

New York has the highest number at 20.4 lawyers per 10000 people

Courtroom workgroup

The professional court room actors include judges, prosecuting attorneys, defense attorneys, public defenders, and others who earn a living serving the court. This includes negotiations not done in the court room like plea deals.

Judicial restraint v. judicial activism

• Judicial Restraint - The Philosophy of limiting decisions to the facts of each case deciding only the issue or issues that need to be resolved in a particular situation. 

• Judicial Activism - The philosophy of using power to do more than interpret the Constitution or laws by avoiding precedent and down decisions with sweeping implications for the future. A judicially active judge favors “judge made: law and looms more to the future than the past.

Know the Amendments (e.g. 1^st, 2^nd, 4^th, etc.)

• Amendment 1 Freedoms, Petitions, Assembly

• Amendment 2 Right to bear arms

• Amendment 3 No Quartering of soldiers

• Amendment 4 No unreasonable Search and arrest

• Amendment 5 Rights in criminal cases (same right to a defendant) 

• Amendment 6 Right to a  speedy fair trial

• Amendment 7 Rights in civil cases to a jury 

• Amendment 8 No unreasonable Bail, fines, punishment

• Amendment 9 Rights retained by the People even though not listed 

• Amendment 10 States' right any power not given to the federal gov is for the states

Tool for voters to exert control over the judiciary

• For voters to enact exact control over the judiciary would be by interest groups this allows the to have the most influence in the court system by having a voice in the legislation. 

Influence the courts through training, research, and policy recommendations

For voters to enact exact control over the judiciary would be by interest groups this allows the to have the most influence in the court system by having a voice in the legislation.

Circuit riding

The early practice of requesting two US Supreme Court justices and one district judge to ride between each of the three districts established within the 13 judicial circuits to preside over trails.

Federal Judiciary Act of 1789 (what did it specifically do)

The Federal law that established the organization of the federal courts which emerged from the first meeting of the first congress.

Virginia Plan

• Proposed three branches

New Jersey Plan

Called for elimination for the lower federal courts

Writ of certiorari

Is an order requiring the lower court to send the case and a record of its proceeding to the U.S. Supreme Court for review

Know the different levels of courts (p. 65)

• Federal level Courts - US District Courts -> US Court of appeals -> US Supreme Court 

• State - level Courts - Trail Courts of General Jurisdiction -> Intermediate Appellate Courts -> Stated Supreme Courts 

The number of Supreme Court Justice and the president

There is 9 supreme court justices and then there is one president

Reasons why a U.S. Supreme Court Justice might not participate in a decision (p. 67)

One of them is ill, there is a vacancy, or a conflict of interest exists

Quorum

The minimum number of judges required to decide a particular matter

Judicial review

• Are the power of a country’s courts to determine if the actions of the legislative are consistent with the constitution. 

Under which chief justice was judicial review established

• Under chief Justice Marshall a decision was issued on the famous case of Marbury v Madison where the court asserted its authority to overrule acts of congress and decisions by the executive that run counter to the Constitution establish judicial review. 

These are regarded as ‘Federal Workhouses’

• The district courts are the workhorses in the federal system. 

Consent decree

A judgement by consent of  the parties to a lawsuit where the defendant agrees to stop the alleged improper or illegal activity

Most criminal justice cases (where do they originate)

State Trail Courts

Know about the different types of opinions

• Opinion - The Court’s decision in written form with supporting rationale referencing to appropriate precedent and so on 

• Concurring opinion - An opinion that supports the opinion but offers different reasoning 

• Dissenting Opinions - An opinion that disagrees with the main opinion 

• Per curiam Opinion - An Appellate opinion that is agreed to by judges and tends to be short

Amicus curiaejudic

Brief is a written document that seeks to persuade a court to decide in a particular way

U.S. magistrate

A federal trial judge who is appointed to serve an eight year term in a US district court who decides certain civil cases with the consent of the parties and who assists in pretrial matters

When were courts put in place in the U.S. (be specific)

Put in place in 1789, Judiciary act of 1789 signed in by Geroge Washington

Which circuit is Texas in?

The 5th Circuit

En banc proceeding

A term that literally means in bench. This proceeding is typically called when there is a problem with conflicting decisions by different panels of appellate court judges and is attended by all of the judges within the circuit.

Writ of certiorari

An order from a higher court that requires a lower court to send a case and a record of its proceedings to the higher court for review

Rule of four

The US Supreme Court rule that requires the agreement of four justices to grant a writ of certiorari

Which court specializes in settling disputes over income taxes

United States tax court

Military tribunalswriwrit

A group authorized by an executive military order shortly after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon to deal with alleged terrorist and individuals the government alleges could threaten national security

En banc proceeding

A term that literally means in bench. This proceeding is typically called when there is a problem with conflicting decisions by different panels of appellate court judges and is attended by all of the judges within the circuit.

Know the role of federal appellate courts (be specific)

They are not trial courts, Their primary responsibility is to review alleged errors made by district court judges, if there was an issue or mistake in the trial not the verdict

Know the case that held the University of Texas Law School could no longer give preference to African American or Mexican American applicants

• Hopwood v. The State of Texas 

Family Law

• Is concerned with matters of marriage, divorce, child custody, and children’s rights. 

This is concerned with how property is passed from one generation to the next

• Spells out requirements as far as who can enter into marriage, what sort of testing is necessary, what license and fee requirements exist, what waiting periods are necessary and so on

Alibi

• A type of defense against a criminal wherein the defendant argues that he or she was somewhere else at the time of the crime, making it impossible for him or her to have committed it