Cj final help me

federal court system

responsible for violations of federal law

state court system

responsible for violations of law in respective state

original jurisdiction

authority of a court to act/hear a case from its beginning and pass judgement on the law and facts

appellate

authority of a court to review a decision of a lower court

how many tiers is the federal court system

3

us district courts

us circuit court of appeal

us supreme court

article III section 1

establishment of 1 supreme court and such inferior courts as congress may time to time estabilish

article III section 2

establishes federal court jurisdiction over cases:

• arising under consitution

• federal laws and regulations

• treaties

• disputes between states

• admirality and maritime cases

  • between citizens of different states when amount in controversy is 75K or more

district courts

jurisdiction over all cases involving alleged violations of federal law

(nominated by president, serves life)

US Circuit Court of Appeals

appellate jurisdiction- no trial/witness testimony

(nominated by president, confirmed by senate, serve for life)

en banc

all judges sit for a case (in us circuit court of appeals)

supreme court

final arbiter of federal law/constitution

marbury v madison

significant because it gave the Supreme Court the authority to review

Made the doctrine of judicial review which gives the US Supreme Court the ability to declare any law unconstitutional

Trial courts of limited jurisdiction

handles misdemeanors and small civil cases

Trial courts of general jurisdiction

handle felonies and larger civil cases

state court structures (4)

1)    Trial courts of limited jurisdiction- handles misdemeanors and small civil cases

2)    Trial courts of general jurisdiction- handle felonies and larger civil cases

3)    Intermediate appellate courts

4)    State courts of last resort- ohio surpreme court, New York court of appeals

Special state courts (7)

Juvenile Court

Probate Court

Domestic Relations Court

Drug Court

Mental Health Court

Human Trafficking Court

Veteran’s Court

Courtroom work group

The professional courtroom actors (judges, prosecuting attorneys, public defenders) who earn a living serving the court

Judge

An elected official who presides over a court of law and who is authorized to hear and sometimes decide cases, and to conduct trials

• Primary duty to ensure justice

• Holds ultimate authority over matters of law, evidence, and court decorum

Missouri Plan (merit selection)

candidates are chosen by nonpartisan committee, next the governor selects final candidates, then judges run unopposed and are reappointed based on their records

• states judges (NOT FEDERAL) can be elected this way

Prosecutor/district attorney

elected or appointed chief of a prosecution agency and whose proceedings on behalf of the state or the people against persons accused of committing a criminal offense

• federal level called US Attorney

Prosecutorial discretion

power to charge, accept plea bargains, make sentencing reccomendations

criminal defense attorney

A licensed trial lawyer, hired or appointed, to conduct the legal defense of a person accused of a crime and represent them in court

Primary duties- represent accused after arrest, ensure that the civil rights of the defendant are not violated, involved in all stages of court process

3 ways criminal defense attorneys can be retained

private (Retained)

court appointed

public defenders

Gideon vs Wainwright

indigent defendants are entitled to appointed counsel in state criminal proceedings when charged with felony

powell vs alabama

indigent entitled to appointed counsel in capital crimes

Johnson v Zerbst

Indigent defendants entitled to appointed counsel in criminal proceedings

In re: Gault

granted juveniles the right to counsel

vertical prosecution

go in, explain case, say yay, nay, or counter. became ineffiecent

horizontal prosecution

felony teams, group of prosecutors connected to a group of judges, connect to supervisors covering all felony cases in 3 courtrooms

preliminary hearing

goal- not to determine guilt but whether the case should proceed

occurs before actual trial

public, judge lead, defendant has full rights, evidence rules are applicable

grand jury

goal- not to determine guilt but whether the case should proceed

occurs before actual trial

private, no judge, defendant has little/no participation, evidence rules are NOT applicable, controlled by prosecutor

Plea bargain

the process of negotiating an agreement for the appropriate plea and sentence in a case

straight plea

defendant pleads guilty as charged for some type of case consideraton

Negotiated pleas

defendant pleads guilty to reduced charges or in exchange for dismissal of other charges

8 stages of criminal trial

trial initiation

jury selection

opening statements

presentation of evidence

closing arguments

judges charge to a jury

jury deliberations

verdict

voir dire

“Speak the truth” prospective jurors are questioned to see if they have bias

evidence

anything useful ot a judge or jury in deciding facts of a case

types of evidence (4)

1. Direct- evidence that directly proves a fact (eyewitness testimony, video)

2. circumstantial- evidence requiring interpretation. infer one fact from another

3. real- evidence consisting of physical material

4. testimony- oral evidence offered by a sworn witness on the stand during criminal trial

Direct examination

can ask open ended questions

cross examination

leading questions are permitted

hearsay rule

many exceptions (dying declaration, excited utterance)

Closing arguments

prosecution goes 1st

deadlocked jury

jury that cannot reach a unanimous verdict after extended deliberation

Retribution

act of taking revenge against criminal perpetrator “eye for an eye”

Incapacitation

the use of imprisonment or other means to reduce the likelihood that an offender will be capable of committing future offenses (prison, death, chemical castration) 

Deterrence

seeks to inhibit criminal behavior by fear of punishment 

Specific deterrence

aimed at individual offender

General deterrence

aimed at others

Rehabilitation

attempt to reform criminal offender, also state in which reformed offender is said to be

Restoration

seeks to make the victim whole again (e.g. restitution)

Bailiff

ensures order, announces judge’s entry, calls witnesses, prevents the escape of the accused, supervises jury

Local Court administrator

provides uniform court management

court recorder

creates a record of all that occurred in trial

clerk of courts

keeps track of court records

expert witness

a person who has special knowledge and kills recognized by the court as relevant to the determination of guilt/innocence. May express opinions or draw conclusions in trial

Lay witness

any witness called upon that is NOT considered an expert. Nay NOT express opinions or draw conclusions

victim

face substantial hardships in the court process (ex. cross examination)

defendant

has final say over their defense, decides whether to testify

press

too much pretrial publicity may make it hard to find jurors

indeterminate sentence

uses relatively unspecific terms (1-10, 5-25)

Determinate sentence

fixed terms (5 years)

1st probation officer

John Augustus

presumtive sentencing

way to make sentencing more uniform/consistent

who orders probation?

judge

furman vs georgia

struck down in 1972