Texas Govt exam 2 review

What is a tort?

an injury or wrong committed with or without force against another person or his property

How was the term tort reform used to institute caps on damages and mandatory arbitration?

Tort reform argued that people were taking advantage of torts to gain large amounts of compensation.

Tort reform

proposed changed in common law civil justice systems, to reduce tort litigation or damages

Caps on damages

a law that limits the amount a jury can award for damages regardless of the facts of the case

Mandatory arbitration

you agree to resolve any disputes about the contract before an arbitrator who decides the dispute instead of a court

Ex: accepting the terms and condition from Apple

Jurisdiction

a courts scope of authority

Original Jurisdiction

the right to hear and decide a case first

Appellate Jurisdiction

right to review a case that has been tried elsewhere

Exclusive Jurisdiction

right of a court to try a particular case

Concurrent Jurisdiction

right of multiple courts to try a case

Prosecutors

attorney that investigates and prosecutes criminal and civil cases and provides legal advice

Judges

presiding over trials and maintaining order

Grand Jury

12 persons, 3 month term, return indictment

Petit Jury

6 or 12 people, decide verdict

Hung Jury (Mistrial)

fail to reach consensus

Defendants

person sued in a civil or criminal proceeding

Appeal

A petition for another court to review a previous court's decision

On what grounds a case can be appealed?

in Court of Appeals- district and county level; 2-12 judges

Civil Law

dispute between parties.
deals with contract, family and probate (wills, deeds, estate)

Criminal Law

violations of law against a person or property
results in misdemeanor or felony

Appellate Process

The process to have a higher court review the result of a trial court or lower court.
-County
-District
-Court of Appeals
-Supreme/Court of Criminal Appeals

How are judges selected in Texas

partisan elections: party appears on ballot (D/R)

Pros of judge elections

Insure candidates are qualified for judicial office

Cons of judge elections

Judges are not independent in their interpretation of the law.
Influenced by political affiliation.

Tragedy of the Commons

overconsumption and depletion of a shared common resource due to self-interest

Tragedy of the Commons in Politics

Interest groups will influence policies to work in their favor, even if it means depletion of a resource, an example being deforestation

Special Interests/Interests Groups

organizations that seek to influence government officials and policies toward a shared objective

Lobbying

communicating with legislators of other government officials for the purpose of influencing decision making

What specifically about the United States political system leads to so many special interest groups?

1st amendment, federalism, bipartisanship: allows multiple access points to influence government

Why is lobbying impossible to outlaw at the most basic level, but often leads to corruption?

Lobbying cannot be outlawed due to the 1st amendment.

Amount of HPD complaints sourcing from cops, about other cops

900 out of 1200

Who is more likely to be carrying contraband?

Whites

Who is more likely to be arrested for weed possession?

Blacks, 4x more likely

Who is more likely to be searched?

Blacks, 4x more likely

Half of Houstonians arrested during traffic stops:

Blacks

Angela Davis' definition of criminalization

Black people and their culture are being associated with crime through racist ideologies and stereotypes

Criminalization

associate crime with a group

Example of Criminalization

* harassment
* expulsion from school
* use of force
* asset forfeiture
* questionable searches

Trayvon Martin’s school record being criminalized with his school record after he got shot dead by police

Your rights regarding interactions with law enforcement and their amendments:

4th amendment- search and seizure
5th amendment- self-incrimination (right to remain silent)

What constitutes a legal search?

Consent

Ideology

collection of beliefs regarding how society is ordered and the corresponding political decisions

Liberal

support individual rights and favor government regulation in the economy

Conservative

support traditional values and minimal government intervention in business and economic areas

Political Party

an organization of collected interests, formed to elect candidates and achieve policy goals

Duverger's Law

tendency of single member district systems to produce two parties

Texas Department of criminal corrections

* to provide public safety
* to promote positive behavioral changes
* to reintegrate into general society

Recidivism

rates of offenders who returned to prison

How many HPD complaints result in any kind of discipline?

What % ended up an suspension of at least 3 days?

1200 complaints, 1/3

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7%

What percentage of HPD complaints are filed by other officers?

75%

What is the usual outcome of a suspension after arbitration?

overturned, 2/3

What are four ways complaints can be resolved?

1. unfounded (event didn’t happen)
2. exonerated (event happened, in lined with policy)
3. sustained (event happen and violated policy)
4. Not sustained (IAD cant tell what happen)

What percentage of Houstonians arrested during traffic stops are black?

1/2, 23%

Are black or white drivers more likely to be carrying contraband according to HPD records?

White

How often does HPD perform consent searches on black vs. white drivers?

4 times everyday

how many excessive more complaints filed in the 6 year period?

706

what % of these were sustained, how many had video evidence?

2%, 15 total → 10 out of 15 had videos

how many shooting of humans or animals over this period?

550

What is posturing? How is it justify shootings?

a behavior that is misleading, assuming a nonthreatening posture

Political ideology

collection of beliefs regarding how society should be ordered and how resources should distributed

partisanship

what party you identify with or vote

examples of political ideology

* libertarian
* socialist
* progressive
* pacifist

examples of partisanship

* democratic and republican parties

Why do politcal parties exist?

* provide voter choice
* provide informational shortcuts, you don’t need to know every candidate
* provides avenue for political ambitions

Know that most elections in the US are run within single member districts, only one representative from a single district

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third party

a party other than democratic or republican who appear on ballet

independent

not affiliated with party

Liberal

* HIGHER taxes
* HIGHER social spending
* HIGHER environmental regulation
* HIGHER business regulation
* LOWER military spending
* LOWER morality policy

Conservative

* LOWER taxes
* LOWER social spending
* LOWER environmental regulation
* LOWER business regulation
* HIGHER military spending
* HIGHER morality policy

4 levels to party organization

1. national
2. state
3. county
4. precinct

interest groups

an organization of people or corporations who share a common political goal and attempt to influence public policy

examples of interest groups

* ducks unlimited
* national rifle association
* PETA
* NAACP

public good and examples

non-excludable, non rivalrous, no one can be denied benefits

* clean environment
* public education
* national defense

private good and examples

use by one individual limit use by another

* anything you paid for

free rider problem

tendency of individuals not contribute to public good

what do free rider problem do?

* lobbying - attempt to influence legislature to achieve a goal
* electioneering - ads, donations, candidate drawings
* raising awareness - marches, rallies, ads
* help draft legislation

how many lobbyists are registered in Texas

over 3,000 registered lobbyists

why so many lobbyists?

1. federalism
2. two party system
3. first amendment right

The four components of the responsible party thesis

* make policy commitments to the voters when they’re running for office

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* carry out those commitments while in the office

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* when not in office produce alternatives to the policies offered by the party in power

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* be sufficiently different from the other party to offer voter choice

The difference between ideology and public opinion, the definition of a poll, and what it measures

Ideology - a collection of beliefs regarding how society is ordered and the corresponding political decisions

Public opinion - collective attitudes and beliefs of individuals on one or more issues

The purpose of a poll is to identify how a population feels about an issue or candidate.

political party

a combination of people and interests whose primary purpose is to gain control of government by winning elections

party primary

(to select a candidate for a general election) in which voters may ignore party lines, and pick anyone from any party

party platform

a list of actions which a political party, candidate or organization supports in order to appeal to the general public

The definition of the judicial branch of government

interprets the law