Criminal Justice: Court Structure, Procedure, and Sentencing

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering court structures, pretrial and trial procedures, prosecutorial and defense roles, and sentencing frameworks from Chapters 9, 10, and 11.

Trial Court

A court that builds the record by hearing witness testimony, admitting evidence, finding facts through a judge or jury, determining guilt or liability, and imposing sentences in criminal cases.

Appellate Court

An error-correcting court that reviews the trial record for legal errors without hearing new witnesses or evidence; it has the power to affirm, reverse, vacate, or remand a lower court's decision.

U.S. District Courts

The lowest tier in the federal judicial system, consisting of 94 judicial districts across 50 states and territories, holding original jurisdiction over most federal cases and no appellate jurisdiction.

U.S. Court of Appeals

The intermediate level of the federal court system comprised of 12 regional circuit courts, including the D.C. Circuit, possessing strictly appellate jurisdiction and no original jurisdiction.

Third Circuit Court of Appeals

The federal appellate court headquartered in Philadelphia that reviews district court decisions for legal error from Pennsylvania's three federal districts, New Jersey, Delaware, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Courts of Limited Jurisdiction

Lower-level state courts that handle minor matters such as misdemeanor preliminary hearings, traffic cases, small claims, and certain landlord-tenant disputes.

Courts of General Jurisdiction

State trial courts empowered to hear major legal matters, including felonies, family law, estates and trusts, and major civil cases.

The Missouri Plan

A judicial selection method where judges are chosen through a process involving a nominating committee, executive appointment, and subsequent retention elections.

Partisan Election

A judicial selection system where judicial candidates run for office affiliated with a political party label, such as Democrat or Republican.

Nonpartisan Election

A judicial selection method where candidates appear on the ballot without any political party affiliation listed.

Rule of Law

The legal principle that judicial decisions must be based on established laws and legal principles rather than personal preferences or beliefs.

Arbitration

A private alternative to traditional courts that is typically secret, short, and binding, featuring simplified rules of evidence, no discovery, and enforceability by traditional courts.

Prosecutorial Discretion

The authority of a prosecutor to make critical case decisions, including whether to file criminal charges, which specific charges to bring, whether to negotiate a plea, or whether to dismiss a case.

Nolle Prosequi (Nol Pros)

A formal legal notice indicating that the prosecution is abandoning or stopping a criminal case or specific charges due to insufficient evidence, unavailable witnesses, or other reasons.

Public Defender

A government-funded defense attorney appointed to represent indigent defendants who qualify for representation, typically managing a high volume of cases.

Conflict Counsel

A private attorney appointed and compensated by the government when the public defender's office faces an ethical conflict of interest, such as representing co-defendants in the same proceeding.

Judiciary Act of 1789

A federal law signed by President George Washington on September 24, 1789, establishing that bail shall be admitted for all arrests in criminal cases except where the punishment may be death.

Eighth Amendment

A constitutional amendment ratified on December 15, 1791, prohibiting excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishments.

Bail

The monetary amount or release conditions set by a court to ensure a criminal defendant appears for trial; it serves as a security or guarantee rather than the payment method itself.

Bond

The method, promise, or legal agreement used to satisfy bail requirements, pledging to pay the set bail amount if the defendant fails to appear in court.

Release on Own Recognizance (ROR)

A form of pretrial release granted without requiring financial payment, predicated entirely on the defendant's promise to return for scheduled court appearances.

Supervised Own Recognizance (SOR)

A pretrial release arrangement where the defendant is released into the community under mandatory supervision and must comply with court-imposed conditions.

Surety Bond

A bail method where a third party, typically a commercial bail bondsman, posts the bail amount in exchange for a non-refundable fee from the defendant.

Unsecured Bond

A bail agreement where the defendant is released after signing a contract promising to pay the bail sum only if they fail to appear for court dates.

Grand Jury

A secret panel primarily utilized in the federal criminal justice system and controlled by the prosecutor, which reviews evidence to determine whether to return an indictment or true bill.

Preliminary Hearing

An open court proceeding in which a judge determines whether there is a prima facie case (probable cause) that a crime occurred and that the defendant committed it.

Nolo Contendere (No Contest)

A criminal plea in which the defendant does not admit guilt but agrees to accept criminal punishment as though found guilty.

Alford Plea

A plea where the defendant maintains their innocence on the record while acknowledging that the state has sufficient evidence to obtain a conviction.

Voir Dire

The preliminary examination phase where attorneys and the judge question prospective jurors to uncover bias, personal connections, or inability to follow the law.

Challenge for Cause

A request to dismiss a potential juror based on a specific, articulable bias or inability to be impartial; it requires judicial approval and is typically unlimited in number.

Peremptory Challenge

A limited statutory right allowing parties to dismiss a potential juror without stating a reason, provided the strike is not based on race or sex.

Batson Challenge

An objection asserting that an opposing attorney exercised a peremptory challenge to unconstitutionally exclude a juror based on race or sex.

Direct Examination

The initial questioning of a party's own witness using open-ended, non-leading questions designed to establish facts and narrate the case.

Cross-Examination

The interrogation of an opposing party's witness using leading, suggestive questions to challenge credibility, memory, perception, and bias.

Sandwich Rule

The trial convention governing closing arguments where the prosecution presents its argument first, the defense follows second, and the prosecution concludes with a final rebuttal.

Jury Nullification

A jury's deliberate decision to acquit a defendant despite proof beyond a reasonable doubt of guilt, motivated by the belief that the law itself is unjust or unfairly applied.

General Deterrence

A sentencing philosophy aimed at punishing an individual offender to discourage the public at large from committing similar offenses.

Specific Deterrence

A sentencing objective focused on punishing an individual offender to dissuade that specific person from committing future crimes.

Retribution (Just Deserts)

A punitive rationale holding that offenders should be punished simply because they committed a crime, with the sanction tailored strictly to moral blameworthiness and offense seriousness.

Rehabilitation

A correctional philosophy aimed at altering an offender's behavior and addressing the underlying causes of criminality to facilitate their return as a law-abiding citizen.

Diversion

The procedural redirection of eligible offenders out of the formal criminal justice system and into community programs to avoid criminal stigma and formal sanctions.

Restitution

A court-ordered penalty requiring an offender to make financial payments to crime victims for property damage, medical bills, or stolen goods.

Restoration

A justice philosophy that repairs crime-related harm by addressing the relational and community needs of victims, offenders, and society through mechanisms like mediation and sentencing circles.

Incapacitation

A punishment strategy that prevents future criminal acts by physically restricting an offender's liberty through imprisonment or confinement.

Presentence Investigation Report (PSI)

A comprehensive background report on an offender's criminal history, life circumstances, and offense details, prepared to assist the judge in imposing an appropriate sentence.

Concurrent Sentences

Multiple terms of imprisonment that are served simultaneously rather than sequentially.

Consecutive Sentences

Multiple terms of imprisonment that must be served one after another in a sequential order.

Truth-in-Sentencing Laws

Statutory mandates requiring convicted individuals to serve a substantial portion of their announced prison terms, frequently setting an 85% minimum service requirement prior to release eligibility.

Indeterminate Sentencing

A sentencing structure wherein the judge imposes a range of time (e.g., 5 to 10 years), leaving the actual release date to be decided by parole boards and correctional policies.

Determinate Sentencing

A sentencing system in which the trial judge imposes a fixed duration of incarceration that is not subject to discretionary parole board release.

Capital Punishment

A government-sanctioned execution imposed as a legal penalty, restricted in modern U.S. law to certain aggravated first-degree murders.