Policing

Overview of the Criminal Justice System

  • Three Primary Components:

    • Law Enforcement:

    • Primary purpose: Investigating crimes and apprehending offenders.

    • Courts:

    • Main function: Interpreting and applying the law.

    • Corrections:

    • Role: Supervision of convicted individuals; can take place in the community or institutions, focusing on rehabilitation and incarceration.

The Role of Courts in the Government

  • Separation of Powers:

    • Government divided into three branches: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial.

    • Establishes a system of checks and balances to prevent any one branch from wielding excessive power.

  • Judicial Review:

    • Doctrine allowing courts to review actions of the Executive and Legislative branches, and higher courts to review decisions of lower courts.

    • Source of Power:

    • Derived from the Constitution, specifically Article III, Section 1: "The judicial power of the United States shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish."

  • Apolitical Nature of the Judicial Branch:

    • Courts are designed to be impartial, independent of the populace's will, to fairly apply and interpret the law.

    • Symbolized by "Lady Justice" as blind, representing fairness and objectivity.

Importance of Impartial Courts

  • Reasons for Impartiality:

    • Essential for justice to be administered fairly.

    • Crucial for the functioning of a democracy without devolving into tyranny, ensuring protection for minority rights against the majority's will.

The Concept of Judicial Activism

  • Definition:

    • Judges interpret the law in ways not strictly based on precedent, incorporating social, political, or contextual factors.

  • Controversies:

    • Accusations arise when judicial decisions appear to bear political motivations rather than legal interpretations.

Landmark Cases Reflecting Judicial Activism

  • Plessy v. Ferguson (1896):

    • Established the "Separate but Equal" doctrine, allowing racial segregation.

    • Led to the Jim Crow era of legal segregation.

  • Brown v. Board of Education (1954):

    • Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson, declaring that segregation was unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment.

    • Acts as a notable example of judicial activism due to its departure from established precedent, or stare decisis (the principle of maintaining consistency in legal decisions).

  • Obergefell v. Hodges (2015):

    • Established marriage equality in the U.S., interpreting the Fourteenth Amendment's right to privacy.

    • Criticized as an overreach by federal courts into state matters regarding marriage laws.

  • Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization:

    • Overturned Roe v. Wade (1973), returning the power to regulate abortion to the states.

    • This decision reflects judicial activism by rejecting stare decisis, emphasizing strict interpretation and originalism in legal application.

Implications of Judicial Decisions

  • Public Opinion on Trustworthiness of the Courts:

    • Poll results indicate varying levels of trust:

    • 4% found justices very trustworthy.

    • 68% somewhat trustworthy.

    • 20% somewhat untrustworthy.

    • 8% very untrustworthy.

  • Exogenous Influence Factors on Judges:

    • Considerations of whether judges are influenced by political opinions, campaign funding, or other extralegal factors.

    • Discussion on the potential biases that can emerge from personal relationships or conflicts of interest among judges.

Court Structure in the United States

  • Dual Court System:

    • Separate judicial systems for federal and state courts.

  • Jurisdiction:

    • Defined as the authority of a court to hear a case.

    • Federal courts typically do not handle state law cases unless there is a constitutional issue involved.

  • Federal Court System Structure:

    • District Courts:

    • 94 judicial districts (including DC and Puerto Rico).

    • Function to find facts, concerned with both civil and criminal cases.

    • Procedural aspects overseen by judges in bench trials whereas juries act as fact finders in jury trials.

    • Court of Appeals:

    • Comprises 12 regional circuits and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

    • Primarily reviews cases through panels of three judges focused on legal issues, rather than evidence.

    • Supreme Court:

    • The top court with the authority to interpret the Constitution, comprised of one Chief Justice and eight associate justices.

    • Noteworthy historical attempts to change its size or influence context (e.g., FDR's court-packing plan).

Conclusion and Future Discussions

  • Upcoming sessions will delve more deeply into the current composition and functions of the Supreme Court.

  • Continued examination of how these historical and contemporary cases shape our understanding of law, democracy, and judicial impartiality.