AJ 001 Assignments/Lectures

Module 1

1. Introduction Assignment (Hand in assignment, no emails)
2. Self Management Schedule (Hand in assignment, no emails)
3. Major Components (Your instructor will have the question available)

• Lecture Materials
  - The Study of Criminal Justice Criminal Justice: 
• Studies the system of law enforcement, adjudication, and correction that is directly involved in the apprehension, prosecution, and control of those charged with a criminal offense.
• Criminology:  Studies the etiology (origin), extent, and nature of crime in society.
•     Why are the two fields of study not mutually exclusive?
•     Answer: The Criminal Justice System - A loosely organized collection of agencies charged with protecting the public, maintaining order, enforcing the law, identifying transgressors, bringing the guilty to justice, and treating criminal behavior.
•     The Criminal Justice Process -The decision-making points from the initial report of a crime/victimization to the police to decisions by the police, courts, and correctional personnel to the eventual release of the offender and her or his reentry into society; the various sequential criminal justice stages through which the offender passes.
•     Decision points are frequently modeled as flow charts

• BREAK OUT GROUPS
  
1. Crime a Recent Development?
2. Crime and violence have been common since the nation was first formed.
3. Post-Civil War expansion to the west gave rise to famous criminals such as John Wesley Hardin, Billy the Kidd, and Johnny Ringo as well as famous law men such as Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson.
4. Crime rate may actually have been much higher in the 19th and 20th centuries than it is today.
5. Crime at the Turn of the Twentieth Century n1900 – 1935 we saw a sustained increase in criminal activity
6. Criminal gangs formed before the Civil War in urban slums became the forerunners of modern day organized crime families
7. Developing the Criminal Justice System 1829 – London Metropolitan Police  created n1919 – Establishment of the Chicago Crime Commission n1931 –
8. National Commission on Law Observance and Enforcement (Wickersham Commission) created by President Hoover
9. The Modern Era of Justice

•    The Modern Era of Justice can be traced to a series of research projects beginning in 1950s by the American Bar Foundation –For the first time the term criminal justice system began to be used –
• Focused on the criminal justice process –The “discovery” and analysis of the use of discretion
• Federal Involvement in Criminal Justice n1967 President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice n1968 Safe Streets Acts provided funding for the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA) 1979
• National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice renamed the National Institute of Justice (NIJ)
• The Criminal Justice System Today

1. Social control – makes people behave in approved ways and sanction those who do not
2. Formal social control – what the government does; enforces laws and regulations informal social control – what people do; tends to enforce social   norms of behavior Agencies of the Criminal Justice System
3. Over 55,000 public agencies employing over 2 million people serve as society’s instrument of social control
4. Three major components – (SLO Question)

•     Law Enforcement (17,000 agencies) –
•     Courts (17,000 courts; 8,000 prosecutorial agencies) –
•     Corrections (6,000 institutions; 3,500 probation and parole departments) 
• Agencies of the Criminal Justice System (cont.)
• System costs federal, state, and local governments approximately $165 billion per year for civil and criminal justice –Has increased more than 300% since 1982 .
• The Formal Criminal Justice Process 15 Steps -(SLO Question)
•  How cases/offenders flow through the system and where they exit from the system

1. Report of a crime/ or Initial contact of a suspected offender
2. Investigation
3. Arrest
4. Custody
5. Charging
6. Preliminary hearing/grand jury
7. Arraignment
8. Bail/detention
9. Plea bargaining n
10. Trial / adjudication
11. Sentencing/disposition
12. Appeal/post conviction remedies
13. Correctional treatment
14. Release
15. Post release

• The Criminal Justice Funnel (Homework)

1. How are cases processed?

• Who are the people who make these decisions?·         

• What is their job? –The attrition of cases from the system occurs for different reasons –Only a few cases go all the way through – the “funnel” §
• The Criminal Justice “Non-System” –There is no integrated system, but a set of institutions and people having different powers and authority:
•  §Structural fragmentation – different institutions
•  §Sequential specialization – different jobs §Ideological disagreements – different perceptions of what matters (people working in the system have perspectives)
• §Functional interconnections – people manage to work together –An example: the courtroom working group
• The Informal Criminal Justice Process

1. Courtroom Work Group –Prosecutor, defense attorney, judge, and others –
2. Function to streamline the process of justice through the extensive use of plea bargaining and other alternatives
3. The Criminal Justice Wedding Cake

• Characteristics of Wedding Cake Model
• Wedding Cake model: variations in processing of cases –
• The ideal (equal treatment) versus the reality (unequal processing) –Variations in how cases are dealt with by seriousness of offense, nature of the accused, specifics of offense (stranger, weapons, injury) –A mix of formal and informal criteria –
• A system of laws and of people -
• Perspectives on Criminal Justice
• You all already have a perspective, whether you know it or not n6 perspectives from your book – which one is you?
• --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
• 4 th Amendment and Probable Cause
  
  —  Searches and Seizures
  
  ◦       The legal term that generally refers to the searching and the confiscating (taking) of evidence by law enforcement officers.
  
  —  Term Defined
  —  Probable Cause –
  ◦       Reasonable ground to believe the existence of facts warranting certain actions, such as the search or arrest of a person.
  —  Term Defined
  —  Reasonable –
  ◦       In the context of criminal law, an action by a law enforcement officer that is appropriate under the circumstances.
  —  Probable Cause
  —  It is all about boundaries;
  
  ◦       In Michigan v. Fisher, the Supreme court did not address whether Fisher was guilty or innocent of the weapons charges against him.  That was for a trial court to decide.
  ◦       Probable Cause
  
  —  Rather, the Court ruled that Officer Goolsby had not overstepped the boundaries of his authority in entering and searching Fisher’s home.
  
  (Which falls under the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution)
  —  Probable Cause
  —  To understand boundaries, law enforcement officers must understand the
  ◦       Fourth Amendment of the United States
  —   The right of the people to be secure in their;
  ◦       Persons
  ◦       Houses
  ◦       Papers and affects
  Against unreasonable searches and seizures,
  —  Fourth Amendment
  —  shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause,
  —  supported by Oath or affirmation
  —  particularly describing the
  –   Place to be searched and the
  –   Persons or things to be seized.
  —  Two Critical Legal Concepts
  —  A prevention against unreasonable searches and seizures
  —  And the requirement of probable cause to issue a warrant
  
  —  Reasonable Searches
  verse
  Probable Cause
  —  For an officer to reasonable search a suspect, their premises (or automobile) and seize any evidence found during that search, the officer must first;
  —  Establish that probable cause exists that the person committed a crime
  —  Product a document called a warrant from a judge, stating that probable cause exists.
  —  Probable Cause
  —  Exists if there is a substantial likelihood that a
  —  Crime was committed
  —  The suspect committed that crime
  —  Probable Cause
  —  Probable cause involves a likelihood – not just a probability that the suspect committed the crime
  —  And the officer can conduct searches and seizures without a warrant from a judge under certain circumstances
  –   Incident to an arrest
  –   Consent searches
  —  Probable cause
  —  Suspicion does not equal probable cause
  —  The burden of probable cause requires more than mere suspicion on a police officer’s part.
  —  The officer must know of facts and circumstances that would reasonably lead to the belief that an offense has been or is being committed.
  
  —  Probable Cause Sources
  —  Personal observations – based on training,  experience, expertise
  —  Information- eyewitnesses, informants, bulletins or broadcasts (believed to be reliable)
  —  Plain view evidence
  —  In unique cases, persons who associate with others where there is criminal activity, officers may have grounds to stop, however it is not generally used to establish probable cause.
  
  
• Break out Groups

• Crime control, due process, rehabilitation, non-interventionist, justice, and restorative justice
• Perspectives Answer Questions nPerspectives incorporate personal views, values and ideological preferences on
• What acts are crimes?  Crime is a label. –What kind of people commit crimes? –What causes crimes? –
• Strategies for dealing with crime and criminals: prevent, deter, punish, incapacitate, rehabilitate, reintegrate, community involvement –Theories and what works and what does not –Balancing notions of social control with notions of justice.
• The Crime Control Perspective nEmphasizes the control of dangerous offenders and the protection of society.  Its advocates call for harsh punishments as a deterrent to crime, such as the death penalty
• Purpose of the justice system is to deter crime through the application of punishment –The more efficient the system, the greater its effectiveness –The justice system is not equipped to treat people but to investigate crimes, apprehend suspects, and punish the guilty
• The Rehabilitation Perspective
• Primary purpose is to care for people who cannot manage themselves.  Crime is an expression of frustration and anger created by social inequality that can be controlled by giving people the means to improve their lifestyle through conventional endeavors –In the long run, it is better to treat than punish –Criminals are society’s victims –Helping others is part of the American culture
• The Due Process Perspective
• Primary focus in on the defendant’s rights to prevent the wrongful conviction of an innocent person –Need to preserve Constitutional rights and democratic ideals takes precedence over the need to punish the guilty –Decisions must be carefully scrutinized to avoid errors –Everyone must be treated equally and fairly –Illegally seized evidence must be suppressed even if the guilty go free –Legal counsel should be provided at every stage of the process, regardless of cost, to prevent abuse
• Nonintervention Perspective
• The justice system should limit its involvement with criminal defendants so as to avoid the inevitable harmful and long-term negative effects –The justice system stigmatizes offenders –Stigma locks people into a criminal way of life –Less is better.  Decriminalize, divert, and De-institutionalize whenever possible
• Justice Perspective
• The greatest challenge for the system is to dispense fair and equal justice to those who come before the law –Equal treatment for equal crimes –Structured justice, “just deserts” –Reduced use of discretion –Inconsistent treatment produces disrespect for the system
• Restorative Justice Perspective
• True purpose of the criminal justice system should be to promote a peaceful and just society by engaging in peacemaking rather than punishment –Offenders should be reintegrated back into society –Coercive punishments are self-defeating –The justice system must become more humane
• Restorative Justice Policies
• Principles and goals: –Make good – restore, heal – what has been broken and damaged: reestablish social harmony –Offender has to accept responsibility for actions –Involve all – offender, victims, officials agencies, community – in the decision-making and mediation process –Arrive at a consensual agreement for making good (restitution)
• Restorative Justice

–Navajo Peacemaker Court

• Perspectives in Perspective
• Crime Control and Justice Models have dominated during the past decade
• Rehabilitative efforts have not been abandoned
• No single view is the right or correct one.
• Perspectives on the War on Drugs
• How do different perspectives explain why there is a drug problem?
• What kind of people are drug producers, traffickers and consumers?
• What should be done about producers, traffickers and consumers?
• What does success look like? 

1. Ethics in Criminal Justice

Requires members of the system to apply equal and fair justice

1. Difficult because criminal justice often functions in an environment where moral ambiguity or tensions among legitimate goals are the norm
2. Important because  of the enormous power granted to criminal justice employees –Ethics in law enforcement –Ethics in the court process –Ethics in the corrections process –Ethics in studying criminal justice.

• Written Assignment due:<Instructions: Your paper is to be 500 words or more of original thoughts about the following question: 

• What are the 3 major components in the criminal justice system. < Describe each component, and explain how they work together. >

History of the Police


—Chapter 4
Police in Society: History and Organization
—Learning Objectives
üDescribe how law enforcement developed in feudal England
üSummarize characteristics of the first law enforcement agencies
üDiscuss the development of law enforcement in the United States
üAnalyze the problems of early police agencies
üDiscuss how reformers attempted to create professional police agencies
ü
—Learning Objectives
üDescribe the major changes in law enforcement between 1970 and today
üBe familiar with the major federal law enforcement agencies
üSummarize the differences among state, county, and local law enforcement
üExplain the role of technology in police work
ü
—The History of Police
—Origins of police traced to early English society
—Before 1066 BCE:
¡Pledge System - families banded together for protection
—Prior to the thirteenth Century in England:
¡Shires
÷Similar to counties
¡Reeves
÷Appointed to supervise the territory
—The History of Police
—In the thirteenth Century England:
¡Watch system
÷Employed watchmen to protect against robberies, fires, and disturbances
—In 1326:
¡The office of the Justice of the Peace was created
—
—Private Police and Thief Takers
—During early eighteenth century:
¡Rising crime rates encouraged and new form of private, monied police who profited from legal and illegal conduct as informal police departments
¡These private police were referred to as “Thief Takers”
—Creating Public Police
—1829: Sir Robert Peel, England’s home secretary lobbied an “Act for Improving the Police in and near the Metropolis” Established the first organized police force in London with over 1,000 men
—By 1856, all boroughs and counties in England were required to form their own police force
—
—Law Enforcement in Colonial America
—Paralleled British model
—County Sheriff
¡Collecting taxes, supervising elections, and performing other matters of business
—Instead of patrolling or seeking out crime, the Sheriff reacted to citizens’ complaints and investigated crimes
—
—Early Police Agencies
—Boston created first formal U.S. police dept. in 1838
¡New York Police – 1844
¡Philadelphia Police – 1854
—Conflict between police and the public was born in the difficulty that untrained, unprofessional officers had in patrolling the streets of cities and controlling labor disputes
¡
—
—Early Police Agencies
—Police during the nineteenth century:
¡Involved foot patrols
¡Were regarded as incompetent and corrupt
—Police agencies evolved slowly during the second half of the nineteenth century
¡Uniforms were introduced  in New York (1853)
¡Communication links between precincts using telegraph (1850s)
¡Bicycles introduced (1897)
¡Primary responsibility was maintaining order
—
—Policing in the Twentieth Century
—The emergence of professionalism
—The 1960s and Beyond
—Policing in the 1970s
—Policing in the 1980s
—Policing in the 1990s
—
—
—The Emergence of Professionalism
—1893 International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP)
¡Called for a civil service police force
—August Vollmer
¡Most famous police reformer 
¡Instituted university training for young officers
¡Helped to develop the school of Criminology at the University of California,  at Berkeley
—The 1960s and Beyond
—Turmoil and crisis in the 1960s
—Supreme Court decisions impacted police
—Civil rights of suspects expanded significantly
—Civil unrest between the public and police
—Rapidly growing crime rate in the 1960s
—Both violent and property crimes increased
—The 1970s
—1970s
¡There were structural changes in police departments, increased federal support  for criminal justice
¡Law Enforcement Assistance Administration provided resources:
÷Improved police training
÷Supported innovative police research
¡More woman and minorities were recruited for police work
—
—The 1980s and 1990s
—1980s
¡Emergence of community policing, unions fought for increase in salaries, state and local budgets were cut
¡
—1990s
¡Rodney King case prompted an era of
  police reform

¡Police departments embraced forms of policing that stressed cooperation with the community and problem solving
¡
 

—Policing and Law Enforcement Today
—Law Enforcement agencies are adapting to the changing nature of crime
¡(Ex:  terrorism and internet fraud)
—700,000 sworn law enforcement officers throughout these jurisdictions:
¡Federal
¡State
¡County
¡Metropolitan
¡Private
¡
—
—
—
—
—Federal Law Enforcement Agencies
—U.S. Justice Department Agencies:
¡Federal Bureau of Investigations
¡Drug Enforcement Administration
¡Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives
¡U.S. Marshals
—Department of Homeland Security  Agencies:
¡Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
¡The Secret Service
—
÷
—
—State Law Enforcement Agencies
—First agency was the Texas Rangers, created in 1835
—First truly modern state police agencies:
¡1903 – Connecticut
¡1905 – Pennsylvania
—State police agencies
¡60,000 officers and 30,000 civilians
¡Primarily responsible for highway patrol and traffic law enforcement
—County Law Enforcement Agencies
—Today sheriffs’ offices contain 330,000 full-time employees including 175,000 sworn personnel
—Provide court security
—Operate the jail system
—Duties vary widely depending on size
—Metropolitan Law Enforcement Agencies
—Range in size from agencies with 40,000 officers to departments with only 1 part-time officer
—Nearly 13,000 departments with over 460,000 sworn personnel
—Majority of departments have fewer than 50 officers and serve a population under 25,000
—Most provide a wide variety of services and functions
—Private Policing
—Private security has become a multimillion-dollar industry
—10,000 firms and 1.5 million employees
—People employed in private security outnumber public police by almost three to one
—Privatized security costs less than public officers
—Technology and Law Enforcement
—There is little doubt that the influence of technology on policing will continue to grow:
¡Crime Mapping
¡License Plate Recognition Technology
¡Digitizing Criminal Identification
¡Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems
¡Digital Dental Records
¡DNA Testing
—Future Technology
—Genetic algorithms
—Augmented Reality technology
—Automated Biometric Identification System
—Module 2

Explain how crime is measured by providing understandable examples of the UCR, NCVS and any Data collection methods?

Lecture Materials
The Nature of Crime and Victimization -Power Point presentation
Crime is a Label some forms of conduct, but not all, are defined as crimes or violations of law definitions of what conduct is a crime change over time (e.g., producing, selling and drinking alcohol). –
Why is that so? Definitions of crime reflect basic assumptions about the nature of society and social control
- How is Crime Defined? Consensus view –Crimes are behaviors harmful to a majority of citizens in society. (social harm) –Society’s social control function is accomplished by prohibiting these behaviors through the criminal law.
- How is Crime Defined? (cont.) Conflict view –Crime is the outcome of a class conflict between the rich and the poor. –Groups with political and economic power shape the law to ensure their continued economic domination of society.
- How is Crime Defined? (cont.) Interactionist view –The law is structured to reflect the preferences and opinions of people who hold social power in a particular legal jurisdiction. –Moral entrepreneurs wage campaigns to control behaviors they view as wrong (i.e. abortion) or to legalize behaviors they consider harmless (i.e. prostitution).
--Making Crime - What standards are normally used to define conduct as criminal? Harm/injury to individuals and society (e.g., murder, assassination) Undermining of public/social order (e.g., disorderly conduct, DWI) Offense against prevailing morality (e.g., gay/lesbian sex) Undermining the capacity of the criminal justice system (e.g., resisting arrest, perjury)
- Deciding What is Serious Crime –How serious is a crime is it? Standards: §Level or degree of harm, offensiveness, undermining of public order, etc. §Who determines what crimes are more serious than others? –Legal categories of crime: legislatures –Public perception of seriousness: opinion surveys –Occupational specialists (e.g., police, judges, scholars) §A puzzle: who determined what is a UCR Part I (serious) and Part II crime (non-serious)?
UCR, Part I: Serious Crime (SLO Question bank)
- Why are these the serious crimes? Why are drug crimes, for example, not serious?
- How is Crime Measured? Official record data –Uniform Crime Reports Survey data –National Crime Victimization Survey –Self Report Studies Alternative sources –Observation –Interviews –Life Histories How Good is the Information?
- How accurate are official crime data? –How accurate are UCR data? What problems lead to inaccuracies? –How accurate are the NCVS data? What problems lead to inaccuracies? –How accurate area drug use data from NIDA (National Institute of Drug Abuse) surveys? –Fear of Crime surveys: What do people fear? 
UCR UCR collects data on 8 crimes UCR is published by the FBI UCR is based on reports from other police agencies Problems with accuracy –Only includes crimes reported by victims or observers to the police (about half of all crimes which are committed are reported)  –Depends on voluntary submissions by police agencies of data to the FBI –Does not include federal crimes, including those committed on Indian reservations –Technical differences in defining and counting crimes among law enforcement agencies – –NCVS Accuracy problems: Answering questions about crime depends on memory: can lead to over-reporting and under-reporting A survey of households –Sampling errors –Asks about any victimization of members of the household in the last six months –Memory errors –Reluctance to report intra family crime (e.g., domestic violence) –Not knowing proper legal definitions of crimes

- National Crime Victimization Survey. Crime Patterns – Who Are the Offenders Ecological differences – where they live Gender Race Social class Age Criminal careers – prior criminal record Crime Patterns –

- Who are the Victims Gender Age Income Marital status Race Ecological factors Victim-offender relationships Repeat victimization Explanations for Crime Differ Types of crimes: keep in mind that no one explanation works for all types of crime –Violent crimes (e.g., serial killers) –Property crimes (e.g., burglary) –White collar crimes (e.g. fraud) –Drugs, which kind? –Morality crime (e.g. sex for sale, gambling) n Causes of Crime and Victimization Choice theory: 

- All people of their own free will can choose between conventional or criminal behaviors. –For some people, criminal solutions are more attractive because they require less effort for greater gain. –Weigh benefits and consequences of actions. –Punishments threatened by the existing criminal law are the primary deterrent to crime. –Deterrence effects are limited (calculating future costs and benefits is not easy) Causes of Crime and Victimization (cont.) Socio-biological theory:  Behavior is a function of the interaction of biochemical, neurological, and genetic factors with environmental stimulus. –Bio-chemical factors §E.g., aggressive tendencies caused by exposure to chemicals, such as lead poisoning when young –Neurological problems –Genetic abnormalities – – Causes of Crime and Victimization (cont.) Psychological theory:  Criminals are driven by unconscious thought patterns, developed in early childhood, that control behavior. –Psychoanalytic View –Schizophrenia –Conduct disorders –Social learning –Psychopathic personality Causes of Crime and Victimization (cont.) Social structure theory: A person’s position in the social structure affects her/his behavior. –Poverty –Social disorganization –Strain –Cultural deviance Causes of Crime and Victimization (cont.) Social process theory: Interactions with key social institutions – family, school, peer group, military service, job – shapes behavior. –Social learning –Social control –Social reaction (labeling) Causes of Crime and Victimization (cont.) Conflict theory:  Human behavior is shaped by interpersonal conflict.  Those who maintain power will use it to further their own needs. –Economic and political forces in society as fundamental causes of criminality –Crimes are defined in a way that meets needs of ruling class and economic and political elites –Street crime is punished differently from white collar crime Causes of Crime and Victimization (cont.) Developmental theory (Life course theory) –People begin relationships and behaviors that will determine their adult life course, even as toddlers. –Finishing school, entering workforce, getting married and having children –Disruptions in life’s major transitions can be destructive and promote criminality –As people mature the factors that influence their behavior change. Theories and Policies How do theories relate to policy? Does “understanding” why crimes are committed tell you what to do? –Take life course theory  - what would work to prevent or deter crime? –Take rational choice, that is weighing consequences of acts – what would work to prevent or deter crime? –Take any of the theories/explanations and figure out what would work, Perspectives and Policies Take crime prevention: what do perspectives tell you? –E.g., Crime Control? Do what? Increase deterrence, incapacitate criminals, more death penalties – so why would that work? –E.g., Restorative Justice? Do what? Stress restitution, reintegration – why would that work?

Module 3 BREAK OUT GROUPS CASE STUDY
(Identify ethical issues in this article and discuss your response to a community regarding the actions of these officers)

Read Article-
Police Brutality in New Orleans- Article-
Case study 1.1 Police Brutality in New Orleans March 1990 Mr. Archie, and African American, was injured in an incident which police claimed he shot and killed a white police officer during a downtown shootout.  Mr. Archie was later to die himself in circumstances that are still far from clear.

Transporting Mr. Archie to the hospital after the shooting of police took 12 minutes, however the distance was only 7 blocks.  When he arrived at the hospital about 100 officers were present, having heard about the death of their fellow officer.  While Mr. Archie was being taken to the hospital, police radios were used to utter death threats against him, and by those officers who accompanied him to the hospital.

According to their account, they decided not to take him to that hospital, and instead of taking him to a different hospital, they took him to the police station where the deceased officer had worked.  Here, officers reported there was a scuffle involving Archie and he fell, causing blood stains on the floor.  However, the sergeant at the police station denied seeing either Mr. Archie or the officers did not ask about the blood stains, but simply ordered that they be cleaned up.

When Mr. Archie finally got medical treatment it was clear that he had been severely beaten, but no officers were held responsible.  At the hospital, Archie’s X-rays of his injuries disappeared, and staff were unable to record details of Archie’s name and background.  He was injected with iodine, to which he was alleged to be allergic; for other accounts by pathologist reported that he had been beaten to death.

Ultimately his death was reported as a “homicide by police intervention” by the coroner.  Within hours of his death, police Superintendent Woodfork cleared all officers involved in the incident of any violations of conduct.  Reportedly, the rookie officer who arrested Archie was pilloried by fellow officers for not killing Archie on the spot.

Subsequently, in May 1990, a report by the advisory committee on human relations found that some officers had brutalized Archie, and that the department had failed to hold him accountable.  The committee noted the existence of a police code of silence that was supported by the highest levels within the department.   (Source: Human Rights Watch, www.hrw.org/reports/98/police/uspo93.htm.)

Identify some key issues about police behavior in this article and be prepared to discuss some issues and how you (not as a citizen) but as a law enforcement officer can respond to these issues.

Module 4
Lecture Materials
Power Point Presentation
Lecture
The Multiple Social Functions of Law
Criminal Law: Substance and Procedure
What purposes or functions does the law serve
–Enforce social control –Enact retribution –Express public opinion and morality –Deter criminal behavior –Punish wrong doing –Maintain social order –Restore social relations Help establish a just society.
An Example of Goals Stated in Law
- Section 9.94A.010 of the Washington State Criminal Code: The purpose of criminal justice is to: 1.Ensure that punishment is proportionate to the seriousness of the offense 2.Promote respect for law by providing punishment that is just 3.Have similar punishments for similar offenses 4.Protect the public 5.Offer offenders an opportunity to improve themselves (rehabilitation) 6.Make frugal use of the state’s resources.
-Law and Criminal Justice
Law enables and also restricts government authority and power
Law changes over time, it has a history
Law is a public decision:  by legislatures, courts,  administrative  agencies, public demands (moral entrepreneurs)
Law is not self-executing: it is a human process - legal words have to be interpreted and applied

Definitions: Types of Law
Substantive criminal law:
law that defines crime and punishment (penal codes)
spells out the powers and authority of CJ officials
establishes penalties for crime
the government deals with crimes, even those against persons  
(victims cannot take the lake into their own hands - have to take their case to the government which then deals with the offenders)

Procedural Law
The rules designed to implement substantive law (code of criminal procedures)
Is based on Bill of Rights
Defines justice
Requires due process in criminal justice decision-making
Limits power of government
Protects individual rights

Civil law:

Law governing phases of human enterprise, including commerce, family life, property transfer, and regulation of interpersonal conflict;
Deals with conflicts between individuals or groups
State/government merely provides the arena and legal rules for arguing and resolving inter-personal conflicts

Historical Development of Criminal Law

Babylonian Code of Hammurabi (2000 B.C.)
Mosaic Code of the Israelites (1200 B.C.)
Roman Twelve Tables (451 B.C.)
Justinian’s Corpus Juris Civilis
German Wergild
Canon (Church)
Law n
State centered law: common law in England; civil law in Europe

Sources of Criminal Law in the United States

The USA was a British colony: followed British legal traditions
Common Law:  Incorporated customs, traditions, practices, and common behavior into a standardized law.
The USA was a British colony: followed British legal traditions
Common Law:  Incorporated customs, traditions, practices, and common behavior into a standardized law.
No punishment without a law; conduct not prohibited by law is allowed –Mala in se: crimes that are inherently evil (i.e. murder) –Mala prohibita: prohibited wrongs (failure to pay taxes)

Sources of Criminal Law
Constitutional laws and provisions: Bill of Rights
Common law practices (e.g., contempt of court)
Statutes written by legislatures (the most common source of law)
Case decisions, most importantly those by the Supreme Court
Administrative rules and regulations

Prohibited laws under the Constitution
Ex Post Facto Laws –Punish conduct committed before passage of the law criminalizing that conduct –Makes a crime more serious and authorizes greater punishment than the law existing at the time of the act –Makes it easier to convict the offender than the law existing at the time of the act.
Bill of Attainder –A legislative act punishing someone for treason without a trial –Punishing someone for conduct committed by someone else (e.g., a member of the family – “corruption of blood”)

Crimes and Classifications (SLO)
Felony: Serious crime punishable by imprisonment in a penitentiary or death.
Misdemeanor: A less serious crime punishable by fine or imprisonment for less than a year.
Infraction: Violations of a city or county ordinance normally punished by a fine.  Some states consider infractions to be civil rather than criminal.

Crime Definitions
Actus reus –An illegal act –A failure to act when the law requires you to do so –Act must be voluntary –Negligent acts can result in criminal liability
Mens rea –Guilty mind or intent.  The mental element of a crime –Intent is implied if the results of an act are certain to occur. –Crimes may require different levels of intent ranging from purpose (homicide) to negligence (manslaughter – a reasonable person should have know that someone could be killed by one’s conduct)

Exceptions to mens rea: strict liability offenses: –Illegal acts that do not require a showing of intent
Examples: –Speeding –Serving a minor alcohol because he/she looked older

Criminal Defenses
A person can commit an act that would ordinarily be a crime but they are not held criminally liable because there is a recognized defense or justification for their act under the law.
Criminal defenses are a core aspect of common law thinking.
Most criminal defenses are based on the mens rea element in definitions of crime.

Ignorance or mistake –As a general rule ignorance of the law is not a defense. –Mistake of fact may be a defense if it shows a lack of intent. –Examples §Taking someone else’s coat when you leave a restaurant because you believed it was yours
Taking a suitcase from the airline belt, which looks just like yours, but which does not belong to you.

Insanity –Relies on a legal rather than medical definition –Defendants who are legally insane are found not guilty by reason of insanity. –Insane persons lack the capacity to form legal intent, or mens rea. –Cannot distinguish between right and wrong, or cannot control their conduct.

Intoxication –Voluntary intoxication is not normally a defense. –Involuntary intoxication may be a defense
E.g., someone gave you a drink you did not know or could not reasonably know contained alcohol.

Age –A child is not criminally responsible for actions committed at an age that precludes a full realization of gravity of certain types of behavior. –Under the common law a child under the age of seven was presumed to be incapable of forming intent. –Today state statutes establish the age of responsibility.

Consent –A person may not be convicted of a crime if the victim consented to the act. A forcible rape does not occur if person consents to sexual relations – it is love,statutory rape does occur, even if the parties consent, because the law assumes not all persons (juveniles, mentally challenged, intoxicated persons) are competent to give consent. –Competent to give consent means voluntary and informed consent (understanding the consequences of consenting)

Self-defense –Must have acted under reasonable belief that he/she was in danger of death or great harm, and had no means of escape –May only use such force as is reasonable necessary to prevent personal harm or imminent harm to others.

–Recent changes in state law have made it easier to claim self defense
E.g., “stand your ground” laws mean you do not have to attempt to escape to argue self defense
E.g. “make my day laws” mean you can shoot someone who you think threatens you in your home – you did not know the person was delivering pizza and got the address wrong –The threat must be immediate §But hard to define (e.g., battered women who kill their spouses while they are asleep)
Entrapment –The police may not induce someone to commit a crime they otherwise would not have done through the use of traps, decoys, and deception. –The motive for committing a crime originates with the police, not the offender –But police may provide someone with the opportunity to commit a crime. §Setting up a sting operations means gives someone a chance to commit a crime, not the motive to commit it.

Duress –Person is forced to commit a crime in order to prevent death or serious physical harm to themselves or someone else
E.g., being told to rob a store or a family member will be hurt.
The threat of duress must be reasonable –Generally may not claim duress as a defense or justification to the crime of murder.

Necessity –In order to prevent a greater harm a crime is committed.  Must be able to show that any reasonable person would have done so
E.g. someone without a cell phone breaking into a closed store to call an ambulance –Generally does not apply to social or moral agendas Shutting down nuclear power plants or abortion clinics.

Constitutional Criminal Procedure  (Tested in Mock Court Trial)
4th Amendment: Regulates searches and seizures.
5th  Amendment: Protects against self-incrimination, double jeopardy, and guarantees right to grand jury.
6th Amendment: Right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury, right to counsel, notice of charges, and confrontation of witnesses.
8th  Amendment: Prohibits excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishment.
14th  Amendment: makes Bill of Rights applicable to the states.


Due Process of the Law –Found in both the 5th and 14th Amendments –Refers to the essential elements of fairness under law –Substantive due process protects against laws that are unfair. –Procedural due process ensures no one is deprived of life, liberty, or property without proper and legal criminal process.

Equal Protection of the Law
Found in the 14th amendment, Law cannot treat people in same situations or for the same conduct differently, on the basis of race, gender, or other group memberships recognized as “suspect” in law (religion, national origin, etc) Prohibits discrimination and arbitrariness by practitioners in how the law is applied

Found in 4th and 5th Amendments
No intrusion by police into privacy of persons or property without proper legal cause (search and seizure of evidence, warrant requirement)
Persons in police custody must be informed of their right against self incrimination (Miranda warning); confessions cannot be compelled.

Due Process of Law
Notice of charges – accusation
A formal hearing
The right to counsel/representation
Opportunity to respond to charges
Opportunity to confront and cross-examine witnesses
Free from self-incrimination – “take the fifth”
Opportunity to present one’s own witnesses
A decision made on the basis of substantial evidence and facts produced at hearing
Written statement of reasons for the decision
An appellate review procedure

Found in 8th Amendment
Punishment cannot be cruel and unusual by prevailing moral standards of the society
Convicted offenders under control of the state (probation, parole, prison, jail) are entitled to minimal conditions of human dignity (safety, food, health care, access to communications, practice of established religion, access to rehabilitation services)

Found in the 14th Amendment
Guarantees equal protection of the law and due process
Passed after the civil, applied to federal cases only
Was applied to state and local courts (“incorporated” into state law) by the Supreme Court, mainly during the 1960s
Big case: Mapp v Ohio, 1961 (applied the exclusionary rule to state courts)
Other Bill of Rights protection incorporated piecemeal to state levels

Module 5

The Police: Role and Function
Police Organization
Most municipal police departments are independent agencies within the executive branch of government.
Most departments follow para-military model adhering to semi-rigid chain of command. –But, substantial discretion rests at the lowest rank level Personnel decisions often based on time-in-rank considerations.
The Multiple Goals of Police Work
Basic goals: social control: how? –control crime –maintain order –provide services –gather information (intelligence, investigation) –special tasks (crowd control, SWAT) –be a symbol of justice

The Multiple Goals of Police Work (cont.)
Issues: –What if goals conflict? (e.g., crime control and justice –”due process”); what goal receives priority? –How to divide and organize all this work within one agency: look at organization charts –How to control power and discretion (e.g., use of force, corruption, discrimination)

The Formal Roles of Police
Formal roles: sworn officers and civilians –Street work: patrol officers –Investigations: detectives –Undercover: vice, corruption –Traffic control –Special: K9, SWAT, community relations, juvies, internal investigations –Training: academy, FTOs, in-service, special skills workshops –Support: planning, budgets, records, equipment – often civilians –

The Organization of Police Departments
Doing Policing: the dirty, impossible job
Doing policing: –“Dirty” job? call the cops –Discretion, power, external, and internal judgments
The nature of street, patrol work: –Deal with the dismal side of life – makes one cynical, disillusioned, few decent folk –Need to use force –Visibility – everyone can see you, and tape you –Potential for danger –Uneven work rhythms – boredom and adrenaline –Authoritarian work environment –
And competing goals – order, services, law enforcement, intelligence
And higher ups will always “betray” you –

Discretion - unavoidable normative, legal and policy judgments – situational decision-making –Someone will always complain – the nature of law, criminal justice and policies –Plus, now COP work: be nice, other skills, performance evaluations unclear

The Patrol Function
Account for 2/3 of most departments’ personnel
Deter crime through visible presence
Maintain public order
Respond to law violations or emergencies
Identify and apprehend criminals
Aid citizens in distress
Facilitate movement of people and traffic
Create a sense of safety and security
What Do Patrol Officers Do When They Work
Workload studies: how do patrol officers spend their time?
How is this measured? –Participant observation: ride around with cops –Analysis of 911 calls for policing: why do people call the police
Crime, order maintenance, services, paperwork, time off –What percentage of time is spend doing each role
Are the police proactive or reactive in their work?

What Do Patrol Officers Do When They Work Findings of workload studies
Crime fighting efforts are only a small part of the police officer’s overall activities. –On average a police officer makes less than 2 arrests per month and less than 1 felony arrest every 4 months.
Majority of time spent handling minor disturbances, service calls, and administrative duties
Impacts of Patrol Work
Deterrent effect of patrol:
Patrol methods seem to have little impact on public’s attitude toward police.
Patrol  Work
Patrol Activities –Majority of efforts devoted to order maintenance or peacekeeping
Requires officers to use discretion and resolve situations without making an arrest §Use of selective enforcement

Department emphasizes stopping crimes before they occur rather than traditional reactive approach.
–Aggressive enforcement is used to create belief that criminals stand a significant risk of being caught.
–Special programs may target specific crimes.
–Zero tolerance policies

–Research indicates adding police officers may in fact reduce crime and improve overall effectiveness of the justice system.
Agencies with more officers per capita than the norm experience lower levels of violent crimes.
–A costly policy (costs about 80,000/year to hire and keep one officer) –
Patrol Work (cont.) Compstat program –Computer program provides real-time crime data and improves analysis capabilities for local commanders. –Commanders are required by HQ justify police deployments and strategies based on crime trends.
–Both a use of data and a management tool
The Investigation Function
Detective investigate the causes of crime and attempt to identify the individuals or groups responsible for committing particular offenses. Undercover/sting operations
–Police deceive criminals into openly committing illegal acts. –Common in investigation of prostitution, gambling, and narcotics –Critics argue constitutes entrapment or may be encouraging commission of additional offenses
Evaluating investigations
–Most arrests are made by patrol officers.
–One study indicates half of all detectives could be replaced without negatively influencing crime clearance rates.
–Police have only a 5 percent chance to solve a crime if more than 15 minutes elapse from the time of occurrence to reporting.
–Detectives generally lack sufficient resources to carry out lengthy probes of any but the most serious crimes.
–Most crimes are solved by leads from the public
Improving investigations
–Use of patrol officers for preliminary investigations to free up time for detectives
–Increased use of specialization –Greater reliance on technology –Better relations with community members, who provide most of the leads that help solve a crime
-Community Oriented Policing COP: Core elements –Partnership and co-production –Problem solving and crime prevention –Decentralization of control and authority –Flexibility: no one style fits all
From incident driven policing to analysis of underlying problems; –E.g. hot spots, repeat responses
Requires new skills and attitudes for police
Community Policing
Police-community relations programs were developed to improve relations with the community and develop cooperation with citizens with the goals of –Explaining police activities –Teaching self-protection methods –Improving general attitudes toward policing
Original programs developed at station-house and departmental levels.
Broken windows model

–Primary function of police should be community preservation, public safety, and order maintenance. –Neighborhood disorder creates fear. –Neighborhoods give out crime-promoting signals. –To be effective police need citizen cooperation. –If small crimes/offenses are not taken care of, the community will deteriorate

Implementing community policing –New Jersey and Michigan foot patrol experiments –Creation of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) –Neighborhood-oriented policing
Community Policing (cont.)
Problem-oriented policing –Form of proactive policing –Identifies long-term community problems and develop strategies to eliminate them –Relies on assistance of local residents to identify and resolve problems
–Specialized units may concentrate on “hot spots” where significant portion of calls originate

Problem solving in practice: the SARA model –Scanning –Analysis –Response –Assessment
Challenges of community policing –Must define community –Define roles –Change command structure –Re-orient police values –Revise training –Reorient recruitment –Sustain community participation –It has to work – it is still policing

Support functions –Personnel services –Internal affairs –Budgeting –Data management –Dispatch –Forensic laboratories –Planning and research –Equipment: police buy a lot of cars - supply and maintenance.

Module 6

Courts, Prosecution, and the Defense
Overview General goals of the court system
–Provide for an open and impartial forum for seeking the truth
–Provide for a fair and equitable hearing using established due process rules
–Insure that the process takes place in an atmosphere of legal competence and objectivity
–Provide a clear legal outcome

The Importance of Courts
Without courts (lawyers, judges), law has no legs: the law is not self-executing
The rights guaranteed under the Constitution against government overreach depend on courts being willing to protect them –E.g., habeas corpus petitions (“produce the body”) –E.g., can “terrorists” be imprisoned without access to courts?

The Structure of Courts
All court systems are hierarchies of jurisdiction –State, federal, tribal court hierarchies –Different powers, functions, and occupational priorities for different courts –Original (limited, general) and appellate (intermediate, last resort) jurisdictions –

The Informal Structure of Courts
Each court is a system
Judge, prosecutor, defense, clerks, probation, police form a “working group” which participates in decision-making

The court working group often seeks to “work things out” among the participants.

The use of plea negotiations and other nonjudicial alternatives to “work things out” is more common than a formal trial process.

The working group exists because participants need to work together over long periods of time

The “worth of a case” is the basic working norm for informal decision-making

Courts have a heavy work load –Differences between ideal and real (remember the wedding cake   model)

Discretion sometimes results in disparity

Funding problems

Technology as a way of dealing with heavy work loads (e.g., calendaring, jury pools)

The Criminal Court Process
Criticisms of the Courts

Overcrowded dockets

Assembly-line justice –at the lowest level of the wedding cake

Too many incentives to plead guilty and to plea bargain

Too few jury trials

Speedy trials are unattainable

A Model State Court System

The Criminal Court Process

State courts –Every state has its own court system –No two are alike –Some states still have local courts staffed by amateurs on a part time bases (e.g. village courts in New York) –Deal with variety of cases ranging from homicide to property maintenance

Courts of limited jurisdiction

 –The work horses of the criminal justice system –About 13,500 exist –Organized at municipal or county level –Restricted in types of cases they hear –May be restricted to civil or criminal cases –Dispose of minor cases – may do preliminary activities for some felonies –Sentencing options restricted

courts –Juvenile, family, and probate courts –Courts to combat specific problems §Drug courts, adults, and juveniles §Mental health courts §IRS court

The Criminal Court Process
 Courts of general jurisdiction –Around 2,000 in the U.S. –Hear serious felony cases –Civil cases with damages over a specified amount –Appeals from lower courts §Review of transcript §Trial de novo

The Criminal Court Process
 Appellate courts –Each state has at least one level of appellate courts. §Highest state court, usually called the “State Supreme Court” –Court reconsiders a case that has been tried in order to determine whether the measures used complied with accepted rules of criminal procedure and were in line with constitutional doctrines –Appeal is not a new trial –Can order a new trial, overturn lower court decision, or uphold original verdict

Federal Courts

Federal courts –Legal basis for these courts found in Article 3, sec. 1, of U.S. Constitution –Jurisdiction over laws of U.S. and treaties –Maritime jurisdiction –Over controversies between 2 or more states –3-tiered hierarch of court jurisdiction §U.S. District Courts §U.S. Courts of Appeals §U.S. Supreme Court

U.S. district courts –Trial courts of the federal system –Organized by Congress in the Judicial Act of 1789 –Jurisdiction over violations of federal law, i.e. civil rights violations, interstate transportation of stolen vehicles and kidnappings –May hear inter-state lawsuits or cases where federal government is a party to the suit –Jurisdiction may overlap that of state courts

U.S. courts of appeals –Organized into 13 judicial circuits –Hear 40,000 appeals from district courts each year –Empowered to review federal and state appellate court cases when there is a federal issue present –Do not retry the case or review the facts – only matters of procedure and substance of the law –Current attempts to limit the right of appeal

The U.S. Supreme Court –Nation’s highest appellate body – court of last resort for all cases tried in federal and state courts –Only federal court mentioned in the Constitution –Nine justices appointed for life (good behavior) by the President with approval of Congress –Court has discretion to choose which cases it will hear

Supreme Court process –Most appeals to Supreme Court first evaluated by clerks working for justices –Most cases (90 percent) are brought to the court by using a writ of certiorari §4 of the 9 justices must vote to hear the case –If the Court decides to hear a case, it reviews legal briefs and may hear oral arguments –May decide to affirm or reverse the decision of the lower court –Decisions become precedent

Federal and State Court Caseloads

State courts handle about one hundred million new cases each year including: –20 million civil and domestic cases –15 million criminal cases –2 million juvenile cases –57 million traffic and ordinance violations

Federal courts even though smaller, are equally burdened –Over 320,000 cases filed each year in District Courts §Criminal cases increased 55 percent since 1994 –Circuit Courts hear more than 60,000 appeals per year §In 1969 they heard only 10,000 appeals

Causes of court congestion –Rapidly increasing populations outpace growth in court system –People like to sue each other –Aggressive attempts to lower crime rate result in more prosecutions –Complexity of the law and advances in technology –Legal reform efforts may require more trials –Frivolous lawsuits –Lazy judges

The Jobs of Judges Official  roles: –Political: campaign for election (if elected); think ahead –Administrative:  manage and supervise court personnel, resources, can have extensive control over probation officers and court clerk n

Legal: §Issue warrants §Decisions in preliminary hearings – bind over or not §Make bail decisions §agree to plea-bargains §request PSIs (pre-sentence reports)

Primary duty is to oversee the trial process –Ensures appropriate conduct –Guides selection of  juries and instructs on their roles during trial –Settles questions of evidence and procedure – deals with motions –Guides questioning of witnesses –Responsible for jury instructions after case is presented

Decides case in bench trials

Determines the sentence (except in capital cases)

Informal roles –Maintain good relations with court working group –Use discretion guided by legal requirements –Personal sense of justice in sentencing –Worry about appeals and being overturned –Exert influence over police and prosecutors –Decisions may shape social policy  

How to Become a Judge

Judicial qualifications –Qualification vary by state –Typical qualifications are: §Resident of the state §Between 25 and 70 years of age §Member of state bar licensed to practice law –Lower courts may not require law degree

Judicial selection systems –Appointment –Popular election –Nonpartisan election –Missouri Plan §Judicial nominating commission §Appointed by governor from commission’s list §Retention election

The Prosecutor  –May be called district attorney, county attorney, state’s attorney, or U.S. attorney depending on the level of government and jurisdiction –Responsible for representing the public in criminal trials –Around 2,400 state court prosecutors offices –Employ 65,000 attorneys, investigators, and support staff n

Types of prosecutors –U.S. Attorneys – appointed by the President –Federal prosecutors are professional civil service employees –State and county levels, attorney general, and district attorney are chief prosecutorial officers –Political appointees or elected

The Jobs of Prosecutors -General duties –Provide advice to law enforcement officers during investigations –Represents the state during pretrial plea negotiations, motions, evidence, and bail hearings –Represents the state at other hearings, criminal trials, and appeals –Legal advisor to county commissioners and other elected officials –Implementation of special programs

Administrator: Manage the office Informal: interact with working group
Legal
Evaluate the case file
Decide to take the case forward or not
Conduct the case if go forward –Strategy and tactics –
Sentencing recommendations

Prosecutorial Discretion
Prosecutors have a great deal of discretion
Evaluate case files –Strong or weak case: factual, legal, political? –Decision Options: §Go forward and charge the defendant to court: indictment or information §Nolle prosequi – dismiss case, about 50 percent of the time §Plea bargain the case – §

Jobs of Prosecutors (cont.) –May leave decision to charge someone with minor crime primarily to police discretion –Charge construction: §converting facts into a legal case §same facts can be used to construct different charges or cases –The Jena six case §charge construction will determine the level of punishment if guilty

Legal issues influencing prosecutorial discretion on cases –
Quality of police work and amount of relevant evidence –Legal weaknesses in the case –Seriousness of offense –Defendant’s prior arrest record –Danger to community

Victim issues influencing prosecutorial discretion –Attitude and behavior of the victim –Reluctance of victim to press charges
Extra legal/resource issues influencing prosecutorial discretion –Offenders’ race, gender, and ethnicity –Cost of the prosecution to the system –Availability of alternatives –Interest group’s influence causes to focus on particular types of offenses –Fear of losing case – political ramifications

The role of prosecutorial discretion –Can prevent unnecessarily rigid implementation of criminal law –Humanize operation of criminal justice system –Imposes professional judgments and the sense of the court working group on the processing of cases –Too much discretion can lead to abuse –Prosecutors have their own perspectives

Types of prosecutorial misconduct –overcharging a case to be able to plea-bargain later –making disruptive statements in court –failure to adhere to sentence recommendations pursuant to a plea bargain –represented a criminal defendant currently under prosecution –making public statements harmful to the office –withholding evidence, non-discovery –Knowingly using false or manufactured evidence to gain conviction –using power in vindictive manner to punish defendants who insist on exercising their constitutional rights

The Defense Attorney -Integral part of adversarial system

Required to uphold integrity of the legal profession
Must observe ABA Code to provide zealous defense within boundaries of law
Courts do not require assistance of counsel for accused in: –Pre-indictment lineups –Booking procedures –Grand jury investigations –Appeals beyond first review –Disciplinary proceedings in correctional institutions –Post-release revocation hearings

The Jobs of Defense Attorneys -Roles of the defense –Protect rights of client –Argue for client’s side in plea bargaining and trials –Conduct effective trial strategy, lay grounds for appeal

Duties of defense –How far to go to protect client? –Ethical concerns: balancing rights of client with public safety and justice

The Right to Counsel
Legal services for poor people –Case Study
Gideon v. Wainwright –Argersinger v. Hamlin –Public defender systems –Assigned counsel systems –Contract systems –Private attorneys, pro bono or hired §Most do not practice criminal law §Debate over effectiveness of private attorneys versus attorneys provided by state

The Competence of Defense Attorneys

Case Study
Strickland v. Washington Inadequate and incompetent counsel –Refuse to meet with client –Fail to cross-examine witnesses –Fail to investigate case –Poor advice to client –Conflict of interest between co-defendants’ counsel –Sleeping during trial

Court Administration Administrative Office Act, 1939

States have been slow to apply court management principles –

All states now have some form of court administration Court

Computers allow courts to fulfill many functions more efficiently –Maintain case history and statistical reporting –Monitor and schedule cases –Prepare documents –Index cases –Issues summonses –Notify witnesses, attorneys, and others of required appearances –Select and notify jurors –Prepare and administer budgets.

Module 7

Pretrial Procedures

What happens before a trial – mostly done by police, prosecutors and sometimes judges
Pretrial procedures are important because majority of criminal cases are resolved informally
Police may decide not to forward a case
Charges can be dropped or dismissed by the prosecutor
Plea bargains can be made by prosecutor and defense
Competency hearings in front of judges
Bail
Bail: money or some other assurance provided to the court that the defendant will appear at every stage in the criminal justice process.
Types of bail: surety bail, ROR – release on recognizance
Purpose: obtain release from custody for defendant
If defendant fails to appear, bail is forfeited and person is confined in jail until court appearance
Informal Bail Agents
Bail bonding agencies:
–        Provide sureties, or bonds, for those who cannot afford the bond
–        Receive a fraction of the bond as profit for their work
–        If bailees appears in court, bonding agency gets its money bond back from the courts
–        If bailees jumps bail and cannot be found, bonding agencies loose their bond

Bounty hunters:
–        Employed by bonding agencies to track down and return bail jumpers, so agencies can get their bond back
–        Bounty hunters have legal powers to arrest and detain which vary from state to state
–        Normally licensed by the state

Current data indicate about 2/3 of those arrested made bail
1/3 are held in custody
7 percent denied bail
Murder defendants least likely to get bail
1/3 of those released were rearrested
Bail Release by Type of Bond
Notice the frequency of different types of bail

Question: who receives what type of bail?
Bail Release by Type of Bond
Notice the frequency of different types of bail
Purpose is to ensure appearance at trial, not punish
Cannot be arbitrarily denied or revoked

Critics argue it is discriminatory/objectionable
–        Works against poor
–        State pays to incarcerate people who would otherwise remain in community
–        Detainees receive longer sentences than those on bail
–        Dehumanizing
–        Racial/ethnic disparity
–        Preventive detention
  –        Today virtually all larger jurisdictions have pretrial release in one form or another

Pretrial services programs/responsibilities
–        Provide information for judges to make release decisions
–        Assess likelihood of defendant failing to appear or being rearrested
–        Monitoring conditions of release or provide intensive supervision
–        Provide special services for those with mental illness

The legal right to bail (Case  Study)
–        8th Amendment prohibits excessive bail, it does not guarantee a right to bail.
–        Stack v. Boyle - If a crime is bailable, the amount set should not be frivolous, unusual or beyond a person’s ability to pay under similar circumstances.
–        Those unable to post bail, themselves, family or through bondsmen, are held in pretrial detention until trial.

Release on recognizance (ROR)
–        Pioneered by the Vera Institute of Justice, Manhattan Bail Project in 1961
–        concluded that release based on verified information was more effective than money bail

Federal Bail Reform Act of 1966
–        First change in federal bail laws since 1789
–        release should be under the least restrictive method necessary

Federal Bail Reform Act of 1984 – mandated no defendant shall be kept in pretrial detention simply because they cannot afford money bail
Community safety and risk of flight considered – allows for preventive detention
Critics of bail reform argue emphasis should be placed on controlling the behavior of serious criminals
Preventive Detention
Defendants are held in jail based on the belief that they will commit new crimes while on release or flee jurisdiction or country
Allows for detention without conviction for the protection of the defendant and that of the community
Critics believe it is punishment prior to conviction.

Some state jurisdictions have incorporated element of preventive detention into bail systems
–        Exclusion of certain crimes from bail eligibility
–        Definition of bail to include appearance in court and community safety
–        Limitations on right to bail for those previously convicted

Schall v. Martin  (CASE STUDY)
–        Preventive detention of juveniles is constitutional because it is useful to protect the welfare of the minor and society as a whole.

United States v. Salerno (CASE STUDY)
–        Upheld 1984 Bail Reform Act’s preventive detention provisions
–        Preventive detention act had a legitimate and compelling regulatory purpose which does not violate the due process clause.
–        Society’s need for protection outweighs and individual’s liberty interest.

Pretrial Detention
Those unable or ineligible for bail are subject to pretrial detention.
Pretrial custody accounts for more incarceration than imprisonment after sentencing.
Normally held in jails if awaiting trial
Jails considered the weakest link in the criminal justice process – physical and operational conditions

Effects of detention (no bail)
–        Disruption of normal life –work, family
–        Less likely to prepare effectively for for their defense
–        Appear symbolically guilty when brought to court (clothing, shackles, cuffs)
–        More likely to be convicted
–        Receive longer sentence than those released on bail
–        Less attractive plea bargains

Charging the Defendant
Grand jury
–        Traced to English common law
–        Fifth Amendment
–        Power to act as independent investigating body
–        Presentment
–        True bill
–        No bill
–        Controlled by the prosecutor
–        Closed and secret deliberations

Neither accused nor public allowed to attend
–        A rubber stamp for the prosecutor
–        Grand Juries rarely disagree with the prosecutor
–        Prosecutor need not reveal evidence that might exonerate the accused
–        Transcripts of Grand Jury hearings remain secret

Preliminary hearing
–        Used in about half the states as an alternative to the grand jury to determine probable cause
–        Open hearing conducted before a judge
–        Rules of evidence apply
–        Judge makes decision on whether to bind over for trial
–        Defendant may waive the hearing

Arraignment
–        Occurs after the indictment or preliminary hearing
–        Filed in the court with jurisdiction to try the facts of the case
–        Defendant informed of charges and has counsel appointed if necessary
–        Defendant enters a plea
Guilty plea results in date being set for sentencing
If pleading not guilty a date is set for trial

Types of pleas
–        Not Guilty: verbally stated by defendant or entered by court if defendant refuses to answer
–        Nolo Contendere: (no contest)  defendant does not admit guilt but agrees to accept punishment
A nolo conviction cannot be used in a civil trials against the defendant
–        Alford plea: admits that prosecution has enough evidence to convict by maintains innocence
–        Guilty:  defendant admits criminality

Plea Bargaining
Most common practice in the criminal court system to resolve cases
Who bargains?
–        Prosecutors – it is a win, a conviction; good record
–        Defense – the clients gets less punishment
–        Role of the judge – has to agree to the bargain; can reject bargain made between prosecutor and defense
–        Defendants typically does not participate in the bargaining
–        Some states allow victims to participate in a limited way

Plea Bargaining
Types: what is the bargain about?
–        Charge bargaining:
Reduction of initial charges (e.g., from felony to misdemeanor)
Reduction of the number of charges, drop charges
–        Sentence bargaining:
Recommendation for a lighter sentence to the judge
–        Recommendation on which judges will decide the case and sentence; some judges are more lenient than others for certain types of offenses (e.g., domestic violence, drug offenses)

Rates of Plea Bargaining
Notice that only murder is plea bargained for less than 50% of all cases
Why bargain in the first place?
–        A necessity because a of resource constraints:
prevents further overcrowding of courts
Without P-B courts would grind to a standstill
–        Exercise professional skills: the outcome is the correct one and a certain conviction (avoids the uncertainty of a trial)
Correct outcome = the worth of a case
–        Avoids factual and legal weaknesses of a case and still leads to a conviction (defendants give up their due process rights when they plead guilty)
–        Costs of prosecution reduced
–        Efficiency of courts improved
–        Defendant avoids lengthy pretrial incarceration and may receive a reduced sentence
–        Resources devoted to cases that need greater attention
–        Prosecution devotes more time to serious cases

Opposition to plea bargaining
–        Encourages defendants to waive their constitutional right to a trial
–        Dangerous offenders may receive lenient sentences and insufficient punishment (as perceived by victims and the public)
–        Innocent people may plead guilty if they believe the court is biased and they have little chance of acquittal or to avoid the possibility of harsh punishments

Prosecutors may induce or compel defendants to plead guilty
–        A “guilty plea culture” develops among defense attorneys.
–        guilty pleas to “wrong” offense (e.g., if charge is reduced from  felony to a misdemeanor, offenders end up pleading to something they have not done –if charge was properly constructed)
–        Can encourage prosecutor misconduct – multiple charges

Legal Issues
–        Defendants are entitled to effective assistance of counsel.
–        Plea must be made voluntarily and without pressure.
–        Innocent persons can plead guilty to gain a lenient sentence.
–        Both the prosecutor and defendant must honor any promise made.

Module 8

Selection of positions for court trial and group presentation. (Hand out)
Break out groups identifying positions in mock trial

Refer to VoiceThread in this website (There are 3 questions posed, answer 2 of them and upload your answers to this website under Submit here tab)

Chapter 8 Courts Prosecution, Defense
n  The Importance of Courts

n  Without courts (lawyers, judges), law has no legs: the law is not self-executing

n  The rights guaranteed under the Constitution against government overreach depend on courts being willing to protect them

–        E.g., habeas corpus petitions (“produce the body”)

–        E.g., can “terrorists” be imprisoned without access to courts?

n  The Structure of Courts

n  All court systems are hierarchies of jurisdiction

–        State, federal, tribal court hierarchies

–        Different powers, functions, and occupational priorities for different courts

–        Original (limited, general) and appellate (intermediate, last resort) jurisdictions

–        The Informal Structure of Courts

n  Each court is a system

n  Judge, prosecutor, defense, clerks, probation, police form a “working group” which participates in decision-making

n  The court working group often seeks to “work things out” among the participants.

n  The use of plea negotiations and other nonjudicial alternatives to “work things out” is more common than a formal trial process.

n  The working group exists because participants need to work together over long periods of time

n  The “worth of a case” is the basic working norm for informal decision-making

n  Overview (cont.)

n  Courts have a heavy work load

–        Differences between ideal and real (remember the wedding cake           model)

n  Discretion sometimes results in disparity

n  Funding problems

n  Technology as a way of dealing with heavy work loads (e.g., calendaring, jury pools)

n  The Criminal Court Process
Criticisms of the Courts

n  Overcrowded dockets

n  Assembly-line justice –at the lowest level of the wedding cake

n  Too many incentives to plead guilty and to plea bargain

n  Too few jury trials

n  Speedy trials are unattainable

n  A Model State Court System

n  The Criminal Court Process

n  State courts

–        Every state has its own court system

–        No two are alike

–        Some states still have local courts staffed by amateurs on a part time bases (e.g. village courts in New York)

–        Deal with variety of cases ranging from homicide to property maintenance

n  The Criminal Court Process
 (cont.)

n  Courts of limited jurisdiction

–        The work horses of the criminal justice system

–        About 13,500 exist

–        Organized at municipal or county level

–        Restricted in types of cases they hear

–        May be restricted to civil or criminal cases

–        Dispose of minor cases – may do preliminary activities for some felonies

–        Sentencing options restricted

n  The Criminal Court Process
 (cont.)

n  Specialty courts

–        Juvenile, family, and probate courts

–        Courts to combat specific problems

§  Drug courts, adults, and juveniles

§  Mental health courts

§  IRS court

n  The Criminal Court Process
 (cont.)

n  Courts of general jurisdiction

–        Around 2,000 in the U.S.

–        Hear serious felony cases

–        Civil cases with damages over a specified amount

–        Appeals from lower courts

§  Review of transcript

§  Trial de novo

n  The Criminal Court Process
 (cont.)

n  Appellate courts

–        Each state has at least one level of appellate courts.

§  Highest state court, usually called the “State Supreme Court”

–        Court reconsiders a case that has been tried in order to determine whether the measures used complied with accepted rules of criminal procedure and were in line with constitutional doctrines

–        Appeal is not a new trial

–        Can order a new trial, overturn lower court decision, or uphold original verdict

n  Federal Courts
–        Legal basis for these courts found in Article 3, sec. 1, of U.S. Constitution

–        Jurisdiction over laws of U.S. and treaties

–        Maritime jurisdiction

–        Over controversies between 2 or more states

–        3-tiered hierarch of court jurisdiction

§  U.S. District Courts

§  U.S. Courts of Appeals

§  U.S. Supreme Court

n  The Federal Court System

n  Federal Courts (cont.)

n  U.S. district courts

–        Trial courts of the federal system

–        Organized by Congress in the Judicial Act of 1789

–        Jurisdiction over violations of federal law, i.e. civil rights violations, interstate transportation of stolen vehicles and kidnappings

–        May hear inter-state lawsuits or cases where federal government is a party to the suit

–        Jurisdiction may overlap that of state courts

n  Federal Courts (cont.)

n  U.S. courts of appeals

–        Organized into 13 judicial circuits

–        Hear 40,000 appeals from district courts each year

–        Empowered to review federal and state appellate court cases when there is a federal issue present

–        Do not retry the case or review the facts – only matters of procedure and substance of the law

–        Current attempts to limit the right of appeal

n  Federal Courts (cont.)

n  The U.S. Supreme Court

–        Nation’s highest appellate body – court of last resort for all cases tried in federal and state courts

–        Only federal court mentioned in the Constitution

–        Nine justices appointed for life (good behavior) by the President with approval of Congress

–        Court has discretion to choose which cases it will hear

n  Federal Courts (cont.)

n  Supreme Court process

–        Most appeals to Supreme Court first evaluated by clerks working for justices

–        Most cases (90 percent) are brought to the court by using a writ of certiorari

§  4 of the 9 justices must vote to hear the case

–        If the Court decides to hear a case, it reviews legal briefs and may hear oral arguments

–        May decide to affirm or reverse the decision of the lower court

–        Decisions become precedent

n  Federal and State Court Caseloads

n  State courts handle about one hundred million new cases each year including:

–        20 million civil and domestic cases

–        15 million criminal cases

–        2 million juvenile cases

–        57 million traffic and ordinance violations

n  Federal and State Court Caseloads (cont.)

n  Federal courts even though smaller, are equally burdened

–        Over 320,000 cases filed each year in District Courts

§  Criminal cases increased 55 percent since 1994

–        Circuit Courts hear more than 60,000 appeals per year

§  In 1969 they heard only 10,000 appeals

n  Federal and State Court Caseloads (cont.)

n  Causes of court congestion

–        Rapidly increasing populations outpace growth in court system

–        People like to sue each other

–        Aggressive attempts to lower crime rate result in more prosecutions

–        Complexity of the law and advances in technology

–        Legal reform efforts may require more trials

–        Frivolous lawsuits

–        Lazy judges

n  The Jobs of Judges

n  Official  roles:

–        Political: campaign for election (if elected); think ahead

–        Administrative:  manage and supervise court personnel, resources, can have extensive control over probation officers and court clerk

n  The  Jobs of Judges, cont

–        Legal:

§  Issue warrants

§  Decisions in preliminary hearings – bind over or not

§  Make bail decisions

§  agree to plea-bargains

§  request PSIs (pre-sentence reports)

n  The Jobs of Judges (cont.)

n  Primary duty is to oversee the trial process

–        Ensures appropriate conduct

–        Guides selection of  juries and instructs on their roles during trial

–        Settles questions of evidence and procedure – deals with motions

–        Guides questioning of witnesses

–        Responsible for jury instructions after case is presented

n  Decides case in bench trials

n  Determines the sentence (except in capital cases)

n  The Jobs of Judges (cont.)

n  Informal roles

–        Maintain good relations with court working group

–        Use discretion guided by legal requirements

–        Personal sense of justice in sentencing

–        Worry about appeals and being overturned

–        Exert influence over police and prosecutors

–        Decisions may shape social policy

–        How to Become a Judge

n  Judicial qualifications

–        Qualification vary by state

–        Typical qualifications are:

§  Resident of the state

§  Between 25 and 70 years of age

§  Member of state bar licensed to practice law

–        Lower courts may not require law degree

n  How to Become a Judge (cont.)

n  Judicial selection systems

–        Appointment

–        Popular election

–        Nonpartisan election

–        Missouri Plan

§  Judicial nominating commission

§  Appointed by governor from commission’s list

§  Retention election

n  The Prosecutor

n  The prosecutor

–        May be called district attorney, county attorney, state’s attorney, or U.S. attorney depending on the level of government and jurisdiction

–        Responsible for representing the public in criminal trials

–        Around 2,400 state court prosecutors offices

–        Employ 65,000 attorneys, investigators, and support staff

n  Prosecutors

n  Types of prosecutors

–        U.S. Attorneys – appointed by the President

–        Federal prosecutors are professional civil service employees

–        State and county levels, attorney general, and district attorney are chief prosecutorial officers

–        Political appointees or elected

n  The Jobs of Prosecutors

n  General duties

–        Provide advice to law enforcement officers during investigations

–        Represents the state during pretrial plea negotiations, motions, evidence, and bail hearings

–        Represents the state at other hearings, criminal trials, and appeals

–        Legal advisor to county commissioners and other elected officials

–        Implementation of special programs

n  The Jobs of Prosecutors (cont.)

n  Administrator: manage the office

n  Informal: interact with working group

n  Legal

n  Evaluate the case file

n  Decide to take the case forward or not

n  Conduct the case if go forward

–        Strategy and tactics

–        Sentencing recommendations

n  Prosecutorial Discretion

n  Prosecutors have a great deal of discretion

n  Evaluate case files

–        Strong or weak case: factual, legal, political?

–        Decision Options:

§  Go forward and charge the defendant to court: indictment or information

§  – dismiss case, about 50 percent of the time

§  Plea bargain the case

§  Jobs of Prosecutors (cont.)

–        May leave decision to charge someone with minor crime primarily to police discretion

–        Charge construction:

§  converting facts into a legal case

§  same facts can be used to construct different charges or cases

§  charge construction will determine the level of punishment if guilty

n  Prosecutorial Discretion (cont.)

n  Legal issues influencing prosecutorial discretion on cases

–        Quality of police work and amount of relevant evidence

–        Legal weaknesses in the case

–        Seriousness of offense

–        Defendant’s prior arrest record

–        Danger to community

n  Victim issues influencing prosecutorial discretion

–        Attitude and behavior of the victim

–        Reluctance of victim to press charges

n  Prosecutorial Discretion (cont.)

n  Extra legal/resource issues influencing prosecutorial discretion

–        Offenders’ race, gender, and ethnicity

–        Cost of the prosecution to the system

–        Availability of alternatives

–        Interest group’s influence causes to focus on particular types of offenses

–        Fear of losing case – political ramifications

n  Prosecutorial Discretion (cont.)

n  The role of prosecutorial discretion

–        Can prevent unnecessarily rigid implementation of criminal law

–        Humanize operation of criminal justice system

–        Imposes professional judgments and the sense of the court working group on the processing of cases

–        Too much discretion can lead to abuse

–        Prosecutors have their own perspectives

n  Judicial Selection Systems (cont.)

n  Types of prosecutorial misconduct

–        overcharging a case to be able to plea-bargain later

–        making disruptive statements in court

–        failure to adhere to sentence recommendations pursuant to a plea bargain

–        represented a criminal defendant currently under prosecution

–        making public statements harmful to the office

–        withholding evidence, non-discovery

–        Knowingly using false or manufactured evidence to gain conviction

–        using power in vindictive manner to punish defendants who insist on exercising their constitutional rights

n  The Defense Attorney

n  Integral part of adversarial system

n  Required to uphold integrity of the legal profession

n  Must observe and provide zealous defense within boundaries of law

n  The Defense Attorney (cont.)

n  Courts do not require assistance of counsel for accused in:

–        Pre-indictment lineups

–        Booking procedures

–        Grand jury investigations

–        Appeals beyond first review

–        Disciplinary proceedings in correctional institutions

–        Post-release revocation hearings

n  The Jobs of Defense Attorneys

n  Roles of the defense

–        Protect rights of client

–        Argue for client’s side in plea bargaining and trials

–        Conduct effective trial strategy, lay grounds for appeal

n  Duties of defense

–        How far to go to protect client?

–        Ethical concerns: balancing rights of client with public safety and justice

n  The Right to Counsel

n  Legal services for poor people

–        Public defender systems

–        Assigned counsel systems

–        Contract systems

–        Private attorneys, pro bono or hired

§  Most do not practice criminal law

§  Debate over effectiveness of private attorneys versus attorneys provided by state

n  The Competence of Defense Attorneys

n  Strickland v. Washington

n  Inadequate and incompetent counsel

–        Refuse to meet with client

–        Fail to cross-examine witnesses

–        Fail to investigate case

–        Poor advice to client

–        Conflict of interest between codefendants’ counsel

–        Sleeping during trial

n  Court Administration

n  Administrative Office Act, 1939

n  States have been slow to apply court management principles

–        All states now have some form of court administration

n  Court Administration (cont.)

n  Computers allow courts to fulfill many functions more efficiently

–        Maintain case history and statistical reporting

–        Monitor and schedule cases

–        Prepare documents

–        Index cases

–        Issues summonses

–        Notify witnesses, attorneys, and others of required appearances

–        Select and notify jurors

–        Prepare and administer budgets

n  Court Administration (cont.)

n  Developing areas of court technology

–        Communications

–        Videoconferencing

–        Evidence presentation

–        Case management

–        Internet utilization

–        Information sharing

–        Cameras in court

Assignments-learn the responsibility of your position in your perspective group
Module 9
  Rubric for individual presentations/Written work/Tests

1. DEVELOPING- 1 to 3
(Student needs assistance with written or oral communications with expression of their thoughts. No specific point is identified in their work, expression of content is limited)

2. EMERGING- 4 to 6
(Student provides a written or oral communications that identifies a point of view, some elements are identified; a frequent change in direction with thoughts, has limited expressions and limited content.)

3.ADVANCED-  7 to 9
(Student has strong written or oral communications content, point of view, a convincing position in presentation, and provides all elements with clarity of expression.)

Your Answers it to include: 

Articulate facts with proper format and grammar, on which resource codes were used to cite proper probable cause progression.

a.       Outline a progression from scholarly resources and related resource code books to develop proper probable cause progression as to affect an arrest with exceptions.

b.      Use APA writing format

c.       Insert citations, and number sources

d.      References obtained from Scholarly sources

e.       Use a minimum of 500 words to present your answer.

Criteria

Emerging

New, novice demonstration of competency, many areas for skill development

Developing

Demonstrates some level of competency and areas for skill development

Advanced

Demonstrates significant level of competency and few areas for development

Points

5

10

15

Presentation/ Mechanics- Required length, font, spelling, paragraph structure.

 So many errors that it detract from the quality of the paper. The message is lost and no relevancy is associated with the topic.

Mechanical errors in many areas, interferes with topic and presentation.

Paper is free from errors. Meaning is clearly stated and presented with skill and clarity.

Content/

Information

All elements of the topic are discussed and presented.

None or some elements of the topic are discussed.  None or some consideration given to major points.

Some topic areas are discussed however lacks all elements sufficient to discuss the topic.

Identified all elements of the topic are discussed. Provided practical knowledge of materials and presented in a coherent way.

Resources/

References

A reference list is used with articles used

Less than 3 references used in APA format.

Less than 5 references used in APA format.

More than 5 references used in APA format.

Plagiarism

No plagiarized papers will be accepted.