2. Jurisdiction Unit V

3. U.S. Constitution Constitutional right violation such as freedom of speech, religion, or other related to Constitutional Articles I-VII and Amendments Examples- – Flag Burning – Executive Branch – Mall of America – Capital punishment of 8 year-old

4. Federal Laws Federal crimes such as tax evasion, kidnapping, bank robbery or any laws created by Congress or Executive Agencies Examples- – Crime crossing a state or international border – Checking constitutionality of local, state, and federal laws

5. Admiralty and Maritime Laws Concerns or crimes that occur on the high seas, related to the seas, or international waters Examples- – Shipwrecks – Pirates – Drug traffic – Zebra Mussels – Asian Carp

6. Disputes where the U.S. is involved Examples – Violation of government contracts – Involvement of government property – Italian Gondola Accident – Nuclear Testing – Japanese Internment – IRS

7. Controversies between States Examples- – Disputes over milk prices – Pollution from factories – Interstate system – Hwy 36 Bridge – Asian Carp

8. Controversies between Citizens of different States Examples- – Interstate commerce – Product bought somewhere else in U.S. – Jurisdiction limit to case involving $50,000 or more

9. Disputes involving Foreign Governments Examples- – Case involving international law – Citizen or company * However, American businesses and U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents must respect laws and practices of other nations as they do ours

10. U.S. Ambassadors, Ministers, and Consuls serving in Foreign Countries American citizen working for the American government violates American law in a foreign country May be legal in respective country but employee may be liable for actions in U.S. Court system Usually high civilian officials

11. Jurisdiction Under most of these situations, the Federal Court System has Exclusive Jurisdiction Eight District Courts- Downtown Mpls. SCOTUS has the final say…if they want to…

12. Minnesota Government 3 branches: Executive Branch Legislative Branch Judicial Branch

13. Functions of Judicial Branch Guardian of MN state constitution & interprets U.S. Constitution Make sure laws applied fairly Help preserve order in society

14. Minnesota Court System

15. District or trial court Judges – 272 judges, 10 districts, appointed by governor & then elected to 6 year terms Jurisdiction / Process – Criminal & Civil matters over $7,500 – Ex: murder, DUI, divorce – More than 2 million cases a year – Trial by judge or jury Di

16. Conciliation Court Also called small claims court or people’s court Division of the trial courts For civil claims under $7,500 No lawyers, simple, fast process

17. Minnesota Court of Appeals Judges – 16 judges hear cases in groups of 3 – Appointed by governor & then elected for 6 year terms Jurisdiction / Process – Hears appeals from trial court – 2,000 cases per year – Reviews trial court’s decision, doesn’t repeat trial – End of the road for 95% cases

18. Minnesota Supreme Court Justices – 7 Justices ( chief justice is Russell Anderson) – Appointed by governor & then elected to 6 year terms Jurisdiction / Process – Hear appeals from Court of Appeals (exception: hear appeals for 1st degree murder convictions) – Justices look for error in the lower courts – Only 5% of all trial court cases come to SC - they decide which cases to review – If unhappy w/decision, can appeal to U.S. Supreme Court (rare cases accepted)

19. Trial Court Jury Selection Trial court cases may be heard by judge or jury Juries consist of 6 or 12 members Jury pool picked randomly from voter registration lists & MN I.D. card/drivers’ license lists Jurors selected after lawyers & judge ask questions about ability to keep an open mind & knowledge of the case

20. Defendant Arrested Trial Court Guilty Not Guilty can appeal to Court of Appeals Reverse Conviction Uphold Conviction Defendant Free can appeal to Minnesota Supreme Court Reverse Conviction Defendant Free Uphold Conviction Defendant Free

21. Goal of the court system is to provide equal justice for all.

22. Jurisdiction Unit V