Criminal Justice Process: The Trial Chapter 14 Criminal Justice Process: The Trial

Stop… and Think! (Mark Spitz Level) Recall how many people make up a jury and the importance of a jury… (Paavo Nurmi Level) Predict what due process of law means and its importance in trials… (Larisa Latynina Level) Compare what images come to mind when you think of movies and tv shows that portray trials or scenes from trials… (Michael Phelps Level) Connect the last two chapters about the criminal justice process and hypothesize why many people just take a plea bargain...

Due Process The idea of Due Process of law, or fair procedures, means little to the average citizen unless and until he or she is arrested and charged with a crime Due Process is the idea stated in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments that every person involved in legal dispute is entitled to a fair hearing or trial The requirements of due process vary with the situation, but they basically require notice and an opportunity to be heard

Right to Trial by Jury Trials by jury are guaranteed in criminal trials by the 6th Amendment but juries are not required in every case For example: Defendants can waive, or give up, their right to a jury trial and get their trial heard by a single judge

Jury Panels Jury panels are selected from voter registration or tax lists and are supposed to be generally representative of the local community. In some places, juries are selected by driver’s licenses rolls Most states have 12 jurors, with 4 alternates, but that’s not an “official” law on the constitution

Jury Panels Juries must have at least 6 jurors: as required by the Supreme Court Juries must reach a unanimous decision for a verdict of guilty Some states require a unanimous decisions but others can have mixed verdicts in state criminal trials

Jury Selection Once the potential jurors for a case are assembled, the prosecutor and defense lawyer select members of a jury through a process called Voir Dire This is the process by which lawyers select certain jurors to hear a case They do this by asking prospective jurors questions to determine a possible bias

Jury Selection Either lawyer can request that a potential juror be eliminated for some reason by using a for-cause challenge An example of a for-cause challenge would be if the perspective juror knew the defendant or the victim in the case

Jury Selection Each side gets a limited number of peremptory challenges, which do not have to be based on a specific reason. Each side can even hire consultants who can help them select favorable jurors for their side

6th Amendment The 6th Amendment to the US Constitution provides “a right to a speedy trial in all criminal cases” But again, what is a problem with this amendment? “Speedy” is not defined by the document

6th Amendment To rectify this problem, the federal government and states have passed laws that set specific time limits within which a case must be brought to trial If a defendant does not receive a speedy trial, they can be let go free… Why? No evidence, no witnesses, no probable cause etc…

Jury Nullification Jury Nullification is when juries themselves, consider a law unjust and refuse to convict a defendant because they do not believe in that law Examples include: People hiding runaway slaves in the 19th Century Segregation/ Civil Rights Crimes Other laws seen by the public as not necessary

Stop… and Think! (Joffrey Level) Recall and List all the reasons why jurors would be dismissed from jury service… (Hodor Level) Summarize the different reasons for dismissal of jurors before or during the trial… (Arya Level) Develop a logical argument why jury selection is a necessary process that works for both the prosecution and defense… (John Snow Level) Synthesize all these ideas about jury selection and create another reason for nullifying or dismissing a juror for our modern day world…

Subpoenas Defendants in criminal cases have a right to compulsory process for obtaining witnesses This means the defendant can get a subpoena, or a court order, which requires a witness to appear in court to testify. Without this basic right, defendants would have great difficulty establishing a defense

Sixth Amendment… Again?!?! Here, the 6th Amendment also comes into play… It states that people accused of crimes have the right to confront the witnesses against them and ask them questions by way of cross-examination This can be limited, via Supreme Court rulings, if the defendant becomes disorderly or disruptive. And when this happens…

Contempt of Court If a judge must remove a defendant, or person from court, because they are disorderly or disruptive, the judge has the power to find that person in Contempt of Court Contempt of Court is any act to embarrass, hinder, or obstruct the court in the administration of justice In extreme cases, a judge can have the defendant bound and gagged… and that CAN’T BE GOOD!!!

Freedom from Self-Incrimination The 5th Amendment says how you cannot testify against yourself in trial, or self incriminate yourself Related to the right against self- incrimination is the concept of immunity Immunity means that a witness cannot be prosecuted based on the information provided in a testimony

Immunity continued… A person with immunity must answer all questions- even those that are self incriminating Prosecutors often use immunity laws force people to testify against codefendants or others involved in the crime

Right to an Attorney As well as being a Miranda right, this is a right in the US Constitution in the 6th Amendment However, one was not provided to people with public money to indigent defendants, or people who cannot afford an attorney, in all federal felony cases until 1938 Gideon v Wainwright was Supreme Court case which extended this to all State Felony cases

Criminal Appeals If the jury returns a “not guilty” verdict this is normally the end of the case The 5th Amendment prevents Double Jeopardy where a defendant cannot be prosecuted for the second time for the same offense after either an acquittal or conviction A verdict of “guilty” has sentencing to follow.

After the “final” judgment… The defendant can ask the judge to overturn the jury’s verdict and enter a verdict of not guilty Or… He or she can ask the judge to set aside the jury’s verdict, declare a mistrial, and ask for a new trial A mistrial (In this instance)can be due to jury prejudice, the trial took too long, deadlock of a jury, etc…

Appeals Court The defendant can also challenge either the conviction or the sentencing decision They may want to hire an appeals lawyer because the process is different In order to win an appeal the defendant, now called the petitioner or appellant, must convince the appeals court that there were serious errors of law made at the original trial

Writ of Habeas Corpus In addition to appeals, the defendant may apply for help by seeking a writ, which is an order from a higher court to either a lower court or to a government official such as the warden of a jail or prison The writ of habeas corpus claims that a defendant is being held illegally and requests release