Understanding the Criminal Justice System

1. Understanding the Criminal Justice System CJUS 101 Chapter 4: Criminal Justice and Procedures – An Overview

2. Procedures • Constitution / Bill of Rights - fundamental to criminal procedures - amendments aimed at specific rights a. Major significance - restricts activities of government (1) Constitution - written in 1787 - ratified by states in 1788 - put into effect in 1789

3. Procedures (2) Rationale - preamble / 7 articles - Article I: congress - Article II: executive branch - Article III: judicial branch (a) Separation of powers doctrine (b) No one branch could usurp power for itself - 3 separate entities

4. Procedures (3) Doctrine’s impact on criminal justice - laws / police / courts - protected from arbitrary abuse (4) Controls operations of CJS - Bill of Rights (a) Adopted to protect individual liberties

5. Procedures (b) From abuse by national government b. Bill of Rights (1791) (1) First Amendment - freedom of speech (oral / written / symbolic) - freedom of the press - freedom of religion - freedom of assembly / petition

6. Procedures (2) Second Amendment - well regulated militia - to keep and to bear arms (3) Third Amendment - quartering of soldiers (4) Fourth Amendment - right of people to be secure in persons / houses / papers

7. Procedures - no warrants issued without probable cause (5) Fifth Amendment - no person held to answer - presentment / indictment of a grand jury - without due process (6) Sixth Amendment - speedy / public trial

8. Procedures - confront witnesses - right to counsel (7) Seventh Amendment - civil lawsuits (8) Eighth Amendment - excessive bail / fines - cruel / unusual punishment (9) Ninth Amendment

9. Procedures - Bill of Rights does not deny other rights (10) Tenth Amendment - powers reserved for the states (11) Fourteenth Amendment - nationalized Bill of Rights (a) Continue to add amendments - ratified by states (33)

10. Procedures • The process of justice - “No person shall be . . . deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” a. Adversarial system - prosecution / defense - innocent until proven guilty (1) Early history - trial by ordeal

11. Procedures - inquisitorial system - inquiry system b. Constitution - interpreted by US Supreme Court - cornerstone of CJS – “due process” - Bill of Rights (1) 1833: federal only - US Supreme Court

12. Procedures (2) 1868: Nationalized - 14th Amendment (3) 1884: Hurtado vs. California - no indictment by grand jury (4) 1925: Gitlow vs. New York - speech not absolute right (5) 1927: Fisk vs. Kansas - freedom of speech

13. Procedures (6) 1931: Near vs. Minnesota - freedom of the press (7) 1931: Powell vs. Alabama - capital offense - right to defense counsel (8) 1937: Palko vs. Connecticut - can be tried twice (9) 1937: Johnson vs. Zerbst

14. Procedures - defense counsel - all federal felonies (10) 1947: separation of church / state (11) 1948: public trials for adults (12) 1961: Mapp vs. Ohio - unreasonable search / seizure - “exclusionary rule”

15. Procedures (13) 1962: cruel/unusual punishment - 8th Amendment (14) 1963: Gideon vs. Wainwright - any felony right to counsel (15) 1964: right of self-incrimination - not testify against yourself (16) 1965: confront witnesses - must testify in open court

16. Procedures (17) 1967: speedy trial - 60 days in custody - 90 days out of custody - 100 days at federal level (18) 1968: trial by jury in serious offenses (19) 1969: Benton vs. Maryland - double jeopardy

17. Procedures (21) 1973: Roe vs. Wade - abortion rights (22) 1986: Bowers vs. Hardwick - privacy for homosexuals (a) State supreme courts - establish precedent also (b) Impacts that state only - establishes state policy

18. Procedures c. Due process - substantive / procedural (1) Substantive due process - content or subject matter - the law must be understood (a) “Void for vagueness” rule (b) Adequate defense counsel

19. Procedures (2) Procedural due process - notice / hearings / procedures (a) Followed by police - advice to rights / etc. (b) Followed by prosecutor - arraignment w/in 24 hours (c) Followed by court - jury selection

20. Procedures • Criminal justice process - from crime to punishment a. Crime committed - reported / observed (1) Police investigation - patrol / detectives - develop suspect - reasonable suspicion - detain / pat-down / question

21. Procedures (2) Arrest - case pending (a) Probable cause - take into custody - search / seize (b) Warrant - issued by court - probable cause - reasonable belief

22. Procedures (c) Citation - minor offenses (d) Felony - committed in presence - reasonable cause (e) Gross misdemeanor - committed in presence - reasonable cause - DUI / theft / marijuana /etc.

23. Procedures (f) Misdemeanor - committed in presence - report to prosecutor (4) Booking - information / mug shot / prints - PR release / bail / held for court b. Court process - next court day - review by judge within 24 hours

24. Procedures (1) Initial appearance - not guilty plea - attorney assigned (a) Appear with attorney - enters plea - set trial date (b) Court sets bail - if still in custody - hold without bail

25. Procedures (2) Preliminary hearing - lower court - prosecution presents evidence - crime probable committed - bound over for trial (a) Washington state - prosecutor passes prelim - files directly in superior ct. (b) Files the information

26. Procedures (3) Pre-trial motions (3.9 hearing) - motions made by attorneys - suppress evidence / discovery / change of venue / etc. (a) Ruled on at this time - cannot be brought up (b) Decisions by judge can be appealed - state appellate court

27. Procedures (4) Trial - before judge (bench trial) - before jury (jury trial) (a) Jury selection - peremptory challenge - challenge for cause (b) Opening statements - prosecution - defense

28. Procedures (c) Case presentation - prosecution - defense (d) Closing arguments - prosecution - defense - prosecution (e) Deliberation

29. Procedures - jury instructions - verdict (f) Sentencing - prosecution - defense - community corrections (g) Appeals - to higher court - may be released during

30. Procedures c. Corrections - state prison - city / county jail (1) Reception center - testing - assignment (2) Permanent facility - maximum / medium / minor - release on parole

31. Procedures • Defendant’s constitutional rights - Sixth Amendment - “In all prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses

32. Procedures against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.” a. Speedy / public trial - continuance - defendant / prosecutor request b. Impartial jury - change of venue

33. Procedures - 12 person jury not required - minimum size is 6 c. Assistance of counsel - right to represent self (in propria persona) • Special trials a. Competency to stand trial - two criteria

34. Procedures (1) Understand nature of proceedings - court procedures - punishment (2) Able to assist with defense - communicate with attorney - no understanding of the law (a) Procedure to determine competency - criminal trial stops

35. Procedures - civil proceedings (b) Mental health hearing held - competent: trial resumes - incompetent: mental hospital (c) Double jeopardy - does not apply (d) Proof required

36. Procedures - preponderance of evidence b. Sanity trial - not guilty by reason of insanity - defendant makes decision (1) Legal standard - M’Naghten Rule (a) Did not know nature/quality of the act

37. Procedures (b) Did not know it was wrong (2) Guilty but mentally ill - mental hospital - prison after recovery c. Death penalty trial - “special circumstances” (1) Aggravated 1st Degree Murder - Washington state

38. Procedures - multiple murders / for hire / killing police officer / etc. (2) Required to consider: - aggravating circumstances - mitigating circumstances (a) Exceptional circumstances - Washington state (b) Verdicts

39. Procedures - death - life without parole d. Juvenile court - 1960s: due process / 6th Amendment (1) Eligibility - chronological age - date crime committed (2) Maximum age

40. Procedures - state law - 18 years: Washington state - 16: serious crimes (3) Functions - criminal acts - status offenses - dependent children - family matters (4) Transfer to adult court

41. Procedures - prosecutor files - fitness hearing - held in juvenile court (a) Reasons for transfer - age - current offense - criminal history - family status - mental capacity - educational level

42. Procedures (b) Arguments - mitigating circumstances (defense) - aggravating circumstances (prosecution) (4) Once transferred: - all rights afforded adults - incarcerate in youth facility - transfer when reaching 18 years

43. Procedures (5) Dependency court - civil proceedings - dependent children - Child Protective Services files • Sentencing laws a. Indeterminate sentencing - maximum and minimum - release: performance in custody

44. Procedures b. Determinate sentence - specific sentence - shorter due to “good time” c. Definite sentence - fixed period - no parole d. Mandatory sentence - specific sentence - specific crime

45. Procedures • Sentencing options - used by the court a. Probation - no state time b. Work furlough - released to go to work - other time spent in jail c. Intermittent sentence

46. Procedures d. Fine - set by law e. Restitution - pays victim f. Community service order - volunteer work in community g. Court costs - pay court fees

47. Procedures • Sentencing process - concurrent vs. consecutive a. Concurrent - two or more sentences served at same time - one year served counts as one year for all crimes convicted of b. Consecutive - serve sentence for one crime

48. Procedures - before starting sentence for others c. Probation / sentencing report - Community Corrections - Washington state (1) File report prior to sentencing - judge / prosecutor / defense (2) Report includes - social history

49. Procedures - criminal history - prior probation history - current crime • Pleas in court - different pleas can be made a. Not guilty - most common plea - allows plea bargaining - reduced sentence recommendation

50. Procedures b. Guilty - admits guilt - accepts responsibility c. Nolo contendere - guilty - cannot be used in civil trial d. Standing mute - will not enter plea - court enters “not guilty”