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Criminal Justice System: Roles, Levels, and Processes - Prof. Yihshyan Sun, Study notes of Criminal Law

University of Delaware (UD)Criminal Law
Prof. Yihshyan Sun

An overview of the criminal justice system, including the different levels of government involvement, the roles of various agencies and personnel, and the criminal justice process from offenses to sentencing. It covers law enforcement at local, state, and federal levels, the functions of jails and courts, and the importance of discretion and checks and balances.

Typology: Study notes

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Uploaded on 12/07/2009

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Criminal Justice Notes: Chapter 1.1
The Criminal Justice System
System ranges from local governments to federal
Lines are often blurred; responsibilities overlap
Circumstances determine whether federal or state/local
laws go into play during a case
Goals and missions of law enforcement are not the same
as those of the judicial system or prison
oLevels of Government
Responsibilities are spread unevenly
Checks and balances of the Constitution are what cause
overlap between branches of criminal justice
Local-Level Criminal Justice
Police departments answer to themselves, their
communities, and the courts
Sheriff: An official of a county or parish who primarily
carries out judicial duties; from the English “shire” and
“reeve”
Warrant: A judicial writ that authorizes a law officer to
perform a specialized act required for the
administration of justice, such as an arrest or search
Bailiff: An officer of the court responsible for executing
writs and processes, and keeping order in the court
Cities normally have own police departments
Sometimes combine with county police to save costs of
duplicate services
Box 1.2: CrossCurrents—Comparison of Law Enforcement
Federal Level
oAgencies are FBI, Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, Secret Service
oMandate for enforcing laws is offences on federal
property and military reservations and
interstate crime
oFunding is federal income tax
State Level
oAgencies are highway patrol; state investigation
services
oMandates are interstate highway systems,
offences of local and state government officials
oFunding is state income tax, sales tax, user taxes
(driver’s license, etc)
Local Level
oAgencies are municipal police depts., county
sheriff’s office
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Criminal Justice Notes: Chapter 1.  The Criminal Justice System  System ranges from local governments to federal  Lines are often blurred; responsibilities overlap  Circumstances determine whether federal or state/local laws go into play during a case  Goals and missions of law enforcement are not the same as those of the judicial system or prison o Levels of Government  Responsibilities are spread unevenly  Checks and balances of the Constitution are what cause overlap between branches of criminal justice  Local-Level Criminal Justice  Police departments answer to themselves, their communities, and the courts  Sheriff : An official of a county or parish who primarily carries out judicial duties; from the English “shire” and “reeve”  Warrant: A judicial writ that authorizes a law officer to perform a specialized act required for the administration of justice, such as an arrest or search  Bailiff: An officer of the court responsible for executing writs and processes, and keeping order in the court  Cities normally have own police departments  Sometimes combine with county police to save costs of duplicate services  Box 1.2: CrossCurrents—Comparison of Law Enforcement  Federal Level o Agencies are FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Secret Service o Mandate for enforcing laws is offences on federal property and military reservations and interstate crime o Funding is federal income tax  State Level o Agencies are highway patrol; state investigation services o Mandates are interstate highway systems, offences of local and state government officials o Funding is state income tax, sales tax, user taxes (driver’s license, etc)  Local Level o Agencies are municipal police depts., county sheriff’s office

o Mandates are state statues within local jurisdictions o Funding is sales tax and property tax  Jails  County jails hold two types of inmates  Awaiting trial o Can pay for bonds or get released o Both major and minor offences  Those who have been sentenced to less than a year of incarceration o Often transferred to county stockade  A component of county corrections system that usually holds offenders who have already been sentenced  Overcrowding of state prison systems backs up local jails  State-Level Criminal Justice  State level is usually confined to specific missions  Law enforcement is at local level, but courts are at state level  Circuit: a judicial district established within a state judicial system or the federal judicial system  Federal-Level Criminal Justice  Wide range of agencies  Most of federal law deals with white-collar crime  War on drugs has caused federal prisons to become less safe  Also has probation and parole agencies that supervise offenders in the community o The Criminal Justice Process  Only a small percentage of offenses result in someone going to prison  Generates annoyance because cases don’t occur to the public’s liking  Legal process is up to discretion: o The power of a judge, public official, or law enforcement officer to make decisions on issues within legal guidelines  Like a funnel with leakage  Offenses  Wide mouth of funnel are all offenses committed  Dark figure of crime: A metaphor that describes crim that is unreported and never qualified  Offenses Known to the Police  Lower in funnel are offenses known to police

o Latin for “I do not wish to contend;” defendant neither admits nor denies committing the offense, but agrees to be punished as if guilty  Those with a misdemeanor may make a plea immediately  Felony defendants are scheduled for a preliminary hearing (aka preliminary examination or probable cause hearing )  Prima facie case : a case established by evidence sufficient enough to establish the fact in question unless it is rebutted  Arraignment : a court appearance in which the defendant is formally charge with a crime and asked to respond by pleading guilty, not guilty, or nolo contendere  Bail/Bail Bonding  “Bail” comes from old French “bailler,” “to entrust”  Bail money means the defendant will appear in court  In absentia: when you’re convicted and you’re not in court  ROR release (relase on one’s own recognizance) if one is an upstanding community or family member  Preventive Detention : the jailing of a defendant awaiting trial, usually in order to protect an individual or the public  Bail bonding: a company posts money for a defendant who cannot afford bail  Plea Bargaining  Disposes of cases quickly and efficiently, but not always to the benefit of the defendant  Prosecutors might decide a case is weak and opt to bargain.  Defense attorneys who know they’re dealing with a lost cause will try to limit the sentence imposed by court  Trial  Few cases make it this far  Most decisions are made behind the scenes, and not by crafty lawyers or confessions  Sentencing  Presentence report: an account prepared by a probation officer that assists the sentencing court in deciding an appropriate sentence for a convicted defendant  Sentencing guidelines are rules for deciding sentences o Make sure similar crimes receive same sentences

Indeterminate sentencing : specifies a range of time that the offender must serve before parole is granted  Probation  Found in a trial or after a plea-bargain  Good for offenders who are not an immediate risk to the community  Main advantage of probation is cost  Electronic monitoring : a form of intermediate punishment in which an offender is allowed to remain in the community but must wear an electronic device that allows the authorities to monitor his or her whereabouts  Appeal  Written request to a higher court to modify or reverse the judgments of a trial or intermediate court  Must be filed within 30 days of judgment date  Appellate court doesn’t retry the case, but the appellant (defendant) and appellee (winner) submit briefs  Prejudicial error : an error reflecting the outcome of a trial  No constitutional right to appeal, but it’s under stature or custom in many states  Prison  Prison is an extremely costly option  Should be reserved for dangerous individuals and not to “make an example” of others  Boot-camp style prisons are less costly  Parole  Probation occurs instead of prison, whereas parole happens after prison  Provides help with returning to the community  Parole officers act more like police than social work  Capital Punishment  Some states have abolished its use due to errors and discriminatory use  US is only one of six stable countries to use it  Many say that killing a person in any way is inhumane  Why Some Offenses are Excluded  Cost o We cannot afford to have a crime-free society o Must be rational with spending—can’t use all the government money for criminal defense o Local gov’t spends far more money on criminal justice than state or federal  Discretion