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54 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
What are the duel courts? |
State & Federal. |
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What are the 3 components of the Federal court system? |
1. U.S District Courts. 2. U.S Courts of Appeal. 3. U.S Supreme Court. |
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What are the U.S District Courts? |
Trial courts of the federal court system. |
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What are the U.S Courts of Appeal? |
Courts that hear appeals from the district courts located within its circuit, as well as appeals from decisions of federal administrative agencies. |
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What is the U.S Supreme Court? |
Court located in Washington D.C consisting of 9 justices, that holds a great authority in its capacity for judicial review. (Usually a last resort) |
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What is prosecutoral discretion? |
Authority to accept or decline a case at state, federal, and local levels. |
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What is jurisdiction? |
The territory, subject matter, or people over which a court or the justice agency may exercise lawful authority, as determined by statute or constitution. |
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What is original jurisdiction? |
The lawful authority of a court to hear or act on a case from its beginning and to pass judgement on the law and the facts. |
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What is appellate jurisdiction? |
The lawful authority of a court to review a decision made by a lower court. |
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What are dispute resolution centers? |
An informal hearing place designed to mediated interpersonal disputes without resorting to the more formal arrangements of a criminal trial court. |
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What is a specialized court? |
A low-level court that focuses on relatively minor offenses and handles special populations or addresses special issues such as reentry. |
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What is a writ of certiorari? |
Writ issued to a lower court when the supreme court agrees to hear a case. |
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Who is all in a courtroom work group? |
Judge, prosecution, defense counsel, bailiff, clerk of court, court reporter, and expert witness. |
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What are the responsibilities of a judge? |
Ruling on most matters of the law, weighing objections, deciding the admissibility of evidence, sentencing offenders, disciplining disorderly courtroom attendees, and deciding guilt or innocence. |
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What is the role of the prosecutor? |
To represent people of the state. |
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What are the responsibilities of the quasi legal advisers to the police? |
To supervise staff of assistant district attorneys, file appeals on behalf of the state, and make presentations to parole boards. |
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What is exculpatory evidence? |
Any evidence having a tendency to clear a person of guilt or blame. |
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What are the responsibilities of the defendant? |
Either choices in selecting and retaining counsel, or planning a defense strategy with counsel. |
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What is the role of the defense counsel? |
To conduct a legal defense of a person accused of a crime and represent them before the court of law. |
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What are the duties of the bailiff? |
To keep order in the courtroom and maintain physical custody of the jury. |
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What is a lay witness? |
Any eyewitness, character witness, or other person called on to testify who is not considered an expert. |
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What is trial de novo? |
"New trial" which is applied to cases that are retried on appeal. |
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What is the victims' assistance program? |
An organized program that offers services to victims of a crime in the areas of crisis intervention and follow-up counseling. |
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What is a subpoena? |
A written order issued by a judicial officer or grand jury requiring an individual to appear in court. |
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The federal court system is based off off___________. |
Article III of the U.S Constitution. |
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What are the pretrial activities? |
First appearance, recognizance release, preliminary hearing, and arraignment. |
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The two purposes of bail are to...` |
Help ensure reappearance, and prevent the unconvinced person from suffering imprisonment. |
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What is the purpose of a preliminary hearing? |
To determine probable cause. |
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What does the arraignment do? |
Allows the defendant to enter a plea. |
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What are the three pleas? Which is the most common? |
1. Guilty. 2. Not guilty. 3. Nolo contendere (most common.) |
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What is the purpose of a grand jury? |
To hear evidence presented by the prosecution and eliminate cases where there is not sufficient evidence for further processing. |
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What is a conditional release? |
The release by executive decision of a prisoner from a federal or state correctional facility who has not served his/her full sentence and whose freedom is contingent on obeying specified rules of behavior. |
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What is a bail bond? |
A document guaranteeing the appearance of a defendant in court as required and recording the pledge of money or property to be aid to the court even if they don't appear. |
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What are the alternatives to bail? |
Release on recognizance*, property bonds, deposit bail, conditional release*, third-party custody, unsecured bonds, and signature bonds. |
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Who holds the ultimate discretion to hold defendants who may pose a danger? |
Judges. |
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What is plea bargaining? |
Negotiating on an agreement among the defendant, prosecutor, and court as to an appropriate plea and associated sentence. |
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90% of cases end in this. |
Plea bargaining. |
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The purpose of a criminal trial is to... |
Determine guilt or innocence. |
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Factual guilt is the__________, and legal guilt is __________. |
Facts of the case; what can be proven. |
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The court system is ___________ in nature. |
Adversarial. |
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What happens within the trial process? |
Trial initiation, motion, jury selection, opening statements, presentation of evidence, closing arguments, jury deliberation, and verdict. |
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What is an opening statement? |
The initial statement of the prosecutor. |
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What is a verdict? |
The decision of the jury in a jury trial or of a judicial officer in a nonjury trial. |
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What are the challenges with jury selection? |
To the array, for cause, and peremptory. |
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Who gives testimony? |
Expert and lay witnesses. |
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Hearsay testimony is also known as... |
Third party testimony. |
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What is perjury? |
Lying under oath. |
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What are closing arguments? |
Presentations made by both the defense and prosecution to a judge or jury to persuade them to draw a conclusion. |
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A verdict is ... |
Decision. |
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The process of trying to come to a consensus is known as a... |
Deliberation. |
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What do court watch citizen groups do? |
Monitory the trial court level and report on problems. |
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What does nolo contendere mean? |
No contest. |
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What are the rules of evidence? |
Court rules that govern the admissibility of evidence at criminal hearings and trials. |
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What is real evidence? |
Evidence that consists of physical material or traces of physical activity. |