Chapter Ten.

Key Terms:

1. Expert witness: a person called to testify because of his or her expertise in an area at issue in a legal proceeding.

2. U.S. district courts:  federal trial courts of general jurisdiction.

3. U.S. courts of appeals:  intermediate federal appellate courts.

4. U.S. supreme court:  the highest court in the united states, which hears final appeals in cases involving federal law, suits between states, and interpretations of the U.S. Constitution.

5. Writ of certiorari: a legal order from the U.S. Supreme Court stating that a lower court must forward the record of a particular case for review.

6. Judicial review: The U.S. Supreme Court’s authority to review the constitutionality of acts of congress.

7. Prosecutors:  elected or appointed officials who represent the community in bringing charges against an accused person.

8. District attorneys: the name for city or county prosecutors in many jurisdictions.

9. Defense attorneys: Attorneys who represent the legal rights of the accused in criminal or civil proceedings.

10. Assigned counsel:  a private attorney appointed by the court on a case-by-case basis from a list of available attorneys.

11.  Contract attorney programs: programs in which private attorneys, firms, or local bar associations provide legal representation to indigent defendants for a specific period contracted with the county.

12.  Public defenders: salaried attorneys paid by the government to represent indigents charged with crimes.

13.  Judge: a person who objectively assesses the strength of a case, rules on issues of law and procedure, and in many cases determines the disposition of a case.

14.  Merit selection: a method for selecting judges that involves a combination of appointment and election.

15.  U.S. magistrates: Judges appointed by U.S. district court judges to conduct pretrial hearings and trials for minor civil and criminal offenses in federal court.

16. Victim impact statements: statements by victims to the judge before sentencing about how the crime has harmed them.

17.  Victim’s Bill of Rights: legal changes that formally recognize the role and rights of victims in the justice process.

18.  Courtroom work group: the prosecutors, defense counsel, judges, and other courtroom personnel who represent distinct interests but share the same goal of shepherding large numbers of cases through the adjudicating process.

19.  Felony drug courts: courts that handle only drug offenses and attempt to correct underlying causes of the illegal conduct.

20.  Dispute resolution: a method of handling complaints outside the judicial process through a mediator appointed by the court.

21.  Community prosecution: a program in which prosecutors intervene in all disorderly behavior that affects the quality of life in a neighborhood.

22.  Community courts: decentralized courts that respond to neighborhood conditions using citizen advisory committees, volunteers, and teen courts.

Questions For Review and Discussion

1. What are some of the most important differences between the way trials were conducted in the past and the way they are conducted today? - The absence of lawyers in most trials, even in felony trials. Minor cases were treated the same and people represented themselves. Defendants could not act as witnesses or take the stand in their own defense.

2. How are state court systems organized? - State courts only interpret state law. Three levels of jurisdiction: limited, general, and appellate.

3. What are U.S. district courts? - Federal trial courts of general jurisdiction.

4. What kinds of cases are heard by the U.S. Supreme Court? - Any case involving federal law, suits between states, and cases involving interpretations of the U.S. Constitution.

5. Describe the five main groups of participants in the judicial process. - Prosecutors are the only actor in the criminal justice system who is involved in all aspects of criminal justice processing from arrest through disposition. Defense attorneys ensure that their client’s legal rights are protected. Judges uphold the rights of the accused and arbitrating between the prosecution and the defense in criminal cases. Victims and witnesses voice their concerns at parole hearings and at sentencing.

6. What are some of the ways in which judges are selected in different states? - Magistrates, governor appointed, president appointed, and the legislature alone.

7. What is meant by state court unification? - When all the courts of the state work together.

8. What initiatives have been taken to give victims and witnesses a greater role in the criminal justice process? - Prosecutors have requested high bail and initiated aggressive prosecution of reported attempts at intimidation. 

9. What are the major challenges facing the justice system in the future? –The dispute resolutions