My Cousin Vinny is a hilarious rendition of the American criminal justice system. It taps into various elements of the system as a whole. Most people probably never realize the formality that goes into actually being convicted of a crime. My Cousin Vinny explores many of the steps such as pretrial stages, key actors in the court process, and the criminal trial. There are some difference and similarities between what the movie portrayed and the actual criminal justice process which will be explored.
In the movie, My Cousin Vinny, when Bill and Stan went to Alabama, they thought they were getting pulled over because Bill stole some tuna fish. The county Sherriff pulled them over with his gun drawn. Now to me, the fact the Sheriff had his
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The judge, in the movie, actually listened to the prosecutor’s witnesses and decided there was enough probable cause to move forward to a trial. Many judges are often too busy to examine the facts of the case before making a probable cause determination as stated in our text. I have tapped slightly into some of the similarities and differences in the arrest, booking, bail, arraignment and preliminary trial. Now, let’s take a look at the key actors in the court process. The prosecutor, the most important person in a case. The prosecutor has so much power in a criminal trial. The movie failed to portray the many roles, importance and significance of the prosecutor. According to our text, the prosecutor essentially makes the case and sets many other things into motion. The prosecutor can decide whether to charge a person with a crime and whether to prosecute the case. (Bohm and Haley, p 267) I, honestly, never realized prior to this movie and paper how much control the prosecutor actually has. The prosecutor decides which cases to plea bargain. Prosecutors in many jurisdictions also have the authority, power, or responsibility of recommending the amount of bail. As I stated earlier the movie did not portray the amount of power or clout the prosecutor has when it comes to prosecuting a case, charging a person with a crime, which cases to plea
After the arraignment, the trial process begins. Both the prosecutor and the defendant had to produce enough evidence to sway the jury to either call the accused guilty or not guilty. The trial in the movie started off as loosely following actual court proceedings because the defendant had never been part of actual court proceedings and did not know the proper etiquette to follow. This was perceived through the actions that he showed in court and not knowing his rights to the evidence that the prosecutor had at his disposal, in which all should have been given to him in the beginning of the case. Although the trial process in My Cousin Vinny was not as formal as that of real proceedings, the way in which the judge made the lawyers act within
This first week the assignment was to Define crime, its relationship to the law, and the two most common models of how society determines which acts are criminal, Describe the government structure as it applies to the criminal justice system, Identify choice theories and the their assumptions in regards to crime, Describe the components of the criminal justice system and the criminal justice process, Identify the goals of the criminal justice system.
* When the 12 person jury meets in the room to vote on a guilty or non-guilty verdict, the method used to vote was 1st based on a majority decision-making process where those would raise their hands for guilty and a non-guilty verdict. Once the results were in and 11 voted guilty and 1 voting not guilty. Based on the movie, 11 members of the jury voted guilty while 1 juror voted non-guilty. The 1 non-guilty, disrupted the dynamics of everyone else’s vote; which leads to a major conflict. They now needed to illustrate the pros and cons of both guilty and non-guilty parties.
This week we were asked to watch a movie called My Cousin Vinny and compare this to the actual Criminal Justice System. I want to start off by saying the portrayal of the Criminal Justice System was much different than what we see it in real life. I really enjoyed the comedy that was displayed around it. The movie was based around two teenagers who were suspected of murdering a gas station attendant. This movie takes place in Alabama.
The criminal justice system is composed of three parts – Police, Courts and Corrections – and all three work together to protect an individual’s rights and the rights of society to live without fear of being a victim of crime. According to merriam-webster.com, crime is defined as “an act that is forbidden or omission of a duty that is commanded by public law and that makes the offender liable to punishment by that law.” When all the three parts work together, it makes the criminal justice system function like a well tuned machine.
10. Discuss what is required for mistake to be a defense. How does this relate to the types of culpability in the Model Penal Code? Be sure to discuss the debate over whether to call mistakes a defense.
Released in 1967, “Cool Hand Luke” continues to be one of the most popular movies in American history. (Belton, 2008) The movie starred famed actor Paul Newman and was based on the trials and tribulations occurring inside a Florida prison camp. One of the main reasons why Cool Hand Luke continues to be relevant today is due to its incisive observations regarding the criminal justice system. While the movie was released over forty years ago, the relevance of Cool Hand Luke continues today. This paper will provide a synopsis of the movie and character analysis of Cool Hand Luke; in addition, the paper will analyze the movie from the perspectives of someone unfamiliar with the criminal justice system as well as a professional in the
In order to keep a safe society, it is important to establish a nation with
In the case of Robinson v. California, 370 U.S. 660 (1962), the Supreme Court ruled that a law may not punish a status; i.e., one may not be punished to being an alcoholic or for being addicted to drugs. However, of course, one may be punished for actions such as abusing drugs. The question becomes; What if the status “forces” the action? What if a person, because of his/her addiction to drugs, is “forced” by the addiction to purchase and abuse the illegal drugs? Would punishing that person be unfairly punishing a status?
From our class sessions, in order to hand down a ruling, a judge must first interpret the law before applying it to the case. Moreover, judges have other important responsibilities in the courtroom, such as admitting/denying evidence, instructing the jury, safeguarding the defendant 's rights and state 's interests in justice, upholding dignity, showing fairness, handing down sentences, discriminating/indiscriminating sentencing structures, even having to consider probation sanctions to impose on probationers. For instance, near the end of the proceeding, the judge instructed the jury about giving a verdict and the upcoming agenda for when they are to decide guilt or innocence. The judge played an active role in ensuring there is fairness on both sides of the prosecution and defense.
The criminal trial process is an interesting process that takes place in Courtrooms all across the United States and throughout the globe. This study intends to set out the various steps in the criminal trial process in the American justice system. A trial is described as a "legal forum for resolving individual disputes, and in the case of a criminal charge, it is a means for establishing whether an accused person is legally guilty of an offense. The trial process varies with respect to whether the matter at issue is civil in nature or criminal. In either case, a jury acts as a fact-finding body for the court in assessing information and evidence that is presented by the respective parties in a case. A judge presides over the court and addresses all the legal issues that arise during the trial. A judge also instructs the jury how to apply the facts to the laws that will govern in a given case." (3rd Judicial District, 2012)
This movie has similarities and differences to our criminal justice system. Billy has his cousin Vinny represent them as their defense attorney. My Cousin Vinny shows the steps in pretrial, arraignment, grand jury, and the overall trial phase. Keywords: voir dire, due
This paper will describe my understanding of the text and of the lectures provided in the class. Unlike most classes, where I understood only my view of the text, this class was geared so each student would understand each other’s view. 3 An organization is a collective that has some boundary and internal structure that engages in activities related to some complex set of goals. Members of organizations attempt to meet their psychological, ego and emotional needs within the organization. Criminal justice organizations are particularly unique compared to other public or private sector organizations because of the governmental granted authority. Management within these organizations can be defined as the process by
complaint was either files by a citizen or by following an arrest made by the
The main purpose of the sentencing is to protect the public and to ensure that justice is done. The purpose of sentencing for those 18 and over is defined by section 142 (1) Criminal Justice Act 2003