The Criminal Trial Process

The criminal justice system ensures the safety and protection of society from criminal offenders. The process of the criminal justice system begins when a criminal offense is reported to law enforcement officials. If required, an investigation begins, leading to a warrant and arrest. Following the arrest, bail is set and a preliminary hearing is scheduled. If the defendant is indicted, a trial date is set. Providing the defendant does not waive the right to a jury trial, a

The criminal trial process aims to provide justice for all those involved, while it succeeds in the majority of cases, it effectiveness is influenced and reduced by certain factors. These include the legal representation involved in a case and the availability of legal aid, the capacity of the jury assessing the trial, the credibility of scientific evidence and the impact of social media on the trial process. Due to such flaws the criminal trial process is not always an effective means of achieving justice.

The suspect usually receives bail, but in this case I believe that an arraignment will come first due to the legal status of the defendant.

The next step in the system is initial appearance. Here they are given formal notice of the charges against them and advised of their rights.(Bohm & Haley, 2008, p. 13) The movie included this in their depiction of the criminal justice system. In the movie they called it the arraignment. The arraignment is where the defendant either pleads guilty or not guilty. During this stage the bail is also set which was also done in the movie. In the movie the set the preliminary hearing for the next morning in which the witnesses testified to what they saw and heard. This allows the judge to decide if there is probable cause to make and indictment. Based upon the information we have learned it seems that the arraignment should have happened after the preliminary hearing and that the

Following the arraignment of the accused, and where a plea of not guilty is entered, the accused is open to be tried by a jury made up of his peers. At this point it is said that he is put in their charge where he remains until such time as he chooses to change his plea to guilty, or until a final determination of his guilt or innocence is returned by the verdict of the jury.

The Criminal Justice System is a set of legal and social institutions used to enforce a defined set of rules limitations (3). This system in the United States is divided into three subsections: Federal, State, and Military. Each state's criminal justice department is then divided again into separate juvenile and adult systems (3). The system begins when the crime is committed and observed which leads to an investigation and arrest here the accused enters the system. The first step is after the arrest is made the criminal is held in jail until they can go to Criminal court, this usually happens within twenty four hours of the arrest unless it’s a weekend. In that case the trial will be held on Monday. While the prisoner is waiting for trial they get brought to central booking where their fingerprints and photograph are taken. At this time

The court is the second component of the justice system – once the suspect is arrested, s/he is referred to as a defendant. It is now up to the court to decide if the police had enough evidence for probable cause for arrest – if the determination is positive, then the defendant gets an opportunity to plead innocent or guilty. Once the court establishes that the defendant is innocent, s/he is released; on the other hand if the defendant is found guilty the court decides the type of punishment and then the defendant is turned over to the Corrections for the follow up of the punishment.

The importance of show-trials is proving what you are doing looks good, and that is law-abiding. It is important to make everyone happy. (Bach pg.193) A show-trial is a judicial trial held in public with the intention of influencing or satisfying public opinion, rather than of ensuring justice. These show trials resonate deeply with the citizenry. The media world is outrageously popular for captivating the public audience’s attention for court room related cases. An example would be TV. We’ve all came across episodes of “Law and Order.” It appears out to be “how” people think American Justice is. (Bach pg.195) The public attention of media is ranked highly and known as best.

Justice is the concept of moral rightness that is based on equality, access and fairness. This means that the law is applied equally, understood by all people and does not have a particularly harsh effect on an individual. In Australia, the adversary system is used as a means to achieve justice by proving the accused, beyond reasonable doubt, committed the crime. The criminal trial process has many features which aim to fulfill the requirements of achieving justice. These elements, though considers equality, fairness and access, are flawed in practice. Flaws such as the handling of evidence, jurors not understanding instructions, inadequate funds for legal

In America we have an Adversary System of Justice, which means that criminal trials proceed under the adversary theory of justice to arrive at the truth in a given case. One characteristic of this system is intensive cross-examination of both defense and prosecution witnesses. In a jury trial, it is for the jury, which observes these witnesses, to weigh the evidence and make the ultimate decision in every case—guilty or not guilty. However, not every case makes it to trial in fact, about 80% of defendants plead guilty allowing them to just be sentenced and not have to go through the whole process of a trial. Other cases are dropped, or dismissed if the prosecutor, or in some cases a grand jury, feels that there is insufficient evidence to carry on. Some defendants are sent to diversion programs, these individuals are often sent here because an official involved in the case believes that there is a better way to deal with a defendant than to prosecute them.

The preliminary hearing is then held which determines if the prosecution obtained enough evidence and has enough probable cause to hold a trial (Schmalleger, 2008). Discovery, which refers to the first time the defense is allowed to view the evidence against the accused occurs at this stage (Schmalleger, 2008). The next step is arraignment; this is the first time the defendant is seen by a judge with enough authority to hold a trial (Schmalleger, 2008). At arraignment, the indictment against the accused is read; the accused enters a plea of either guilty, not guilty or no contest (Schmalleger, 2008). The last step involving the court is adjudication, which plainly means a trial by jury (Schmalleger, 2008). The trial then proceeds until both sides have presented their case and the jury reaches a decision (Schmalleger, 2008). If the jury cannot reach a decision the judge can declare a mistrial and the case can be retried (Schmalleger, 2008). If the accused waives the right to a trial by jury, the court will hold a bench trial which is a trial conducted and decided upon by the judge (Schmalleger, 2008).

The e-text discussed Arraignment. This is the initial hearing in which the charges are presented, the convicted rights are advised, counsel is provided, and plead towards the charges is accepted. This relates to the article as every inmate in prison has gone through this process. After the arraignment, there are two main ways each prisoner was convicted. Each prisoner either plea bargained with the prosecution and judge to received his or her sentence or, the offender went to trial and was proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt either by a judge or a jury. Both are ways that the prisoners were convicted and why the prison rate in the United States is so

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)

As Mr. Crook's lawyer, explain the advice you will give him both pre-arrest and post-arrest.

Courtroom procedures begin before the day of the trial arrives. In a criminal case, the pre-trial proceedings vary based on the severity of the crime. With a simple misdemeanor case, which could only result in minor jail time or a fine, the pre-trial procedures are short and simple. Usually, the defendant is called to a pre-trial hearing where they are read the charges pressed against them and are asked to give either their plea of guilty and be given a sentencing date, not guilty and be given a trial date and bail amount, or to plead no contest (American Bar Association). However, in a felony case that could lead to a serious incarceration sentence, the procedure becomes more complex. There is a first hearing that is similar to that of a misdemeanor, except that a plea is not given. This is done at the second preliminary hearing to determine if there is actually enough evidence to charge the defendant with a crime. If there isn’t enough, the charges are dropped, but if there is, the case moves along in the process (American Bar Association).