What I Had Visited For The Assignment

The atmosphere of the courtroom was constantly changing, but was generally more calm and relaxed than the atmosphere of adult court. The room was free from excessive decor and was organized and clean cut. The environment was generally friendly, pleasant, polite and professional. When the judge appeared in court the atmosphere tensed and it was clear someone of a higher authority was present because everyone was very respectful.

My reactions to the courtroom observation is that the court house generates allot of money in fines and get the community allot of committee service. They are a lot more player in the courthouse then the book states. The bailiff and other officers that work in the court house are major players in the functions of the court house as well. The secretary is also very important she or he schedules continuing court dates and handles most of the paper work.

I. “ Judge Patrick Pirtle is the district judge of the 251st District Court of Randall County, Texas, and this case, a capital murder case, is on the docket of that Court. “ (http://www.goextranet.net/Seminars/Examples/Disqualify/State%27sRecuseJudge.htm)

Judge Lisa Hammond is a special judge for the seventh district court of Oklahoma County, in Oklahoma. She earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Oklahoma. She was interested in criminology but had never considered attending law school. After she began working criminal investigation in the juvenile department, she changed her mind. She felt that attorneys did not pay enough attention to the police and investigators she worked with when they were developing cases. Out of frustration and determination she studied and took the LSAT. She was soon accepted to the University of Oklahoma College of Law.

Author Steve Bogira wrote a book based on his experiences over one ear in Chicago’s County Criminal Courthouse. His book Courtroom 302 goes through numerous cases and trials during the book, and gives the reader an inside look at what really is going on inside of the courtrooms. The key player in this book are the defendants, deputies, prosecutors, attorneys, and jurors. However, the judge of the courtroom, Judge Daniel Locallo is the main character most of the book is around, because he handles all of these cases.

I observed court operations at the Plantation Key Government Center in Tavernier, Florida twice: on October 7th and November 4th. I observed Chief Circuit Judge Carlos Garcia in courtroom A. The courthouse is located in the 16th Judicial Circuit of Florida and it’s a state trial court with general jurisdiction. The first visit was cut short, in part because it was a lighter criminal day than planned, but also I was flabbergasted by the lack of professionalism that was present in this courtroom. I’m not sure if it’s a “court in Paradise” problem, or something that is observed at other courtrooms, however, I’m disappointed in what I saw. Lack of professionalism was evident during both visits from the actors and their actions in the courtroom.

Everyone was subjected to security including the lawyers and employees of the court house. Everyone was either in some type of uniform or dressed extremely formal, even if they were just spectators. Few people were in the court room, but not many. The judge, lawyers and people that were being represented had not still entered the building. Moments later the plaintiff, Dawn-Evans Donahue, and the defendant Joseph Donahue with their lawyers Michael Morris and John M. Makowski, entered the court room. They had taken their place on each of the court room to make their cases in front of the judge. The bailiff then told us to all rise for their entrance of Judge Polansky. We all rose and took our seats. The court had now been set in motion for deliberation. The judge was wearing the standard gown that is portrayed in films and in real life, there was no jury because this was not a trial court, this was a family matters case.

Describe the role of each of these people in the court. (8 marks, 4 marks each article)

Which court did you attend, and what kind of hearing did you observe? (2 marks)

As I entered the court, the trial has already commenced so I did not really know how a real trial started. I sat in the back where the public sits, facing the judge bench. The courtroom was cold and quiet. Especially it was very small, much smaller and less impressive than I expected.. Everyone was in formal dressing code. There were just a few number of spectators and family members in the court room. There was a clerk who was typing everything what was happening during the court time. Judge Krocker appeared to have things under control and had the proceedings moving forward smoothly. She was a very friendly lady with short blonde hair. She was listening attentively. She spoke clearly and distinctly so that everyone in the courtroom could hear. Samuel Gallegos is a white man about 5 '8 tall. He looked quite nervous while some police officers were standing behind him. From what I understood, this case was really happening back in 2014 and the suspect has criminal history relating to assault of child and another related case to this case. On my left hand side were the bailiffs while some others stood observed

During this case, I watched a criminal court hearing for James King, the defendant, who allegedly threatened a judge, the plaintiff.

On observing the District Court a number of distinctions from the Local Courts were immediately made apparent. Without going in to detail about the actual structure of the courts, they seemed to fit more closely with the traditional schema of a typical courtroom. In particular the larger courtrooms with more facilities combined with the barristers and magistrates wearing their wig and robes seemed to instantly uphold the ideology of justice. It is interesting to note how appearances can automatically provide an impression that justice will be upheld. The

I was highly comfortable in the courtroom that I chose to walk into. I walked into the courtroom after the hearing had started, and the judge was very welcoming. I did not feel as if I was interrupting at all. The judge was exceptionally kind. He even stopped the hearing to welcome me. He questioned why I was there and I told him I had a school project that I needed to sit through a court hearing. He welcomed me, yet again, and continued the hearing. Other than the initial introduction, I was not active in the session. I sat quietly in the middle of the courtroom behind the plaintiff, taking notes on the

I went to the court on October 13, around 10:30. When I first walked in there were a lot of people there I wasn’t expecting that at all. Security was higher than at the magistrate court. There were attorneys there but they stand next to there defendants at all times since it was still assembly justice so the trials didn’t go on for days if the most for about 30 minutes. The first case I had a chance was already on its way so I don’t know how long it had been going on for. The defendant was wearing a dark blue jump suit. As well as he had some chains aournd his waist

Due to the late arrival of the defendant, the defense barrister had to apologies on his behalf, resulting in the judge sanctioning him custody during lunchtime. I was surprise that see that judge did not say anything more, I am use to judges in America to be very cross with any party that arrived to the trail late. I had once witness seen a judge delayed the trail to another day for the lateness of the defense. But the judge only sanction him so I figure that this may happen more than once.