Presented by CJS 200 Foundations of the Criminal Justice System Pre-trail Procedures Presented by CJS 200 Foundations of the Criminal Justice System

Objectives Phases leading to a trial Significance of the Sixth Amendment Jury selection Processes of a jury trail The above mentioned topics are very crucial in court procedures. Individuals involved in these procedures need to be proficient and skilled in many areas, because someone’s fate is counting on them. The following slides will demonstrate the pre-trail process and procedures.

After Arrest Add picture of a person getting arrested in handcuffs

Appearing Before a Judge Add a picture of a judge

Preliminary Hearing

Indictment Add a picture of a jury

Trail Steps Booking Initial Appearance Preliminary Hearing/Grand Jury Information/Indictment Arraignment, Plea Bargain, Guilty Plea, Trial Generally there are many stages in the trail procedure, and we can start with “booking”. When a suspect is brought in to the police station, he/she is first searched and examined, then photographed, and finally documented as per necessity. Unless the charges do not get dropped, a complaint is proceeded to police file, and then a judge is assigned to examine the case. After that, the suspect needs to appear in front of a judge (this is known as Initial Appearance), and the judge informs him/her about the charges against put against him/her, and also about the given rights. After that, the preliminary hearing or grand jury takes place. Mostly based on significance of severity level of the crime, an individual either gets a preliminary hearing (a prosecutor demonstrates case evidences, and the judge determines on the eligibility of bail), or a bail amount is set. Sometimes, a grand jury in introduced, especially if the severity of the crime is really high. The grand jury determines the probability of the reason to believe that the defendant really performed the criminal action. A suspect also needs to go through different stages like Indictment and information, given by the jury and by the prosecutor consecutively. The arraignment is the step when a suspect is brought in front of the court, informed about the complaints held against him/her, and solicited to enter a plea. The plea bargain is a prosecutor’s offer of concessions in exchange for the defendant’s guilty plea. Based on if the suspect plead guilty or not guilty, the following processes take place, which are the trial and guilty plea. Guilty plea is the step when suspect pleads guilty, the judge issues a case for sentencing. The trial is the step when a suspect refuses to plead guilty, and then either a jury trial or a bench trial is organized.

Sixth Amendment Speedy Trial Notice of Accusation Confrontation Counsel For the person who is being accused or trialed, The Sixth Amendment is very crucial, because it provide the defendant with the right to a speedy trial by an impartial jury. Then, at the Notice of Accusation stage, the defendant is informed of his/her rights, and explained with the charges being held against them. The Confrontation Clause is the common law rule preventing the admission of hearsay. In this law rule checks testimony by one witness as to the statements and observations of another person, and it is done in order ensure that the statement or observation was accurate. The right of defendants to procure the assistance of counsel is guaranteed by The Sixth Amendment guarantees. The defendant not only has the right to be heard by attorneys, but also has the right to represent him or herself in court as well.

Jury Selection U.S Citizen At least Eighteen years of age No criminal records Good health Able to read, write, and understand the English language People like me dread getting a jury summon in the mail! To qualify as a juror, one needs to be a U.S. citizen, must be at least eighteen years of age, cannot have any previous criminal record, must be in good physical and psychological heath, and must be able to read, write, and understand the English language.

Jury Trail Opening Statements Evidence Testimony Real Evidence Lay Witness There are five steps in the jury trial. The opening statements comes first, where the attorneys’ statements are presented to the jury at the starting of the trial. Then the evidences are presented, which can be almost anything shown or given by witnesses under oath. The real evidence is brought into court and presented before the jury, as opposed to some other evidences like descriptions which are described for a jury. The lay witness can honestly and precisely attest on a fact in question without possessing expert training or knowledge.