Pretrial and Courtroom Procedures Principles of LPSCS

Pretrial and Courtroom ProceduresPrinciples of LPSCS

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Functions of the Court

• First and foremost, the court is responsible for providing protection for the public

• Its secondary role is to maintain the confidence of the public


Constitutional Rights: 5th Amendment

• Protects against double jeopardy and self-incrimination, protects the right to grand jury, and requires due process– Right to Grand Jury

• A panel of 12 citizens who will hear evidence from the case and will determine if enough probable cause (a crime has occurred and the suspect is linked to it) exists to take the case to trial

• If enough probable cause does not exist, the case will be “no billed,” which means it will not go any further


Constitutional Rights: 5th Amendment (continued)

– Double Jeopardy• A person cannot be tried for the same crime twice,

except under special circumstances• Example: During the OJ Simpson murder trial, OJ

was found not guilty of the two murder charges. Later he wrote a book called “If I Did It” which clearly implicates him in the crime. Even if he came out and said, “I did it,” prosecutors cannot charge him with that crime again


Constitutional Rights: 5th Amendment (continued)

– Self-Incrimination• This means that you do not have to testify at your trial,

especially if your testimony would be damaging to your case

• The fact that you did not testify cannot be held against you when reaching a verdict

• You also cannot be forced to testify against a spouse

– Due Process – the system must be followed. You cannot be convicted if you never went to court to face charges; there is a sequence of events that must occur. This is to ensure that everyone is treated fairly


Constitutional Rights: 6th Amendment• Speedy and public trial• Impartial jury• Informed of the nature and the cause of the accusation• Confrontation of witnesses• Compulsory process of the witness

– The right to secure your own witnesses– If the prosecution presents a forensic expert to testify regarding

the autopsy, you are allowed to bring in your own expert for the same purpose

• Right to an attorney – an attorney will be appointed to represent you if you cannot afford one; you get whoever they give you


Constitutional Rights: 8th Amendment• Bail

– A financial deposit to ensure you will appear for your court date

– Paid to a bail bondsman, generally 20 percent to process the release

– Can be paid in money, titles, property or anything else agreed upon by the bondsman

– If the accused fails to appear for court• The bondsman is out the full bail amount• The bondsman will then send a bounty hunter to find and take the

accused before the court so that he can get some of his money back

– Excessive fines– Cruel and unusual punishment


Phases of a Trial

• Pretrial phase– The judge determines if the defendant will be

allowed bail or pretrial release– Pretrial release is the threat to society versus the

rights of the accused– The preliminary hearing or grand jury convenes

to determine if probable cause exists in order to go to trial

– An Information or an Indictment is issued– The defendant enters a plea


Phases of a Trial (continued)

• Trial phase– The jury is selected– The evidence is presented by both the

prosecution and the defense– A verdict is reached


Phases of a Trial (continued)

• Sentencing phase– The judge or the jury determines what sentence

is appropriate based on the sentencing guidelines

– The judge has some discretion in sentencing– The jury is given a sentence range to decide the

actual sentence of the defendant


Pretrial Proceedings

• Preliminary Hearing– Open proceedings used to establish probable

cause– The information presented can be challenged– If probable cause exists then an Information is

issued– Information – the formal document charging an

individual with a crime


Pretrial Proceedings (continued)

• Grand Jury– Closed proceedings used to establish probable

cause– Proceedings are used in Texas– The evidence presented cannot be challenged– If probable cause is found, then an Indictment

is issued– Indictment – the formal document charging an

individual with a crime


Pleas

• Guilty – This is an admission of some level of

responsibility for the crime– A guilty plea stops the process and moves it to

the sentencing phase– The goal of a trial is to establish guilt or

innocence; if the defendant admits guilt, there is no reason to proceed with the trial phase


Pleas (continued)

• Not Guilty– This plea can be entered by a defendant that

has not committed a crime, or– By a defendant that is trying to fight the

charges


Pleas (continued)

• Nolo contendo – There is a big misconception about pleading

“No Contest”– Nolo contendo is a plea of guilt– The only difference between a plea of nolo

contendo and a plea of guilty is that the judge is responsible for the sentencing at the sentencing phase of the trial


Pretrial and Courtroom Procedures

• Jury Selection– The trial phase begins with the jury selection;

without a jury, the trial cannot begin– In order to select a jury, the attorneys use a

process called “voir dire”• Voir dire means to “say the truth”• This is the process by which the attorneys question

the jurors to ensure that the accused gets the most impartial jurors


Pretrial and Courtroom Procedures (continued)

• Courtroom Procedures– Opening statements

• Both the prosecutor and the defense make opening statements to the court

• The opening statements allow the evidence to be presented to the court• They are also used to “educate the jury”

– Direct examination• The prosecution calls all of its witnesses to provide evidence• The testimony should utilize the witness’ senses and knowledge

– Cross examination• The defense has an opportunity to question the prosecution’s

witnesses• The process then reverses



• Courtroom Procedures (continued)– Rebuttal – the prosecution is allowed to present witnesses

to refute the testimony presented by the defense’s witnesses during the defense’s direct examination

– Closing arguments• Both the prosecution and the defense give their closing

arguments• This is an opportunity for both sides to argue the facts of the case

– The judge instructs the jury on the law– The jury is dismissed to deliberate– The verdict is announced



• Stand when addressing the court or judge• Before you begin with any statements, say,

“May it please the court”• Do not use foul language unless quoting

someone• Follow all of the instructions given by the

court



• Always stand when making an objection– Objection – means the defense disagrees with the

prosecution or vice versa– There must be a legal reason for objecting to the evidence

or statement– The judge will rule on the objection and answer one of two

ways• Sustained

– The person on the stand may not answer the question– The attorney must ask a different question

• Overruled– The person on the stand may go ahead and answer the question– The judge is going to allow the testimony


Verdicts

• Guilty – the jury has determined that evidence exists beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused has committed the crime

• Not Guilty – the jury has determined that the prosecution did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused committed the crime

• Mistrial (hung jury)– No matter how many times the judge sends the jury back

to deliberate, they cannot reach a unanimous decision on the verdict

– The process starts over with a new trail at a later date


Criminal Defenses

• Alibi – the accused claims that he or she did not commit the crime

• Self Defense – the accused committed the crime, but his or her actions were justified

• Insanity – the accused committed the crime, but cannot be held responsible


Sentencing Phase

• If the defendant is found guilty of a misdemeanor, the judge determines the sentence given

• If the defendant is found guilty of a felony charge, the trial then proceeds to the sentencing phase

• Mitigating Circumstances – circumstances presented at the sentencing that have the potential to decrease the punishment a person receives for the crime

• Aggravating circumstances – circumstances presented at the sentencing that have the potential to increase the punishment a person receives for a crime


Sentencing Options

• Probation• Prison• Death• Fines and/or restitution• Letter of apology• Community service


Juvenile Procedures

• Juveniles are not eligible for bail• Juveniles are released or detained based on the

seriousness of their crime and their threat to society• Arraignments – pretrial proceedings for juveniles • Adjudication hearing – the trial phase for juveniles

– Informal, but closed– Similar to the trial phase in the adult system, except

there are no opening and closing statements– The judge decides guilt or innocence


Resources

• Dallas Bar Association, High School Mock Trial http://www.dallasbar.org/mocktrial

• Furris, Nicholas, director. Order in the Court Video. Cambridge Educational Production, 2001.

• http://www.19thcircuitcourt.state.il.us/services/Pages/mock_trials.aspx

• http://www.crfc.org/resource-center/american-jury

http://www.dallasbar.org/mocktrial

http://www.19thcircuitcourt.state.il.us/services/Pages/mock_trials.aspx

http://www.19thcircuitcourt.state.il.us/services/Pages/mock_trials.aspx

http://www.crfc.org/resource-center/american-jury

http://www.crfc.org/resource-center/american-jury

Documents

Pretrial and Courtroom Procedures Principles of LPSCS