U S A Criminal
Justice
1. What is the justification for pretrial detention? Do you
feel that pretrial detention unfairly discriminates against the poor? If
pretrial detention were ruled unconstitutional, do you think that most
defendants would not appear on their court dates? Wouldcrime rates rise?
2. Why is it that the United States remains the only Western
country in the world to retain the death penalty? Why is there such great
public support for capital punishment? Do you predict a downturn in support
over the next decade? Why or why not?
3. What are some of the reasons for the extremely high
incarceration rate in the United States?
4. Has the Supreme Court gone too far in protecting the
rights of prisoners, or not far enough?
5. There is a big debate over whether needles and condoms
should be made available in prison. Advocates argue that drug and sexual
contact in prison are inevitable, and the goal should be reducing the harms of
these behaviors (such as AIDS). But others say that giving out needles and
condoms encourages and condones these illicit behaviors.
Where do you stand on this issue?
6. Many states have done away with parole and moved to
embrace a "truth in sentencing" philosophy. Is this a smart thing to
do, given what we know about prison overcrowding? Why is the availability of
parole a valuable prison management tool?
7. Should capital punishment be imposed on persons as young
as eleven years who are charged with homicide? List the argument for or against
this proposition.
8. Since most criminal cases do not lead to conviction of an
offender, how is "restorative justice" applicable in such cases?
9. Explain the term "Burden of Proof".
10. Explain the restorative model of justice. What is the
difference between this model and the Retributive Justice?
Scenario:
A woman called the police to her home after her daughter was
severely beaten earlier in the day by the daughter's boyfriend.The daughter
agreed to use her key to let the officers into the apartment where the man was
sleeping. The officers did not seek to obtain an arrest warrant or a search
warrant. After the daughter unlocked the apartment door, the
officers entered and found a white substance, which later proved to be cocaine,
sitting on a table. They arrested the sleeping man and charged him with
narcotics offenses. The defendant sought to have the drugs excluded from
evidence because the officers' warrantless search was based
on permission from the girlfriend who had moved out of the apartment several
weeks earlier.
a. As the prosecutor, what arguments would you make about
why the evidence should not be excluded?
b.Now imagine that you are the judge. Decide whether the
evidence obtained should be excluded. Provide the reasons for your decisions.
Please use legal terms as well.
12. Discuss, compare and contrast civil and criminal
proceedings. Main points-who has been harmed, prosecution, sanctions/penalties,
procedural differences, and burden of proof.
13. What are two limits imposed on government power to
punish by the Eighth Amendment? Give two examples.
14. Briefly define the exclusionary rule and discuss the
three rationales justifying this rule. Give examples.
15. Although most jurisdictions allow for victim/witness
impact statements to be offered at the sentencing phase, much debate continues
to surround this practice. Identify the pros and cons for the victim, offender,
and the criminal justice system as a whole.
Scenario
After arresting a suspect for burglary, police officers
learned that the suspect's nickname was "Butch". A confidential
informant previously told them that someone named Butch was guilty of an
unsolved murder in another city. The police in the other city were informed of
this coincidence
and sent officers to question the suspect about the murder.
Meanwhile, the suspect's sister secured the services of a lawyer to represent
her brother on the burglary charge. Neither she nor the lawyer knew about the
suspicions concerning the unsolved murder case. The lawyer telephoned the
police station ad said she would come to the station to be
present if the police wished to question her client. The lawyer was told that
the police would not question him until the following morning and she could
come to the station at that time. Meanwhile the police from the other city
arrived and initiated the first series of evening
questioning sessions with the suspect. The suspect was not informed that his
sister had obtained the services of a lawyer to represent him. The suspect was
not told that the lawyer had called the police and asked to be present during
questioning.
During questioning, the suspect was informed of his Miranda
rights. He waived his right to be represented by counsel, and subsequently
confessed to the murder.
a.If you were the defense attorney, what arguments would you
make to have the confession excluded from evidence?
b.If you were the judge, would you permit the confession to
be used as evidence? Provide legal reasons for your decision.
Scenario
John was pulled over by the police when they observed him
swerving in and out of traffic as he was driving. They made him walk a straight
line, which he was unable to do. They determined that John was drunk and placed
him under arrest for drunk driving. While one officer was placing the
handcuffs on him and patting him down, the other officer
walked around to the passenger side of the car. He looked in the car and then
opened the glove compartment where he found a switch blade with blood on it.
They transported John to the precinct and proceeded to interrogate him
about where the blood on the knife came from. John started
to sob and said that he had killed his wife earlier that evening.
Given this scenario, explain whether or not the evidence
will be admissible in court.
Scenario newspaper article:
**Man Arrested and Charged in Connection with Assault**
Synopsis
• On Monday
June 17, 2013 on the island of St. Thomas, a woman was assaulted at her home
about 1pm.
• Victim
was grabbed and hit several times.
• She later
sought treatment for her injuries to her left eye.
• Police
arrested St. Claire Crabb on Wednesday June 19, 2013 in connection with assault
to victim.
Outcome
• Police
arrested 46 year old St. Claire Crabb on Wednesday and charged him with second-degree
assault domestic violence.
• Crabb is
held without bail pending his court appearance.
• Detectives
are still investigating and asking anyone for additional information to this
case to call Crime Stoppers.
Lay out the facts of the case. Then define and apply one
theory of crime that does a good job of explaining this type of
behavior/offense. Integrate the facts from the article to support your
argument.
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