CRIM 120 Ch 1-2 Quiz

Article II of the U.S. Constitution established the U.S. Supreme Court. True False

False

The mental state required for a crime to have been committed is referred to as the actus reus. True False

False

In the crime control model, one goal is to process defendants quickly. True False

True

Media coverage can provide caricatures, not pictures, of courts and the criminal justice system. True False

True

One of the five major areas of civil law is domestic relations law. True False

True

The Judicial Conference of the United States sets national administrative policy for the federal judiciary. True False

True

The judicial council is the basic administrative unit of a circuit. True False

True

The use of precedent promotes fairness and consistency. True False

True

Trial courts are primarily concerned with considering evidence to resolve factual decisions within the bounds of the law. True False

True

Depending on the dramatic needs of the movie or TV show, police may be portrayed as ____________.

diligent or brutal

The ____________ model emphasizes protecting the rights of the individual.

due process

A ruling in a previous case that serves as a guide in deciding subsequent cases with similar circumstances is known as a(n) ____________.

precedent

What is the name given to the particular location or area in which a court having geographic jurisdiction may hear a case? venue stay venire federal question

venue

In the ____________, social consciousness began to focus on social equality and equal justice under law.

1950s and 1960s

In the past __________ years, district court filings have increased more than sixfold. 50 10 2 100

50

There are __________ separate court systems. 10 25 46 51

51

Federal district court judges must be residents of the district in which they preside. True False

True

Between __________, there was general agreement on the inadequacy of the federal judicial system. 1789 and 1891 1900 and 1924 1843 and 1862 1722 and 1792

1789 and 1891

Contrast the roles of trial and appellate courts.

A trial court is where cases begin, in the original jurisdiction. They arraign defendants, have a trail or accept a guilty plea, and impose a sentences. The appellate courts are meant to ensure the trail courts rulings were constitutional, and if needed make new laws.

Which courts are tribunals created by Congress to handle specialized types of cases? Article III courts Article II courts State courts Article I courts

Article I courts

How do the federal courts impact the administration of justice at the local and state levels through their federal question jurisdiction?

By interpreting the requirements of federal law --especially the U.S. Constitution --the federal courts set the parameters for the operation of the criminal justice system so that police, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges honor the individual rights and liberties guaranteed in Constitution.

Identify and explain the importance of the three key characteristics of the common law.

Common law has three key characteristics. The first is that it was mainly judge-made law, laws made by judicial decisions. The second characteristic is the use of precedent, or stare decisis, using a case as a legal guide for future cases. The third characteristic is that it is found in multiple sources.

Describe the Court of Appeals Act of 1891.

Commonly know as the Evarts Act, created nine courts of appeals and create the circuit justice position for each circuit.

You are a judge in New York City at the time that the George Zimmerman/Trayvon Martin case is going on. You are familiar and have personally dealt with crimes of racial profiling in the past, but with this recent case, they have become more publicized and prominent. Claims of racial profiling in who was stopped, questioned, and frisked by New York City Police Department officers led to the federal courts adjudicating several class action civil rights lawsuits that ultimately resulted in a settlement involving judicial oversight of police stop-and-frisk activities. Because of this, and the acquittal of George Zimmerman for killing of Trayvon Martin, the Black Lives Matter movement was formed. Your viewpoint of a judge is that stop and frisk would be a helpful and necessary part of keeping the city safe. With your viewpoint as well as the above information, including recent racial profiling cases, how would you reexamine the use of force being legally justified? How do the facts about a case influence your opinion? Do you agree with the outcome of the George Zimmerman/Trayvon Martin case? Please fully explain.

I would reexamine the use of force looking for racial implications in particular, and question the reasoning behind the justification. The facts about each case is important because just seeing a black man is not reason enough for the use of force. I do not agree with the acquittal of George Zimmerman for killing of Trayvon Martin because there needs to be justice for the boy that was killed. Whether it was purposeful or not it happened and there needs to be consequences.

__________ lobby on behalf of their members for favorable government policies.

Interest groups

Which of the following proposals would due process advocates LEAST likely support? Abolish federal diversity jurisdiction except in certain cases. Abolish concurrent jurisdiction on crimes punishable by both state and federal law. Create several new Article I legislative courts. Limit ability of prisoners to file civil rights lawsuits.

Limit ability of prisoners to file civil rights lawsuits.

This president's "Great Society" programs increased the caseload of the federal courts. Franklin Roosevelt John Kennedy George Bush Lyndon Johnson

Lyndon Johnson

__________ jurisdiction means that a court has the authority to try a case and decide it.

Original

Consider that you are a deputy, and have just reviewed the following principles of contemporary criminal procedure: a. An involuntary statement is considered to be inherently untrustworthy or unreliable, and convictions based on unreliable evidence violate due process. b. Coercive police practices are a violation of fundamental fairness, an essential element of due process; therefore, a confession coerced by the police violates due process, even if that confession is otherwise reliable. c. Free choice is an essential aspect of due process, and an involuntary confession cannot be the product of a person's free and rational choice. ​ In your opinion, sometimes there are situations where force is necessary to gain confessions. With this in mind, but also considering the above prinicples, how forceful is acceptable and why? What are better alternatives? Also, what do you think should have happened to cases where force was exercised prior to the Brown v. Mississippi case? Have you heard of any cases since then that have used force to any degree either? What are your thoughts on those cases? Please fully explain.

The force that is acceptable to obtain a confession should be looked upon with a case-by-case analysis. What type of offenses have they committed? Is there anyone in immediate danger? These questions and many more must be considered. I would say that there is a point of going to far. Beating someone until they are unconscious would not contribute to getting the information needed for serious situations, therefore that is an example of going to far. Better alternatives would be to try and reason with the offender or even offer reasonable deals for information. I believe that people that force was used should have appealed to the appellate courts to get their cases reviewed and maybe even dismissed. There was a recent case of force within the south bend correctional facility. An inmate that was being questioned spit on an officer and the officers then beat the inmate. This is a simple lack of self control on the officers part. It's their job to deal with these people responsibly and respectfully.

Discuss the function and importance of the grand jury.

The grand jury is a group of impartial people that decide whether they thing the accused should be indicted or not. Grand juries are important because they act as a check on the prosecutor.

The different agencies involved in the administration of the federal court system include the Judicial Conference of the United State, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, the Federal Judicial Center, and the U.S. Sentencing Commission. What are their responsibilities? How are these responsibilities hierarchical in nature?

These agencies are the main people involved in administering the federal courts.

____________ courts are divided into major and lower courts.

Trial

What is the name of rules and regulations adopted by administrative agencies that have the force of law? statutory regulations constitutional regulations administrative regulations due process regulations

administrative regulations

The public often blames ____________ for allowing guilty defendants to go free on technicalities.

appellate courts

A writ of __________ is issued by the U.S. Supreme Court to obtain and review the proceedings of a lower court.

certiorari

What is the body of rules, other than criminal law, that governs private parties? inheritance law civil law production law attempt law

civil law

Which term refers to the repression of criminal conduct? due process crime control criminal defenses due process of law

crime control

Which term is derived from the way crime is defined? due process crime control criminal defenses due process of law

criminal defenses

Original and appellate jurisdiction fall under which classification of jurisdiction? geographical jurisdiction subject matter jurisdiction hierarchical jurisdiction general jurisdiction

hierarchical jurisdiction

After arrest, arrestees are brought before a judge, advised of their rights and the charges against them, and given a chance to make bail at the: pretrial hearing. initial appearance. arraignment. preliminary hearing.

initial appearance.

The primary justification for providing constitutional safeguards in the criminal justice process is to ensure that: innocent persons are not harassed or wrongly convicted. the guilty are punished. society administers justice to the accused. convictions are not overturned on appeal.

innocent persons are not harassed or wrongly convicted.

The Prison Litigation Reform Act resulted in all of the following, EXCEPT: requiring inmates to pay certain fees from which they had previously been exempt. requiring inmates to exhaust all administrative remedies before filing. no longer allowing inmates to proceed pro se in civil rights actions. barring subsequent cases if previous cases had been dismissed as frivolous.

no longer allowing inmates to proceed pro se in civil rights actions.

The doctrine of applying the Bill of Rights to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment is known as ____________.

selective incorporation

The United States has a dual court system consisting of: district and superior courts. trial and appellate courts. criminal and civil courts. state and federal courts.

state and federal courts.

Laws created by federal and state legislatures are known as: ordinances. statutes. administrative regulations. legislation.

statutes.

A __________ is a court order that temporarily suspends activity in a case.

stay

Which term refers to legal obligations? substantive law procedural law precedent constitution

substantive law

Appellate courts primarily review the legal decisions made by __________ courts.

trial

What is the name of a court that has original jurisdiction? trial court appellate court legislative court traffic court

trial court