criminal justice ch11

dissenting opinion

A statement written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion, presenting his or her opinion

legal costs

Almost all people who face the death penalty cannot afford their own attorney. The state must assign public defenders or court-appointed lawyers to represent them (the accepted practice is to assign two lawyers), and pay for prosecution as well.

concurring opinion

An opinion filed by a judge that agrees with the majority opinion on the case but that bases their conclusion on different reasons or on a different view of the case

jury selection

Because of the need to question jurors thoroughly on their views about the death penalty, jury selection in capital cases is much more time consuming and expensive.

aggravating circumstances

Can include use of a weapon, commission of other felonies, commission of murder for hire, or the offender's being a peace officer engaged in official duties.

pretrial costs

Capital cases are far more complicated than non-capital cases and take longer to go to trial. Experts will probably be needed on forensic evidence, mental health, and the background and life history of the defendant. County taxpayers pick up the costs of added security and longer pre-trial detention.

community model

Community reintegration was the dominant idea until the 1970s, when it gave way to a new punitive stance in criminal justice

victim impact statement

Constructed by the victim of a criminal offense that contains information about the harm and injury produced by the crime as felt by the victim. Can at times, includes a recommendation to the court as to the nature of the sentence he or she would like the convicted offender to receive.

medical model

Criminals were seen as persons whose social, psychological, or biological deficiencies had caused them to engage in illegal activity and who should receive treatment.

crime control model

Critics attacked the indeterminate sentence and parole, calling for longer sentences for career criminals and violent offenders. Legislators, judges, and officials responded with determinate sentencing laws, "three- strikes laws," mandatory sentencing laws and so forth.

trial

Death-penalty trials can last more than four times longer than non-capital trials, requiring juror and attorney compensation, in addition to court personnel and other related costs.

Payne v. Tennessee

In a 6-3 decision, the Court overturned Booth and Gathers. VIE is permissible because it provides relevant information about the full amount of harm that the defendant caused

mitigating circumstances

Include little or no prior criminal history, the offender's acting under duress or under the influence of mental illness or extreme emotional disturbance, or the offender's being young.

incarceration

Most death rows involve solitary confinement in a special facility. These require more security and other accommodations as the prisoners are kept for 23 hours a day in their cells.

8th Amendment

No excessive bail, excessive fines, or cruel or unusual punishment

colonial model

Puritans rigorously punished violations of religious laws, and banishment from the community, fines, death, and other punishments were the norm. Use of the death penalty was common.

appeal

The defendant asks a higher court to review the transcript of legal errors by a trial court and possibly to have the conviction overturned or be granted a retrial. the defendant may contest the trial court's sentencing decision without challenging the underlying conviction.

appeals

To minimize mistakes, every prisoner is entitled to a series of appeals. The costs are borne at taxpayers' expense. These appeals are essential because some inmates have come within hours of execution before evidence was uncovered proving their innocence.

progressive model

Treatment would be focused on the individual and his or her specific problem. Probation was launched as an alternative to incarceration, allowing offenders to be treated in the community under supervision, and indeterminate sentences came into being.

Baez v. Rees

Two Kentucky inmates challenged the state's four-drug lethal injection protocol. In a 7-2 decision with four concurrences and a dissent, the Court held that Kentucky's lethal injection scheme did not violate the Eighth Amendment.

booth v maryland

a 5-4 decision that VIE was per se inadmissible in capital (but not noncapital cases). VIE would be difficult for the defense to rebut

13th Amendment

abolished slavery

-It does not have any deterrent value. -It is discriminatory against minorities. -Retribution is unfitting for a civilized society. -It can (and does) claim the lives of innocent people.

against death penalty

concurrent sentence

all sentences served simultaneously

indeterminate sentencing

convict sentenced for a set range of time

the drugs used in the executions cause extreme and unnecessary pain, while masking the pain being experienced by the inmate, and thus violate the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment

challenges to lethal injection

consecutive sentence

each sentence served seperately

reformatory model

emphasized inmate change and indeterminate sentences. Fixed sentences, lockstep, silence, and isolation were seen as destructive to inmate initiative.

agreeing to engage in plea negotiations, max penalty judge may impose, sentencing recommendations to court

how can prosecutors influence the system

-Belief that it deters other people from committing murder, while others base their stand on theological grounds, the commandment "Thou shalt not kill." -It is society's nod to an "eye for an eye": "If you kill one of us, we will kill you." -One thing the death penalty most certainly accomplishes, however, is the prevention of future murders by that particular offender. -Elusive answers based no studies to the question: Does the existence of a death penalty deter individuals from committing murder?

in favor of death penalty

penitentiary model

introduced the institutional pattern of outside cells with the use of solitary confinement as the central method of reforming inmates

Gregg v. Georgia

jury members may not impose the death penalty unless they first determine the existence of one or more statutory aggravating circumstances beyond a reasonable doubt, as well as determine that the aggravating circumstances outweigh the mitigating circumstances beyond a reasonable doubt.

deterrence

punishment deters others from committing crimes

retribution

punishment fits the crime

retribution, deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation

purpose of punishment

Rehabilitation

reform (programs or counseling)

incapacitation

rendering one as unable to move through system- incarceration or court order

south carolina v gathers

the court reaffirmed its view about the inadmissibility of VIE.

judicial determinate sentencing

the judge has broad discretion to choose a sanction, but once imposed, it is not subject to change

legislative determinate sentencing

the legislature fixes by law the penalty for specific offenses or offense categories

legal costs, pretrial costs, jury selection, trial, incarceration, appeals

things contributing to death penalty costs