Process of the Criminal Justice System

Ms. Sufferer, the criminal justice process, involves making sure that an individual receives justice, and those who are guilty are judged accordingly. According to our Constitution and Amendments, the criminal justice process also ensures that an innocent person is free from having an unfair trial. The process starts by arresting a person to intake procedures to pre-trial, trial, and sentencing. We will discuss all the steps that will be along the way and help you understand all of these steps and what the process is for if the accused is found guilty. If the accused is found guilty, there is also an appeal process that they can go through. As your advocate, I will walk you through the process and understand all the proceedings, outcomes, and protections of the constitution. We will first discuss the steps between arrest, pre-trial, trials, and the appeal process for victims.

The first part of the criminal justice process is the arrest. An arrest can happen whether someone has committed the crime or not. There are many circumstances where probable cause is a factor in why someone is arrested. In the case of Terry vs. Ohio, a police officer was off duty when he noticed three men acting suspicious and considered they were carrying weapons and about to do a “stick-up.” Using probable cause, the police officer searched the men and found the weapons he had suspected them of carrying, and the men were arrested (Terry v. Ohio). There are contingencies when it comes to arresting, such as an offender resisting arrest. This could result in the defendant getting a much harsher sentence, especially if there was a result of that, such as someone being harmed or killed. While getting arrested, the offender could also be trying to hide the fact that they have other charges and warrants out for their arrest, so while the officer is running their information, they might try to flee the scene or even try to kill or harm the police officer. Another contingency that involves law enforcement is when one of the offenders is injured or killed by a police officer regarding the violation's procedures and policies. Actions are made in the heat of the moment for everyone, and police officers are no exception to this.

After an arrest has been made, the next step begins where the individual will be granted a bail hearing. During the bail hearing, the defendant will put in their plea of guilty or not guilty. After this, a pre-trial will happen where the state attorney, along with the defendant and/or their attorney, will have a meeting to discuss any motions that will or will not be filed. After a trial has been confirmed, the defendant might be tried by a judge alone or with a jury present, usually depending on the crime's seriousness.  According to Victims of Crime (2019), The purpose of a trial is to present all relevant and admissible evidence into the court. It is up to the jury to decide whether the defendant is guilty or innocent. When a case goes to trial, it is put before a grand jury who will hear arguments from both the prosecution and the defense attorney. The grand jury must consider all the facts from the case before deciding. When the jury has made their decision of guilty for the defendant at that time, the defense attorney along with the defendant both have the right to appeal the court's decision, and it will then they will learn what their options are and what they can and cannot do as far as the charge. There are two kinds of appeals a state and a federal appeal. So, a state appeal must go through the state appellate and then to the supreme court for review and affirmation. If the court refuses to review the case when a request is made to do so, then the original decision will stand. A federal appeal is like a state appeal; however, in this case, the Supreme Court doesn’t have the option to hear the case.

  As your victim advocate Ms. Sufferer, some contingencies need to be discussed involving the criminal justice process. There are contingencies when it comes to arresting, such as an offender resisting arrest. This can result in the defendant getting a harsher sentence, especially if there was a result of that, such as someone being harmed or killed. While getting arrested, the offender could also be trying to hide the fact that they have other charges and warrants out for their arrest, so while the officer is running their information, they might try to flee the scene or even try to kill or harm the police officer. Another contingency that involves law enforcement is when one of the offenders is injured or killed by a police officer regarding the violation's procedures and policies. Actions are made in the heat of the moment for everyone, and police officers are no exception to this. During the trial, there are contingencies as well. The case could be thrown out due to procedures not being followed or legal error. For example, in Bravo-Fernandez vs. United States, there was a legal error resulting in a hung jury, which means the jury could not reach a verdict due to the legal error (Oyez). Also, the offender could be found not guilty or decide to take a plea bargain. A plea bargain is when the prosecutors give the defendant some options of what they can do instead of a trial. The prosecutors might offer the defendant to take a lesser charge, or the defendant might also plead guilty and take the maximum sentence (Devers, 2011). According to LawFirms, 2019 a valid plea bargain would be making sure the defendant knows their waiver of rights, has a voluntary waiver and has a factual basis to support the charges that the defendant is guilty of. Plea bargains have to be approved by the judge first before it is bound legally. The judge can’t approve of the plea bargain unless both parties have agreed. The judge will ask both parties if they agree to the plea bargain, and if either party does not agree, they will have to go back to work on an agreement until one is made (LawFirms, 2019). However, it is good to keep in mind that if the defendant is found guilty, the defense attorney or the defendant can appeal and get a lesser punishment.

Each part of the criminal justice system process has constitutional protects. And each part of the process, it is crucial that they are met and followed. During the arrest, if the police officer does not read the defendant their Miranda Rights, or a search was done without warrants, or an attorney was not offered or given when requested, the defendant's rights have not been met, and they could be freed from charges (Roach, 1999). Defense attorneys might also use the defense of self-incrimination, and that law enforcement gained information that was not by policy and procedure. Some questions that might be asked in court would be if the police officer did not get search warrants, then what was their reason for entering the premises, or what was their reason for searching the defendant. In the case listed above, the officer used probable cause, but that is not always the case, and credibility could be at stake and cost the court the trial. It is also the defendant’s sixth amendment right to a fair and speedy trial with appropriate legal counsel and jury. The sixth amendment could be used in both the arresting process as well as the trial process. It is important to have a diverse and unbiased jury. For instance, if an African American was put on trial and the whole panel of jurors were white, the defendant might state that it is an unfair jury and prejudice.

The effectiveness of the criminal justice system when dealing with a criminal prosecution can be a little unsettling. The process involves putting into evidence that the defendant committed the crime. With that being said, any evidence brought into the case, and everything said and done will be placed into evidence. However, the defense attorneys are going to do everything in their power to help the defendant, along with them having many rights and protections, this can be very tricky to place guilt on them. In this case, the defendant has several other charges and has the upper hand, so to speak, because he has been through this legal process and knows of many loops holes that are in the system, so having experience makes a difference when it comes to effectiveness in the criminal justice system. With the police officers not providing him an attorney when asked for, this could hurt the case and work in his favor.

Some changes and improvements that I have for the legal system would be in the legal representation. The legal system is completely overburdened with several thousands of cases at a time in some areas. Legal fees can also be very expensive, especially for those like the defendant in this situation. If someone is stealing, it is most likely because they don’t have money, which means they won’t hire a lawyer. When someone can’t afford a lawyer, they are given a public defender who as well is overburdened and cannot spend enough time which each defendant to give them adequate legal counsel. With this being said, lawyers are overburdened, which leads to 90-95% of cases being solved by plea bargains (Plea bargains, n.d). I don’t believe that people who commit murder or rape should be allowed to get plea bargains because their crimes are more severe, and they are likely to commit these types of acts again. I also don’t believe that repeat offenders should get plea bargains because they are at a high risk to commit crimes again and have shown that they will. I also believe that people who commit several crimes should be charged for all of their crimes, not just taking the lesser charge. According to the Double Jeopardy Clause, the lesser included offenses do not violate it because they were crimes committed along the way to the final more severe crime. However, I do believe that the criminal justice system should work towards the reformation of rehabilitation services. Some people become offenders because of the products of how they were raised. If the criminal justice system could work alongside the juvenile justice system, I think there could be a lot of headway made towards preventing crimes from going into adulthood. I also think that rehabilitation while serving time is a big benefit. While serving time, offenders could be learning skills to help them when they get out on probation or parole.

The recommendation I have for Ms. Sufferer is to have the offender serve time for the crime. Because he has prior convictions and charges against him, he is a repeat offender and needs to be held accountable for his actions. I would say that while he was serving time that he receives rehabilitation services and get drug counseling. There are no hard facts, but most likely, if he was stealing, it was for drugs due to his previous convictions to use and sell narcotics. I would also ask for restitution for the pain and suffering and any damages caused to the home and replacements of any valuables that were stolen that were not recovered. I would also ask that he stay on probation when he is released from jail to ensure that he does not commit any more crimes.             

References:

Bravo-Fernandez v. the United States. (n.d.). Oyez. Retrieved May 22, 2020, 

from https://www.oyez.org/cases/2016/15-537 

Devers, L. (2011, January 24). Plea and charge bargaining: Research summary (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. Retrieved from https://www.bja.gov/Publications/PleaBargainingResearchSummary.pdf

Plea bargain. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/plea_bargain

LawFirms. (2019). How Plea Bargaining Works. Retrieved from: https://www.lawfirms.com/resources/criminal-defense/defendants-rights/how-plea-bargaining-works.htm

Terry v. Ohio. (n.d.). Oyez. Retrieved May 10, 2020, from https://www.oyez.org/cases/1967/67 (Links to an external site.) 

The National Center for Victims of Crime. (2008). What is a victim advocate? (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Retrieved from http://victimsofcrime.org/help-for-crime-victims/get-help-bulletins-for-crime-victims/what-is-a-victim-advocate-

Roach, K. (1999). Four models of the criminal process (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 89(2), 671-716. doi:10.2307/1144140

 Victims of Crime. (2019) The Trial Process. Government of Western Australia. Retrieved from: https://www.victimsofcrime.wa.gov.au/T/the_trial_process.aspx?uid=5990-1211-2121-6857