Week 5 CRJ Assignment

The Criminal Justice Process

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CRJ 306 Criminal Law & Procedure

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Introduction

The criminal justice process is the process that involves ensuring that an individual receives justice, and those who are guilty are judged. The structuring process makes certain that an innocent person is free from unfair prosecution. In the United States, the criminal justice policy is guided by “The Challenge of Crime in a free Society.” The report has over two hundred of recommendations. The recommendations are about ways to combat and fight crime in the American society.

The recommendations have a stipulated process that a suspected criminal undergoes when found guilty or found innocent. The reports also highlights on the ways the law enforcing agents and institutions have to conduct themselves when handling a suspected criminal. This paper is going to highlight in detail the entire criminal justice process for a felony criminal charge filed in a state court. This will be in steps starting with the arrest of an individual, the pre-trial process, the trial itself and a possible appeal filed by the convicted individual.

Steps in a felony crime

The steps in a felony offence include the following.

Intake

The court at this stage receives a complainant about a felony crime. Felony charges are leveled against the accused who is a defendant. This arises when a citizen or a law enforcement agent files a complaint about a person. The law enforcement agent files this complaint after him or, she identifies that an offense has been committed against his or her property. In addition, this can be, as a result, when a faction of citizens gathers and come up with evidence. Grand jury is the name given to the evidence collected by the faction. This will result to an arrest of the person that the complaint is made against in the court. The arrest can be at a scene of crime or a sworn statement that requires the person to appear before a state court. After the person is arrested by the law enforcing agents, the defendant is expected to be arraigned in the court of law (Bergman, Berman-Barrett & Nolo2011). The state policemen are responsible for carrying out of the arrests of the suspected criminal. The arrest person has to stay in the seclusion as the law enforcing agents wait to present him or her in the court.

Arraignment

Arraignment is simply the official or the formal presentation of charges against the defendant by the complainant. In the felony offense, open courts are used to hear the arraignment. In most of the American states, this arraignment is referred to as the preliminary hearing. During this stage, the charges are read to the person accused of a felony crime. The magistrate or a judge reads the charges to the defendant. The defendant is expected to respond to the charges filed against him or her. The defendant will either respond by accepting to be guilty or not guilty to the charges filed by the complainant.

At this initial stage, the defendant attorney or lawyer may be present. If the defendant cannot afford to hire a lawyer of his choice, the court appoints one of its attorneys to represent the defendant. At this stage if the defendant pleads guilty, the judge will decide to sentence him or her. Very few felony cases end at this stage (Bergman, Berman-Barrett & Nolo2011). For a fair and conclusive trial the federal constitution requires that the defendant should have an attorney to represent him or her in the court proceedings. A trial cannot proceed if the defendant does not have a lawyer or an attorney. The trial will only proceed if the defendant proves to the judge that he or she is capable of proofing their innocence without the help of a lawyer.

Bail

This is the second stage that comes after the arraignment of the defendant at the state court. This results when the defendant plead to be not guilty of the charges filed against him or her. The judge will set a date that the court will listen to the felony offense. At this stage, the defendant will ask for a bail. Bail is the property or the money that the defendant presents to the court to act as security that they will show up for the proceeding of the court case against them. This includes the subsequent criminal proceeding, the trial and the sentencing.

The bail can be inform of cash, bail bond or property pledge. Bail bond is a binding agreement where a bondsman puts up his cash as a bail for the defendant in exchange for a levied fee. It is crucial to note that a judge may deny a defendant a bail when the judge has a reason to believe the defendant may escape. This happens in a felony offense especially when one is not a citizen of the country; the defendant lacks any tangible interest and settlement in the country.

This will make the judge set a bail at an extraordinary high price that the defendant may not be able to afford. In felony crimes like murder man, individual may be denied the bail due the nature and gravity of the offense committed (Spohn 2009). The federal constitution requires that the defendant be allowed to have a bail. This is to give a chance for the defendant to gather and collect evidence that will be pivotal for the felony charges that they are facing.

The pre- trial conference

These are the negotiations that are carried out between the defendant attorney and the complainant attorney. First there are plea negotiations. These are the negotiations that are done with the hope that the complainant may agree to settle the charges outside the court. This only happens for felony offenses that are not grave. Second, there is the identification of the issues that the defendant is charged with in the state court. Here, the complainant attorney starts to gather the evidence that they will use to prove the occurrence of the crime. This also applies to the defendant attorney who gathers evidence that he will use to discard the claims leveled against his person. The next step after identification of the issues, both parties have to come with witnesses. Witnesses are crucial in any trial especially the felony trial which is a serious offense. After identifying the witnesses by the attorneys, the attorneys have to identify the strengths of their opponents that they are going to face in the state court (Spohn 2009).

At this stage, the defendant has to ensure that he, or she has a legitimate lawyer, understand the nature of the trial that one is going to face. In addition, the defendant has to corporate fully with their attorney. This will make certain that the attorney has all the necessary information that is indispensable for the trial.

The trial

The trial involves two stages in a felony offense. These are the pre trial motions and the deciding of facts. The pre trial motion is the stage where the court addresses the evidence that has to be presented by the both parties involved in the trial. This stage also identifies the witnesses of the case. These witnesses will testify in the felony offense. Furthermore, the stage also identifies the defense the defendant will present.

This stage also addresses other issues that affect the trial indirectly. This includes when one of the parties involved in the trial wishes to change the venue of the trial. To rule out part of the evidenced that was leveled against the one party during the identification of the evidence. Lastly is to leave out the statement that was previously made by the defendant parties in the trial. In addition, it may include challenging the mental stability of a witness, requesting a gag order and dismissing the charges leveled against the defendant completely (Langbein 2003).

The second part of the trial is the deciding of the facts that are offered by the defendant and the complainant in the felony case. This stage happens when both parties have presented their facts. The complainants present their facts, which try to, implicate the defendant to be guilty. This is through the use of witness and other documents that are relevant. These documents may include a doctor’s report or another expert report like death certificates. The defendant also presents his facts to challenge the credibility of the information by the complainant (Vogler 2005). During the trial the federal constitution requires that the judge be partial to both the defendant and the complainant. All the requests made by the defendant must be consider as they can be essential in proving the innocence of the defendant.

Sentencing

The judge takes over the court after presentation of the facts by both parties. The judge imposes his or her sentence to defendant. The sentencing is based on the stipulated states constitution about the felony offense. It is also based on the evidence that the defendant presents to deter the evidence provided by the complainant. After the judge sentences, the defendant into a criminal, the judge allows the defendant to appeal the ruling made in the court of appeal. The defendant has a number of days to carry out his appeal in the court of appeal (Vogler 2005).

Appeal

When the defendants realize that their sentencing was too harsh or unfair they can further take a step to appeal, the ruling made. The attorney of the guilty part will use the flaws that they have identified in the trial to lounge an appeal at the high court. The appeal process will scrutinize all the faults that were made. If the defendant attorney identifies substantial procedures that did not follow the due process, the appeal may sail to be successful. This means hat the guilty will be acquitted the charges leveled against them. The time line for appeals is different according to the different states in the United States (Maxfield, 2011). The complainant can also lounge an appeal if the court rules in favor of the defendant. The attorney of the defendant has to identify the loops and the mistakes that were done during the trial. In addition, the complainant can lounge the appeal when he or she discovers new evidence after the sentencing has been done. The constitution has given room for an appeal to make certain that both the defendant and the complainant are contended with the final ruling that is made.

Expungement

This is the legal term that is for sealing the criminal record between of the person guilty. This period varies in different states, in the country. This means that when the appeal was successful the criminal conviction is done away with in the court. This means that the criminal conviction is done away with to make it certain that it never occurred. In other cases, the expungement report remains open depending on the nature of the felony offense. Despite the defendant expunging his or her conviction, the information can still be used in the court of law (Maxfield, 2011).

Conclusion

The judiciary system is designed in a way that makes certain that only the guilt is convicted. It is immensely rare for the innocent to be convicted for offenses that they did not commit. The structures that are in place will ensure that the guilty are identified and the innocent set free. The criminal justice process takes the following steps. First it is the intake step, second the arraignment in court, third is the bail out, forth is the pre trial process, and fifth is the trial and lastly the sentencing. An appeal arises when the defendant is not comfortable with the sentencing made by the judge. My paper has been able to highlight critically the steps in a criminal justice process that involves a felony offense.

Reference

Bergman, P., Berman-Barrett, S. J., & Nolo (Firm). (2011). The criminal law handbook: Know your rights, survive the system. Berkeley, Calif: Nolo.

Langbein, J. H. (2003). The origins of adversary criminal trial. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Maxfield, M. I. C. H. A. E. L. G. (2011). Basics of research methods for criminal justice and criminology. s.l.: Cengage learning custom p.

Spohn, C. (2009). How do judges decide?: The search for fairness and justice in punishment. Los Angeles: SAGE.

Vogler, R. (2005). A world view of criminal justice. Aldershot [u.a.: Ashgate.