1. Characterize Typical Criminal Defendants

Most criminal defendants in the United States are male, black, and young.

Child abuse and infanticide are two crimes committed more often by women than men.

2. Summarize defendants’ rights during the court process

Three constitutional provisions relate to the right to counsel. While the Sixth Amendment is the only part of the Constitution that explicitly references a right to counsel, the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments have also been invoked to provide a right to counsel.

While the Fourteenth Amendment (due process) approach to counsel has been effectively replaced by the Sixth Amendment right to counsel, a Fifth Amendment–based right to counsel still applies. The Supreme Court decided in Miranda v. Arizona that criminal suspects enjoy the right to counsel during custodial interrogations.

Defense attorneys must provide effective assistance. Ineffective assistance occurs when the attorney performs poorly to the extent that his or her poor performance is prejudicial to the defendant’s case.
The right to counsel can be waived. If it is and the defendant represents himself or herself, this is known as a pro se defense.
Defendants also enjoy the rights to confrontation and compulsory process.
Confrontation is concerned with the defendant’s right to challenge witness testimony. Confrontation is manifested in three key ways: (1) the defendant’s right to be present, (2) the defendant’s right to hear live testimony, and (3) the defendant’s right to challenge witness testimony.
There can be a downside to confrontation—the defendant’s presence in the courtroom may remind jurors of the crime.
Compulsory process means that the defendant has the right to use subpoenas to obtain witnesses, documents, and other objects that are helpful to his or her defense.
Despite the many protections afforded to criminal defendants, they occupy a fairly marginal role in the criminal process.

3. Characterize typical crime victims

Victims of crime tend to be male, minority, and young.

Most victims and offenders know one another.

4. Describe victims’ involvement in the court process

Victims’ involvement in the court process has been minimal until recently.
Victims report difficulties and trauma associated with participation in the court process.
Many victims, especially those in domestic-violence cases, are uncooperative, making the prosecutor’s job difficult.I
n recent years, a victims’ rights movement has been started. Victims have gained additional involvement through assistance programs and various rights (some from state constitutions) that provide for their involvement in the process. As yet, there is no crime victims’ amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Despite the many advances crime victims may have made of late, some courts have begun to censor certain communications in court, even the use of the word “victim,” so the defendant can be afforded a fair trial.

1. Summarize the Arrest Procedure, Including the Probable Cause Requirement

The arrest is the gateway to the formal criminal justice process.
Arrests must be supported by probable cause.

A practical measure of probable cause is somewhere below proof beyond a reasonable doubt but above a hunch or reasonable suspicion.

2. Explain the exclusionary rule, its exceptions, and extensions

The exclusionary rule provides that evidence obtained in violation of the Constitution (usually the Fourth Amendment) cannot be admitted in a criminal trial to prove guilt.
The exclusionary rule extends beyond the Fourth Amendment to include, for example, improperly secured confessions.
The exclusionary rule is controversial. Critics feel that it is a loophole; supporters feel that it is not and that it promotes police integrity.

Exceptions to the exclusionary rule include good faith and impeachment.

The exclusionary rule’s reach was extended with the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine, which covers “derivative evidence.”

Exceptions to the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine include purged taint, independent source, and inevitable discovery.

3. Describe the booking process and the initial appearance of suspects

Booking follows arrest.
The initial appearance follows booking and serves to notify the accused of (1) the reasons for his or her detention (notification of formal charges often comes later at arraignment), (2) his or her protections against self-incrimination, and (3) his or her right to appointed counsel if need be.

4. Summarize the various types of pretrial release, including bail

Pretrial release is concerned with whether an accused person should be released back into the community pending trial.
There is no requirement that there be a dedicated pretrial release hearing.
Bail and release on recognizance are methods of pretrial release, and preventive detention is a means of detaining the accused in jail prior to trial.
Judges’ bail decisions are based on the accused’s flight risk, dangerousness, and financial status.

5. Describe the mechanisms for charging the offender

The Fifth Amendment’s grand jury indictment provision has not been applied to the states, so the charging mechanisms (grand jury indictment or prosecutor’s information) vary from state to state and from offense to offense.
Grand juries are similar to ordinary trial juries, but they are larger and serve longer terms. Unanimous votes are rarely required to return an indictment. Grand jury proceedings are also intensely secretive.I
f the prosecutor proceeds by information, a preliminary hearing may be necessary.

The preliminary hearing serves as a “check” on the prosecutor’s charging decision, is adversarial in nature, and ensures that there is sufficient evidence to take the case to trial.

Prosecutors must ensure defendants are not twice charged for the same offense. Two separate statutory provisions, each of which contains at least one similar element, can be considered the same offense (e.g., first- and second-degree murder are considered the same offense because each contains the elements of intentional killing).