Parties and Pretrial Procedures, law homework help
Parties and Pretrial Procedures
Much of the work of the criminal justice system will never be
seen by the general public. Prosecutors, defense attorneys, and grand
juries determine the course of criminal cases well before a case is
even committed to a public docket. In your paper, detail the special
responsibilities prosecutors have towards initiating a criminal case
against a defendant. In other words, how does a prosecutor make the
decision to charge someone? In your paper:
- Explain why a grand jury is used rather than the prosecutor simply issuing a criminal charge.
- Based on the evidence presented by the prosecutor and
the finding of probable cause that a crime was committed, discuss the
purpose of a grand jury issuing a true bill (criminal charge) or not. - Discuss whether or not a defense attorney and/or the
defendant can address a grand jury and provide reasoning for why a
defense attorney and/or the defendant would choose to attend or not
attend the grand jury proceeding. - Provide all the procedural and substantive ways that a
prosecutor and a defense attorney can resolve a case before it goes to a
grand jury. - Explain all the procedural and substantive dispositions
of a case between a prosecutor and a defense attorney before it goes
to a trial.
In your analysis, include your personal opinion of the morality
of a system where so much of the charging and plea bargaining process
is in the hands of lawyers, often out of view from the general public.
What are the potentials for abuse? What effects on “equal justice”
can this system have?
The paper must be three to four pages in length (excluding title and
reference pages) and formatted according to APA style. You must use at
least two scholarly sources in addition to the textbook to support your
claims. Cite your sources within the text of your paper and on the
reference page.
