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Law Enforcement DSST - 2

Terms in this set (66)

Criminal Justice System
Law Enforcement, Courts, and Corrections are all included in which US system?
Maintaining law and order
Police, FBI, and the County Sheriff are all responsible for ___________.
Investigation
The first step to determine events before, during, and after the criminal act.
Arrest
This happens after the investigation, and limits the freedom of the person when they're taken into police custody.
Arrest warrant
When offenders aren't captured red-handed a writ, or ________________ must be issued by an officer of court to justify the arrest. This protects against damages.
Miranda Rights
This is what is spoken upon arrest and before interrogations. Suspects are advised of their constitutional rights to protect them from self-incrimination.
14th Amendment Due Process Clause
This Clause ruled that a specific and detailed police warning must be given to the arrested person before being questioned. Failure to do so means a conviction can be overturned in later review court.
Booking
Takes place after arrest. Records the personal information, reason, time, and place of arrest. Executed by a law enforcement officer or correctional administrator.
First Appearance
Takes place after booking. Suspect is brought before a magistrate so charges can be read. May be released on their own recognizance (their own custody) only if they pose a low flight risk and are not dangerous to the community.
Bail
The money or property that is offered as collateral against flight when a suspect is released from custody. If a suspect fails to appear for the next court hearing, whatever was pledged may be forfeited.
8th Amendment
This amendment forbids excessive bail and fines, and cruel or unusual punishment.
Preliminary Hearing
After the First Appearance. A judge decides if there is probable cause to believe a crime has taken place and if the defendant is guilty.
Probable Cause
This principle is based on the reasonableness test as applied by an intelligent and prudent person.
Grand Jury
A group of jurors selected to hear the prosecutor present a formal statement or indictment of evidence against the accused. They determine whether there is adequate evidence to take the case to trial.
Arraigned
Defendants are ____________ on their first appearance before a court with jurisdiction in criminal cases and hear the indictment read out to them whereupon they're asked to enter a plea of guilty, not guilty, or nolo contendere (no contest)
6th Amendment
Every defendant has a right to a jury trial. Can only be exercised for offenses carrying a term of imprisonment exceeding 6mos or penalties like fines and community service are severe enough to categorize the offense as serious.
Plea Bargain
Majority of criminal cases don't go to trial but are settled via ______________________. These avoid expensive court trials and avoid uncertainty of a jury trial. Plea guilty to a lesser charge or reduced sentence.
Sentence
After Preliminary Hearing. Penalty is passed by a judicial authority against an offender convicted of a crime. A means for the community to punish a criminal offender.
Capital Punishment
The harshest correctional option in the criminal justice system. Reserved for especially heinous crimes (only 60 for which it can be used)
Fines
Judges are more likely to impose ________ where the defendant has a clean record and is able to pay.
Probation
Imprisonment sentence that has been suspended. Offenders must meet conditions set down by the court, and if they're breached, the original sentence is served and the suspension is lifted.
Retribution
A form of revenge for the criminal act committed. Eye for an eye. Just Desserts. Offender is held accountable, punishment is necessary, deserved, and appropriate to the crime.
Incapacitation
The act of confining the offender so they can't commit crimes.
Deterrence
The aim of crime prevention is _________________. Threats to persuade the public from committing crimes.
Rehabilitation
Reforming the offender, hoping they recognize their errors and become a law-abiding citizen.
Restoration
Heal the victim, offender, and community. Recognize impact of crime. Punishment through community service allows offender to make restitutions.
Concurrent Sentence
Served at the same time as another sentence. Subject to this if they're convicted of more than one crime.
Parole
Conditional early release from prison of a convicted criminal if conditions are met; obeying the law and securing a job. A Parole Board decides whether to release an offender on parole.
House Arrest
Offender must remain within the confines of their home at certain times of the day. Most suitable for offenders who are pregnant, aged, seriously ill, or mentally retarded.
Uniform Crime Reports
The UCR. Annualized report published by the FBI. States the statistical rate of reported crime in the US, based on police reports. An important tool in analyzing national criminal activity.
Part I
Homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, arson, motor vehicle theft are all included in ________________ Crimes.
Part II
All crimes outside of Part I Crimes are included in __________ Crimes.
Victimless
Drawbacks to the UCR: not every crime is reported and types of _____________ crimes are usually unreported.
Victimless Crimes
Drug use, corporate wrongdoing, prostitution are all considered ________________.
Comparison
UCR was created for easy _____________ of criminal trends over time through developing the Crime Index.
Crime Clock
UCR statistics were used to create the FBI _________________, which creates a picture of crime frequency in the US. Differentiates between violent crimes and property crimes.
Crime Index
Summarized the measurement of 8 major offenses: murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson.
Crimes against the person, Headline crimes
Murder, non-negligent manslaughter, aggravated assault, forcible rape, and robbery are all considered _____________________, or _________________ because they create public fear and promote support for stronger crime legislation and law enforcement.
National Crime Victimization Survey
NCVS Survey. Yearly study by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) of specific households to determine levels of crime victimization, particularly the unreported ones.
Verification
A shortcoming of NCVS is that it relies on victim's versions of events without _________________ against police records.
NCVS
Most experts tend to prefer __________, believing self-reporting provides more accurate information than police reports.
Clearance Rate
Common term used in the UCR to measure and compare the rate of reported crime against the number of those cases that have been solved.
National Incident Based Reporting System.
NIBRS. The newly improved UCR. Crime and arrest data collected across the county at the incident level. (The old UCR was based on frequency calculations)
Hierarchy Rule
Under the UCR system, the ____________________ allows multiple types of incidents to be recorded as one. NIBRS removes the need for this rule and collects a broad range of characteristics related to the crime.
Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act 1990
This act required college campuses to publish annual security reports, usually shared with the FBI.
Mainstream Crime Statistics
These statistics don't include the human or social costs of crime, which have a huge impact on the community.
Two Judicial System
This system has a state/local court system under the state government, and a federal court system formed by congress and authorized by the constitution.
Federal Court
This court was created by Article III, Section 1 of the constitution.
Role of the Court
adjudicate on matters brought before it, pre-trial motions, bail hearings, criminal trials, sentencing, and interpreting constitutional rights are all included in the ________________________.
US Supreme Court
This court has an important role in interpreting the constitution. Their jurisdiction lies in federal matters relating to the constitution, disputes between states, and attorney disbarment.
Gideon v Wainright
In 1963, this court case ruled that suspects were entitled to a lawyer even if they couldn't afford one, according to the 6th amendment.
State and Local Court System
This court system has three levels; trial court, appellate court, and state supreme court.
Appellate Court
This court hears appeals from convicted defendants who ask them to review the decision of the lower court. They can either uphold the decision, set it aside, or modify it.
Trial Court
This court has special, limited, or general jurisdiction. It is authorized to deal with less serious offenses like misdemeanors. They start criminal cases. Utilizes the adversarial process.
Adversarial Process
This is a process which pits the State's interest (prosecution) against the defendant's (defense counsel).
General Jurisdiction
When a court is empowered by law to hear any criminal case, they have __________________. (High courts, Superior or Circuit courts)
Defense of Entrapment
The defense used when someone was induced by the police to commit the criminal act.
Defenses
Insanity, mistake of fact, mistake of law, duress and consent, consent of the victim, justification are all __________________.
Felony
A more serious criminal offense, punishable by death or incarceration in a state or federal confinement facility for a year or more. Lose the rights to vote, hold elective office, and certain licenses.
Misdemeanor
A less serious crime usually punishable by fines or incarcerations of no more than a year in a local incarceration facility.
Institution, length
You can distinguish between a misdemeanor and a felony based on the type of _______________ in which the offender would be incarcerated or the ___________ of the sentence imposed.
Tort
Violation of a civil law
Civil Law
Cases of ____________ have to do with seeking restitution for property, or business contract disputes.
Reaffirm
When Appellate Courts ____________ a judgment, they confirm the decision of the lower court.
Judicial Review
This is the main role of the US Supreme Court. They review decisions not only of lower courts, but decisions made by government agencies.
Appeals
____________ to the US Supreme Court are allowable only if it can be shown that the defendant's federal constitutional rights have been breached.
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