Defense attorney may argue based on two precedents of US Supreme Court - Booth v. Maryland (1987) and South Carolina v. Gathers (1989) and state that this testimony is irrelevant to the crime itself and is not connected to the facts of the case and also victim’s testimony is unacceptable during death penalty cases. But US Supreme Court overruled these two precedents by its decision on Payne v. Tennessee case (1991). This decision holds that testimony on the form of a victim impact statement is admissible during the sentencing phase of a trial and, in death penalty cases, does not violate the Cruel and Unusual Punishment…
After United States v. Vargas-Ocampo, 747 F.3d 299, 301 (5th Cir. 2014), the Fifth Circuit adopted a near summary affirmance in sufficiency of the evidence cases, which has eroded the legal standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt required on each element of an offense to support a conviction. Thompson v. City of Louisville, 362 U.S. 199, 201 (1960); In re Winship, 397 U.S. 358…
When you think of the past you might think about unfairness. During slavery and inequality of colored people fight for freedom,equality,and human rights. But two people stood out, Cesar Chavez and Mahatma Gandhi.They fought for two different things. Although they have a thing in common, they have both fought for human rights. Both of these people have made a huge impact in what they had believed in. Gandhi fought to relive his country of Great Britain. Cesar Chavez has fought for farmers right using non-violent approaches. They both fought for human rights but one of these men have fought better and made more of an impact on the world is Mahatma Gandhi. He has freed the whole country of India…
In order for law to be effective in delivering just outcomes to the accused involved in legal altercations, it is imperative that the legal system follows proper protocols when presenting evidence and limits media influences which can persuade society’s perspectives. However, in regards to the Gordon Wood case, the judicial system has been ineffective in achieving this as the evidence used to charge Wood was circumstantial and due to the media’s coverage, Wood is treated as guilty regardless of his exoneration. Wood appealed his seventeen year sentence in 2012 due to the evidence presented in 2008 to charge him was deemed circumstantial and poorly documented. The entirety of the appeal was based on the standing that suicide could not be ruled out as a case of death and therefore, the prosecution was unable to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Wood is guilty of murder.…
An example where there needed to be more regulation was the case of Levon Brooks, when bitemarks were used as the main convicting evidence for a brutal murder case. He in fact, was innocent and was wrongly convicted which could’ve been avoided if the court had required more evidence against him. Another wrongful conviction was the case of Brandon Mayfield, he was convicted for the Madrid bombings only based off a partial fingerprint. His conviction could’ve been avoided if they required more points of similarities in fingerprints and if they had more evidence. The Caylee Anthony case was overly affected by media and too many people got involved which led to the crime not really being solved in a way, because many think the mom did it so they…
During the Civil War, President Lincoln’s position on the practice of slavery changed from the start to the end of the war. He expresses his views about slavery through a variety of primary documents; both of Lincoln’s inaugural addresses, his letters to Horace Greeley, the Emancipation Proclamation, and the 13th amendment to the United States Constitution. Through these documents, Lincoln demonstrates his initial feeling towards slavery as being neutral/indifferent for his priority was to keep the Union/nation unified. As the war continued, he stuck by his desire to keep the unification of the Union regardless of the status of slavery.…
What the author intends to answer is what the exclusionary rule is and alternatives to the rule that potentially increase societal self-worth and positive reinforcement. This article explains to for the exclusionary rule, “it is a judge made rule of evidence, originated in 1914 by the Supreme Court in Weeks v. United States, which bars "the use of evidence secured through an illegal search and seizure.(Wilkey, 216)” What surprises the reader is finding out that the exclusionary rule is not a rule required by the constitution. It is through…
Lerner, C. S. (2006). Reasonable suspicion and mere hunches. Vanderbilt Law Review, 59(2), 405-473. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/198950433?accountid=27899…
Eyewitness testimony accounted for a majority of the convicted while others contained forensic evidence such as fingerprints, blood evidence, and hair comparison. A small percentage accounted for informant testimony which were found to be inaccurate. When pertaining to the court of appeals results showed that defective evidenced was not reviewed effectively. Consequently the convictions that were reversed only accounted for 14% with almost half consisting of actual inaccuracy. When reviewing the case at the appellate level justifying guilt or innocence is at the highest regard. Unfortunately this can often be difficult when having to make such a ruling while also deciding if an error exists. Defendants that pursued the appellate process were seldom successful challenging innocent claims. Due to the expense and difficulty of challenging the evidence. Convictions that did go to appeal for eyewitness identification were not reversed. Cases pertaining to federal claims did not proceed to appeal, even if they were innocent. Also defendants that gave false confessions only half actually raised a challenged, but none acknowledged a…
The Miranda Warning is a police warning which is given to criminal suspects who are in the custody of law enforcement in the United States before they can ask questions regarding what took place during the crime.…
Female athletes are among the most at risk part of the population for developing an eating disorder or patterns of disordered eating behaviors (Hausenblas & Carron, 2002, p.65). Added to the general populations definition of the ideal body, female athletes must attain the ideal shape their specific sport requires. Aesthetic sports such as gymnastics, figure skating, and dance require women to wear limited clothing and have set rules as to what the athlete should look like. The focus of this research will be on former female gymnasts, more specifically, former Division 1 collegiate gymnasts and their patterns of disordered eating. The prevalence of…
justice, as it is a readily accepted form of evidence that allows for convictions. However, tests…
References: Elizabeth Goitein. (1998). When the evidence is the crime. The Yale Law Journal, 107(8), 2667-…
A lot of research has been carried out in the area of wrongful convictions in the past few years, reflecting the increasing concern for authentic justice in the criminal justice system. Criminal procedure experts do not seem to have been involved in actual dialogue with criminologists in…
With this case, I really did not feel that the jury needed to know additional medical information the facts brought out in trial clearly showed that McNeil was aware of the dangers. As for other cases, I believe that it should be up to the attorneys to fully break down the information so that the average person can understand it. As I stated above a negligent act has 3 basic areas, prove those areas and you can prove the case without technical information.…