Court Hierarchies In The Washington D. C. Superior Court Case

Various states have their own court hierarchies. Washington D.C. is not a state, but nonetheless has its own court hierarchy. Initial criminal and civil complaints are filed at D.C. Superior Court. Unlike other states, Washington, D.C. has a smaller jurisdiction, and if a case is appealed it is brought to the D.C. Court of Appeals. Other jurisdictions usually have two levels of appellate courts.
The case I observed at D.C. Superior Court was, 2016 DVM 1603, US v Dominguez. It was a criminal sentencing hearing on September 11, 2017. However, if someone without previous knowledge of court terminology witnessed this hearing, they would have been confused. A lot of legal terms were used by both counsels and the judge. The layout of the courtroom
Codes currently in place regarding the requirements for being on the sex offender registry. She defended her claim by stating that there was a previous precedent set in Colorado as to what is considered a registrable offense. The counsel wanted a continuance in the case because she wanted more time to research the precedent and the legal codes that are applicable to the case that were set in Colorado. Although Colorado may have a different jurisdiction than Washington, D.C., it is unknown if there is a conflict of law. The ruling in that case may be applicable in other jurisdictions. That is why counsel wanted a continuance to further investigate on the case. The judge did not understand much of what the defendant’s counsel was trying to argue because she was not prepared. The defendant’s counsel was stating random objections to the sentence but did not have substantial evidence as to why she was making her claims. She was also stalling throughout the hearing by elongating the points she was making. She was very redundant as well. It was evident that the counsel wanted to stall and get a continuance in the case.
The government seemed very confused as to what the defendant was questioning. The counsel had no evidence to corroborate with her claims. The government stated that beyond whatever codes the defendant may have found, Dominguez has already been convicted. According to the government, Dominguez has already
He had two different court appointed translators translate for him while the sentencing was taking place. It was interesting to hear how fast the interpreters were speaking. It brings into question whether the defendant was able to retain all the information that was being communicated during that time. It also brings into question whether the defendant was able to understand all the legal terms that were being communicated to him. Although they may have been in Spanish, that does not mean he understands them. I am a native Spanish speaker and feel that the interpreters were speaking too fast. I could not retain all that they were