Criminal Procedure Outline
CRIMINAL PROCEDURE OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION
I. Meaning of “criminal procedure”: refer to the methods by which the criminal justice system functions including
a. Arresting of suspects
b. Searching of premises and persons
c. The use of electronic surveillance and secret agents
d. The interrogation of suspects
e. The exclusionary rule
II. Not all procedure is constitutionally regulated: Both states and federal legislatures are free to enact statutes and rules setting forth procedures for administering criminal justices, as long as those procedures do not violate constitutional provisions
III. Themes:
a. Who has discretion?
a.i. Which actors get to make judgment calls (police/officers, judges, juries etc.)
b. Practical Implementation
b.i. Potential gap between what courts are saying and what police implement
STATE PROCEDURES AND THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION
A. Nature of Bill of Rights: Bill of Rights was enacted solely for the purpose of limiting the federal government not the states. However, 14th amendment extends bill of rights to state action. No state may “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law…”
B. Applicability of Bill of Rights to states: the 14th amendment does not guarantee that everything in the bill of rights applies to state proceedings. The extent to which the 14th amendment makes the Bill of Rights applicable to the states has been the subject of great dispute. Three principal views:
a. Fundamental rights: the fact that a particular criminal procedure is prohibited by the Bill of Rights does not necessarily mean that the 14th amendment prohibits its use by the states. Only procedures that are “fundamental to the American scheme of justice” must be applied to the states. (White, in Duncan v. Louisiana (1968) p. 9).
b. Total Incorporation: all the guarantees given in the Bill of Rights are “incorporated” into the 14th amendment, and are thus applicable to the states. Parallel interpretation of
INTRODUCTION
I. Meaning of “criminal procedure”: refer to the methods by which the criminal justice system functions including
a. Arresting of suspects
b. Searching of premises and persons
c. The use of electronic surveillance and secret agents
d. The interrogation of suspects
e. The exclusionary rule
II. Not all procedure is constitutionally regulated: Both states and federal legislatures are free to enact statutes and rules setting forth procedures for administering criminal justices, as long as those procedures do not violate constitutional provisions
III. Themes:
a. Who has discretion?
a.i. Which actors get to make judgment calls (police/officers, judges, juries etc.)
b. Practical Implementation
b.i. Potential gap between what courts are saying and what police implement
STATE PROCEDURES AND THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION
A. Nature of Bill of Rights: Bill of Rights was enacted solely for the purpose of limiting the federal government not the states. However, 14th amendment extends bill of rights to state action. No state may “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law…”
B. Applicability of Bill of Rights to states: the 14th amendment does not guarantee that everything in the bill of rights applies to state proceedings. The extent to which the 14th amendment makes the Bill of Rights applicable to the states has been the subject of great dispute. Three principal views:
a. Fundamental rights: the fact that a particular criminal procedure is prohibited by the Bill of Rights does not necessarily mean that the 14th amendment prohibits its use by the states. Only procedures that are “fundamental to the American scheme of justice” must be applied to the states. (White, in Duncan v. Louisiana (1968) p. 9).
b. Total Incorporation: all the guarantees given in the Bill of Rights are “incorporated” into the 14th amendment, and are thus applicable to the states. Parallel interpretation of