The Federal Court System

Britney Esterle

Joe Gray

Lillian Meirink

Mark Prosser

American Intercontiental University

Group 1

The Federal system can be very complicated if you do not know what to expect.federal system This is a summary of how the federal system works in a felony case.

Group 2

To begin a federal case we must start from the beginning and work through the process step by step. When a crime is committed within the territory of the federal government it is their job to investigate. Once a suspect has been identified a grand jury will convene. A grand jury consists of members of the community who listen to and examine evidence that is presented by the federal prosecutor. The grand jury always work in secret. When a grand jury meets to hear evidence, the only other persons in the room are the prosecutor and the witnesses, court report and of course the jury members. After listening to all the evidence that the government has presented the jury are then asked to vote on whether or not to indict the suspect for the crime.This all depends on probale cause. If cause exists then written charges are issued against the suspect in what is called an indictment. An indictment is how most federal cases begin. It is the formal written statement issued by the grand jury and signed by a federal prosecutor accusing one ore more people with a crime. An indictment may name one ore more defendants depending on the crime. Once an indictment is filed the named individual will either be summoned to appear in court or be arrested. This is called the intial appearance. At the intial appearance the accused will appear before a United States magistrate judge. The judge will confirm that the accused is the person named in the indictment.