...State Daily, “Murder cases among 14-17 year olds have increased 160 percent between the years 1984 and 1999.” Sadly, these fourteen to seventeen-year-olds are still being categorized as juveniles, and are therefore tried in juvenile courts where they do not get a satisfying punishment. Today society gives these juveniles the right to vote at the age of eighteen; the fact is that when society declares an eighteen-year-old as an adult is such a random standard to determine one’s maturity as far as their crimes go. “We used to deal mostly with kids breaking street lights and now routinely people are seeing rape and robbery” claimed Harry Shorstein, a state attorney for the Fourth Judicial Circuit in Jacksonville, FL. (Hunzeker)....
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...The juvenile justice system is, primarily, made up of many informal procedures. This system is based on the parens patriae philosophy, and is structured towards helping juvenile offenders, as opposed to, hindering them. However, if a juvenile is suspected of committing a crime, there are several procedures in place to help determine if the adolescent, did in fact, break the law. For example, if an adolescent is suspected of violating the law, law enforcement officers will begin an investigation. There are several things that officers look for during an active investigation, such as, the nature of the offense, and any past criminal history. If the initial investigation provides fruitful information, the officers have the right to file for a...
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...There are many differences between the juvenile court system and the adult court system. While the primary focus in juvenile court is treatment, rehabilitation, and community protection, the primary goal of the adult system is punishment, and not rehabilitation (PBS, 2014). Limitations are also placed on public access to juvenile records because of the belief that juvenile offenders can be successfully rehabilitated and to avoid their unnecessary stigmatization. While juvenile hearings are closed to the public, juvenile court proceedings may be closed to the public. In contrast, open public records are required for adults and adult courts are open to the public (PBS, 2014). There are no jury trials in juvenile court and the cases are heard...
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...Drug Courts: Adult and Juvenile Rehabilitation Programs Eugene Berry Crj2200 Introduction to Criminal Courts Drug courts handle nonviolent substance abuse offenders, drug courts are used primarily to solve a problem rather than to send someone to jail or lock an offender away with less chance of rehabilitation. In the United States there are currently almost 2500 drug courts in the 50 states as well as the U.S. territories of Guam, and Puerto Ricco. Drug courts got their start in Florida, in 1989 judge Gerald Wetherington, Judge Herbert Klein, and state attorneys designed the court for non-violent offenders in Miami-Dade County, to battle a rising crack-cocaine problem in there city’s. Drug courts are a program the can involve different levels of intensive supervision by the courts themselves, this includes drug testing and substance abuse clinics or treatment programs. Drug court judges gain a lot of discretion and leeway in this system and can give the offenders instant or gradual sanctions if the offenders fail to meet the standards of the program given. To help keep the offenders compliant the courts can offer fewer drug tests, fewer court dates, and even the possibility of reduced or completely dismissed sentences if they programs are fully completed. Drug courts are proven to keep offenders from repeating their offences and the overall reduction in recidivism rates on these charges. There is research being done today that shows this treatment method could reduce drug...
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...Court Systems in the State of Virginia Kimberly Vega Business Law Professor Kent Court Systems in the State of Virginia The structure of the court system in the state of Virginia contains several different courts of varying levels which ultimately form the Virginia Judicial System. These courts are broken down by specific function with several courts falling on the same general level albeit with key functions that separate them from the rest. Virginia’s judicial system is comprised of the Supreme Court of Virginia, the Court of Appeals of Virginia, and circuit courts in 31 judicial circuits. General District as well as Juvenile and Domestic Relations district courts exist in 32 judicial circuits, as do magistrate offices. The magistrate offices serve the Commonwealth of Virginia through 32 judicial districts. The primary function of the magistrate office is to ensure the eligibility of bail for an arrested person by conducting probable cause hearings. These hearings are based on complaints of criminal behavior that are brought to the magistrate’s attention either via law enforcement officials or by the general public. This is typically the first step in the hierarchy of Virginia’s judicial court system. The Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court (JDRC) serves the Commonwealth of Virginia in all 32 judicial districts as well. This court system has a limited jurisdiction, focusing specifically on trial cases...
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...first Drug Court in the United States was established in Miami- Dade County, Florida in 1989 as a response to the growing crack-cocaine problem affecting the city. Chief Judge Gerald Wetherington, Judge Herbert Klein, then State Attorney Janet Reno and Public Defender Bennett Brummer designed the court for nonviolent offenders to receive treatment. A Drug Court is a specialty court that manages drug abuse cases through comprehensive supervision, drug testing and treatment. Incarceration is an appropriate resolution for some people, but for many, society is better served by addressing the underlying causes of a person’s addiction. Montgomery County Circuit Court offers two drug court programs, one for adults and one for juveniles. Both are comprehensive treatment programs for adults and youth offenders who have serious drug/alcohol dependency problems. The drug treatment court was established in October, 2003persuant to the order of Chief Judge Robert M. Bell of the Maryland Court Appeals. The drug court was developed because of high rates of re-arrest, fragmented approaches to treatment, a focus on punishment rather than rehabilitation. The Montgomery County Circuit Court Adult Court Program is a voluntary program that offers offenders with drug/alcohol-dependency problems a new opportunity to break the chain of the cycle of drug/alcohol addiction and crime through intensive treatment and, monitoring and direct attention from the court. The purpose of the Adult Drug Court Program...
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...undertake and enormous task of creating a new court system for the 53rd state of Puerto Rico. I took the outline from three state court systems of New York, Alaska, and Colorado. I divided the State into 4 equal parts to distribute the courts equally. Puerto Rico court system will consist of Town or village courts, Municipal (County) courts which also have sub courts, Appellate Court and the Highest Court in the State the Supreme Court. Robert Owens once said “Courts of law, and all the paraphernalia and folly of law cannot be found in a rational state of society” “The current Judicial System is directed by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is formed by 7 judges (a chief justice and six associate justices) named by the Governor. The structure of the Judicial System includes a Court of Appeals, Superior Court, a District Court (civil & criminal), and Municipal Court. There are 12 judicial districts. The State of Puerto Rico also has a district court comparable to those of the states of US. Each district court has at least one district judge and can have more than a score of district judges, as well as a clerk, a United States Attorney, a United States Marshall, one or more United States Magistrates, bankruptcy judges, probation officers, court reporters, and their staffs. Each state has a court system that is independent of the Federal Court system. State courts have trial courts at the bottom level (village, town) and appellate courts at the top. Some states have two appellate...
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...Each state has a different court system and a different manner in how they operate. They could be completely different from every other state or have small difference. I currently live in Houston Texas so I am going to talk about Texas Court system. The basic structure of the present court system of Texas was established by an 1891 constitutional amendment. The amendment established the Supreme Court as the highest state appellate court for civil matters, and the Court of Criminal Appeals, which makes the final determination in criminal matters. Today, there are also 14 courts of appeals that exercise intermediate appellate jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases. There were 3,468 elected (or appointed, in the case of most municipal judges) judicial positions in Texas as of September 1, 2013. In addition, there were more than 140 associate judges appointed to serve in district, county-level, child protection, and child support (Title IV-D) courts, as well as numerous magistrates, masters, referees and other officers supporting the judiciary. More than 315 retired and former judges were also eligible to serve for assignment. We start out with the two highest levels of appellate courts in Texas. The Supreme Court, which has one court and 9 justices. It has statewide jurisdiction and deals with final appellate jurisdiction in civil and juvenile cases. Second is the court of Criminal Appeals, which consist of one court and 9 judges. It also has statewide jurisdiction and...
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...Week 1 Assignment State Court System Trial Courts Trial Courts are also called "Superior Courts." There are 58 Trial Courts--one in each county. In the Trial Courts, a judge, and sometimes a jury, hears testimony and evidence and decides a case by applying the law to the facts of the case. Superior Courts handle: * All criminal cases (felonies, misdemeanors, and traffic tickets) * All civil cases (family law, probate, juvenile, and other civil cases) * Appeals of small claims cases and other civil cases worth $25,000 or less * Appeals of misdemeanor cases Appellate Courts There are two types of Appellate Courts: * Courts of Appeal * California Supreme Court There are 6 Courts of Appeal and one California Supreme Court. Courts of Appeal The Courts of Appeal are California's intermediate courts of review. District headquarters for the Courts of Appeal are located in: * First District: San Francisco * Second District: Los Angeles * Third District:Sacramento * Fourth District: San Diego (Division One) * Fifth District: Fresno * Sixth District:San Jose People who are not satisfied with a Trial Court decision can appeal their case in an Appellate Court. When they "appeal", they ask a higher-level court to change what the Trial Court decided. The role of the Courts of Appeal is not to give new trials, but to review the Superior Court record (court files and transcripts) to decide if legal errors were made. To...
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...notions, ideas, and perceptions on what you expect to observe. Your pre-work should then be contrasted or compared with your actual observations. Your “gut” reactions to issues, personalities, competencies and results will most likely be very accurate and should serve as the backbone of your report. DO NOT wait until the last minute to attend the observation since it is common for students to discover the scheduled or planned observation does not take place when the student thought it was to take place. It is permissible for students to observe the same activity. FINALLY, ALTHOUGH COURTROOM EXAMPLES ARE GIVEN IN CLASS, IT IS NOT SUGGESTED THE STUDENT OBSERVE A COURT PROCEEDING. THE STUDENT SHOULD CHOOSE THE GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY THAT MOST INTERESTS THE STUDENT. Usually, but not always, the best days to observe courts are Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday....
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...Entrance; A Day’s Observation in the Circuit Court. Political Science 210 December 2, 2010 Political Science 210 December 2, 2010 Bond Hearings and a Plea Entrance; A Day’s Observation in the Circuit Court. On November 24, 2010, I was given the opportunity to observe a session of the Fairfax County Circuit Court. While observing the session I was able to view five bond hearings and one plea entrance, which allowed for a partial understanding of the typical daily court docket. Because many cases are settled outside of court, the daily proceedings within the courtroom are often shorter and without much argument. Fairfax County Virginia is located in the northeastern portion of Virginia nearby the District of Columbia. The county is the largest by population in the state, and also the densest county at 1,037,605 people within the county’s 407 square miles. Home to several intelligence agencies, and half of the metropolitan area’s Fortune 500 companies, Fairfax county has one of the highest median incomes in the country for a county of its size, second only to neighboring Loudoun County. The county was the first in the nation to reach a six figure median income and is known as one of the most populous areas in the Greater Washington Metropolitan Areas. The Fairfax County Circuit court, located in Fairfax City, is used to serve the residents of both the county and the city itself. The court is in the 19th Judicial Circuit, and is used...
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..., Ph.D. Prepared by Peggy N. Kerley Updated in 2013 by Jennifer Carpenter Australia • Brazil • Mexico • Singapore • United Kingdom • United States i © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. ii PART I Introduction to Civil Litigation Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................................iv PART I INTRODUCTION TO CIVIL LITIGATION CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 2 Litigation and the Paralegal..................................................................................................................1 The Courts and Jurisdiction .................................................................................................................2 PART II INITIATING LITIGATION CHAPTER 3 CHAPTER 4 CHAPTER 5 CHAPTER 6 CHAPTER 7 Preliminary Considerations and Procedures.......................................................................................9 Investigation and Evidence .................................................................................................................10 The Complaint......................................................................................................................................12 Responses to the Complaint ....................................................................................
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...RULE CR 45 SUBPOENA (a) Form; Issuance. (1) Every subpoena shall: (A) state the name of the court from which it is issued; (B) state the title of the action, the name of the court in which it is pending, and its case number; (C) command each person to whom it is directed to attend and give testimony or to produce and permit inspection and copying of designated books, documents or tangible things in the possession, custody or control of that person, or to permit inspection of premises, at a time and place therein specified; and (D) set forth the text of subsections (c) and (d) of this rule. (2) A subpoena for attendance at a deposition shall state the method for recording the testimony. (3) A command to a person to produce evidence or to permit inspection may be joined with a command to appear at trial or hearing or at deposition, or may be issued separately. A party may be compelled to produce evidence at a deposition or permit inspection only in accordance with rule 34. (4) A subpoena may be issued by the court in which the action is pending under the seal of that court or by the clerk in response to a praecipe. An attorney of record of a party or other person authorized by statute may issue and sign a subpoena, subject to RCW 5.56.010. (b) Service. (1) A subpoena may be served by any suitable person over 18 years of age by giving the person named therein a copy thereof, or by leaving a copy at such person’s dwelling house or usual place of abode...
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...In comparing the court system of the state in which I reside and the Federal Court System, I found many interesting facts that make them completely different. I reside in the state known as the garden state, New Jersey and after doing careful research, I found that the New Jersey Court System is made up of five branches or divisions. The structure of New Jersey Court System includes; The Supreme Court which is NJs highest court and is known as the court of last resort. It reviews decisions of the state’s lower courts and is composed of a Chief Justice and 6 Associate Justices. Appellate Division of the Supreme Court which is an intermediate appeals court and reviews decisions of the Trial, Tax, and Municipal Courts. Appellate Divisions are appealed to the Supreme Court and the judges sit in one of eight appellate parts. Tax Court only hears cases involving tax laws and is authorized by 12 judges. Tax Court decisions are also appealed to the Appellate Division. Superior Court is NJs trial court and is composed of about 393 judges in the 21 countries. It conducts criminal, civil, and family Law cases and reviews decisions of the Municipal Courts. There are 357 Municipal Court in New Jersey. It hears cases such as motor vehicle and minor criminal cases. Municipal Court decisions are appealed to the Superior Court. The structure of the Federal Court System includes The Supreme Court of the United States which is the highest court in the federal Judiciary. It consists...
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...IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA On Friday, the 1st Day of June 2012 Before their Lordship Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen ..... Justice Supreme Court Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad Suleiman Galadima ..... Justice Supreme Court Nwali Sylvester Ngwuta ..... Justice Supreme Court Olukayode Ariwoola ..... Justice Supreme Court SC35/2010 Between Edwin Ezeigbo .... Appellant And The State .... Respondent Judgment of the Court Delivered by Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen. JSC his is an appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal Holden at Abuja in appeal no. CA/A/51 C/2007 delivered on the 8 th day of January, 2008 in which the court dismissed the appeal of the appellant against the decision of the High Court of Niger State of Nigeria, Holden at Suleja in Charge No NSHC/SD/1C/2004 delivered on the 16 th day of December 2005 in which the court convicted the appellant of the offence of rape and sentenced him accordingly. The instant appeal is therefore a further appeal against the decision of the said High Court. The facts of the case include the following:-On the 8 th day of April, 2004 at about 4 p.m, PW.1 saw her two daughters Ogechi and Chioma ages 8 and 6 years respectively in the company of the appellant. The daughters were holding ice cream. When PW.1 called the two girls appellant changed direction and continued to walk away with the girls who also ignored their mother, PW.1. PW.1 became apprehensive and ran after appellant and the girls. On seeing PW.1 running towards them, appellant...
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