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Rights of the Accused

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Rights of the Accused
POL110
Jeanette Ramirez
Professor Rogers
May 1, 2013

Introduction This paper will discuss how due process operates, in the criminal justice system. We will take an in depth look into how the due process effects the criminal justice system. However, in order for anyone to understand due process in the criminal justice, one must first know the meaning of due process. The most commonly used form of sentencing is probation, meaning the suspect is set free but under supervision of a probation officer.

Define due process and its origins. According to Black’s Law Dictionary: "Due Process of law implies the right of the person affected thereby to be present before the tribunal which pronounces judgment upon the question of life, liberty, or property, in its most comprehensive sense; to be heard, by testimony or otherwise, and to have the right of converting, by proof, every material fact which bears on the question of right in the matter involved. If any question of fact or liability be conclusively presumed against him, this is not due process of law." Black’s Law Dictionary, 6th Edition, page 500. Due process is a very complex subject to try to explain and define to where it is understood. In all its complexity due process just simply means that it holds the government subservient to the land of the law. Due process originated from the Magna Carta (1215), which were the Great Charter of English liberties where the nobles limited the King’s authority. The phrase “law of the land” then transformed over time to what is now known as “due process of law (Sargentich, 2009).” The phrase the “law of the land” was part of a Massachusetts statute in 1692. The fifth amendment of the Constitution mandates that no one is to be deprived of their life, liberty, or property by the government without due process of the law.
Explain how due process

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