Some see the victims’ movement as providing much needed support for victims of
crime. Others view the victims’ movement as manipulating victims by providing
a. money but no support
b. symbols but no substance
c. support but no money
d. substance but no symbols
Courts can be classified according to their function (rather than jurisdiction) into:
a. local, state, and federal courts
b. substantive and procedural
c. national and multinational courts
d. trial and appellate courts
Executions in what region of the United States clearly show major racial differences?
a. North.
b. South.
c. East.
d. West.
Prisoners are permitted to file several types of civil lawsuits in federal courts. These
include all of the following, except:
a. habeas corpus petitions.
b. mandamus petitions.
c. Section 1983 and Bivens actions.
d. motion to grant clemency.
Which of the following is among the ethical issues faced by prosecutors?
a. how much evidence to disclose to the defense
b. how much information to release to the public
c. whether to prosecute a given defendant
d. all of the answers are among the ethical issues faced by prosecutors
The crime control model of criminal justice believes that the death penalty should be
retained because
a. it is morally acceptable to take the life of a person who has already taken another
person’s life.
b. the death penalty is not a deterrent.
c. issues of fairness are important.
d. issues of fairness are proven.
What type of evidence is used to infer the existence of some fact in a dispute, such as
inferring the defendant killed the victim because the defendant’s fingerprints were found
on the murder weapon?
a. Circumstantial
b. Demonstrative
c. Direct
d. Testimonial
Incapacitation that focuses on offenders with a high risk of serious recidivism is termed
a. focused incapacitation
b. special incapacitation
c. selective incapacitation
d. restricted incapacitation
CASE 7.1
Like many other provisions of the Constitution, the Sixth Amendment has a different
meaning today than it did when it was first ratified. In a landmark decision, the U.S.
Supreme Court held that, based on the Sixth Amendment’s provision of right to counsel,
indigent defendants charged with a felony are entitled to the services of a lawyer paid
for by the government (Gideon v. Wainwright 1963). Later, the Sixth Amendment right
to counsel was extended to juvenile court proceedings as well (In re Gault 1967). But as
so often happens, answering one question raised several new ones.
Argersinger v. Hamlin (1972) affected what kind of criminal defendants?
a. nonfelony defendants.
b. capital punishment defendants.
c. juveniles.
d. statutory defendants.
Small prosecutors’ offices generally employ what type of prosecution?
a. horizontal
b. streamlined
c. vertical
d. directed
The three major ways of providing indigents with court appointed attorneys are: (1)
assigned counsel, (2) contract systems, and (3) public defender. Which of the following
is true about these differing ways of providing indigents with court appointed attorneys?
a. Studies find no major differences between these three systems in results achieved.
b. Studies find assigned counsel is better in results achieved.
c. Studies find contract systems are better in results achieved.
d. Studies find public defenders are better in results achieved.
CASE 8.2
Systems for removing or disciplining unfit judges must not only strike a balance
between judicial accountability and judicial independence, but they must also grapple
with the wide range of misbehavior encompassed by the phrase “judicial misconduct”
(Begue and Goldstein 1987). Most directly, judicial misconduct involves corruption.
Which of the following is an example of judicial misconduct?
a. taking bribes.
b. fixing tickets.
c. driving under the influence.
d. all of these answers are examples of judicial misconduct.
Conditions of confinement lawsuits often allege what?
a. They allege that officials have deprived inmates of their constitutional rights
b. They allege that state corrections officials have failed to provide them with attorneys
to appeal their trial convictions.
c. They allege that trial attorneys were ineffective and that confinement is, therefore,
unwarranted.
d. They allege that inmates have a right to be transferred to facilities closer to their
homes and families.
If a circuit justice thinks that there is merit in a case such that the full Supreme court
should have an opportunity to decide whether to hear the case, the justice will grant:
a. a temporary writ of certiorari.
b. an injunction.
c. a stay.
d. a preliminary review.
CASE 9.2
The criminal courts confront a double bind with regard to victims. On the one hand,
victims are valued for the cases they bring to the system; their misfortunes become the
raw material of the court process. On the other hand, individual victims represent a
potential source of irrationality in the process. The personal and often emotional
involvement of victims in the crime experience can generate particular demands for
case outcomes that have little to do with the public interest.
What percentage of all major crimes are never reported to the police?
a. more than half.
b. less than half.
c. more than one fourth.
d. less than one third.
Which of the following statements is true about search warrants?
a. If officers exceed the scope of the authorized invasion under the terms of the warrant,
the evidence seized will usually be deemed admissible in court.
b. If law enforcement officers have a search warrant, they are generally not required to
knock-and-announce their presence.
c. Provided that they have a search warrant, the police may remain on the premises for
an unlimited amount of time in order to conduct a thorough search.
d. Search warrants must be executed at a reasonable time of day, unless the warrant
provides a reason to execute a nighttime search.
In the thirteenth century the nobles forced King John to sign the
____________________ and promise not to “deny or delay right or justice.”
a. Declaration of the Rights of Man
b. Magna Carta
c. English Constitution
d. Code of Wales
CASE 10.2
The United States experienced a dramatic increase in crime at the beginning of the
1960s. For almost two decades, the number of crimes known to the police increased
much faster than the growth in population. The crime rate plateaued in the beginning of
the 1980s and has deceased considerably since the early 1990s. Despite these decreases,
the public continues to perceive that crime is on the increase. These fears are reinforced
by extensive media coverage, particularly of violent crime.
Which of the following are index crimes?
a. robbery.
b. embezzlement.
c. drug offenses.
d. forgery.
According to the chapter, who is the most experienced member of the courtroom team?
a. the judge.
b. the prosecutor.
c. the defense attorney.
d. the stenographer.
The dominant reality of contemporary sentencing is:
a. the use of structured sentencing to eliminate wide variations in sentences.
b. prison overcrowding.
c. the decreased used of intermediate sanctions in favor of active sentences.
d. rehabilitation to reduce recidivism.
Mens rea refers to the:
a. guilty act
b. body of the crime
c. scene of the crime
d. guilty mind
In England, the concept of a jury functioning as an impartial fact-finding body was first
formalized in 1215 in the
a. English Bill of Rights.
b. Assize of Clarendon.
c. Declaration of the Rights of Man.
d. Magna Carta.
Which of the following is not a power of the grand jury?
a. To convict defendants
b. To subpoena witnesses
c. To indict defendants
d. To grant witness immunity
An Alford plea is one in which the
a. defendant pleads on the nose.
b. defendant pleads guilty but maintains innocence.
c. prosecutor makes no sentence recommendation.
d. defendant denies that there has been a plea bargain.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, approximately what percentage of violent
crimes is committed by relatives, friends, or acquaintances of the victim?
a. 5%
b. 20%
c. 50%
d. 90%
A basic principle of U.S. law is that the losing party has the right to
a. one appeal
b. no appeal
c. two appeals
d. as many appeals as necessary
Why will some judges not accept Alford pleas?
a. because the defendant does not have to acknowledge guilt on the record and this is in
direct contravention of what guilt is all about.
b. because they slow down the judicial process.
c. due to concerns about their constitutionality.
d. because they may be liable for civil penalties once the plea is entered.
Intermediate courts of appeals typically use _____________ panels for deciding cases.
a. rotating three-judge
b. rotating five-judge
c. nine-judge
d. single-judge
The jury trial penalty
a. is a sanction against prosecutors who demand jury trials.
b. means that defendants who do not enter pleas of guilty can expect to receive harsher
sentences as a consequence for going to trial.
c. refers to the extra resources necessary to conduct a jury trial as compared to a bench
trial.
d. simply refers to the time jurors have to spend in jury duty.
CASE 5.3
Lawyers often suffer from a negative public image, which is one reason the legal
profession places considerable emphasis on legal ethics. Ethics refers to the study and
analysis of what constitutes good or bad conduct (Pollock 2012). Legal ethics
represents a specific type of ethics.
Legal ethics are an example of what type of ethics?
a. Theoretical ethics.
b. Applied ethics.
c. Professional ethics.
d. Applied and professional ethics.
The highest court in a state is called the court of last
a. appeal.
b. chance.
c. resort.
d. consequence.
What concept stresses the importance of the patterned interactions of judges,
prosecutors, and defense attorneys?
a. The courthouse dynamics concept.
b. The courtroom workgroup concept.
c. The plea bargaining concept.
d. The assembly-line justice concept.
Which of the following is a characteristic of the crime control model of criminal
justice?
a. The process resembles an obstacle course for the prosecution and police
b. Stresses formal and court fact-finding
c. Concern for efficiency and protecting society
d. Focus on the rights of defendants
The “Rule of Four” refers to:
a. the number of justices required to vote in favor of granting certiorari to review a case.
b. the number of justices required to uphold or overturn a lower court ruling.
c. the maximum number of presenters allowed during oral arguments.
d. the minimum number of justices required to publish a dissenting opinion.
The lawmaking function of courts focuses on situations in which such courts fill in the
gaps in existing law.
In most jurisdictions, attorneys are expected to periodically represent indigents for free
as part of their obligation to the legal profession.
Describe the five major areas of civil law.
Like prosecutors, defense attorneys are ____________________ of the court, who must
fulfill their responsibilities within the framework established by legal ethics.
There is no research supporting the existence of a jury trial penalty.
One of the hardships victims and witnesses face while participating in the criminal
court process is trial .
Explain why discretionary decision making occurs in the criminal courts and then
provide some specific examples of prosecutorial discretion.
List and describe the duties of the three types of court managers. What are the potential
sources of conflict between these managers? Be sure to provide some examples.
The major alternatives to imprisonment include probation; fines; restitution; and
intermediate sanctions. Describe each of these alternatives and discuss the cases where
they are generally used.
Judicial bodies created by Congress under Article I are commonly referred to as
_____________ courts.
Democratic governments derive their powers from the law.
What is a “Boykin” form and what does it ask defendants?
Most of the U.S. Supreme Court’s jurisdiction is _________________________.
Legal ethics places professional limits on how far may go, including not using perjured
or misleading testimony.
In approximately 9 percent of status offenses cases and 28 percent of cases in which the
juvenile is adjudicated a delinquent, the youth is ordered into some formal placement.