CASE 2.2
Uniformed officers are driving a marked car into an area known for heavy drug
trafficking, intending to investigate drug activity and anticipating encountering drug
customers and lookouts. One officer sees the suspect standing next to a building and
holding an opaque bag. The suspect looks in the direction of the officers and flees. The
officers turn their car, watch the suspect run through an alley, and eventually corner him
on the street. One officer leaves the car, stops the defendant, and conducts a frisk of the
defendant, discovering a concealed handgun.
Which of the following statements is true regarding the legality of the ‘stop and frisk”?
a. The stop was illegal. The officers did not have specific, articulable facts to justify the
stop.
b. The stop was legal. A brief investigative stop can be justified by the circumstances.
c. The stop was legal. The gun provided probable cause to justify the stop, a standard of
proof higher than reasonable suspicion.
d. The stop was illegal. The officers didn’t find any drugs on the suspect.
Arrest warrants may be issued by
a. chiefs of police.
b. prosecutors
c. judges.
d. defense attorneys.
The largest victim advocacy group is
a. the American Association of Retired People.
b. Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
c. the Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
d. Handgun Control Incorporated.
The key goal of the crime control model is:
a. repression of criminal conduct
b. the rights of defendants
c. the rights of victims
d. the integrity of the courts
What is the term used to explain why few cases receive individual treatment?
a. courthouse dynamics.
b. the courtroom work group.
c. plea bargaining.
d. assembly-line justice.
Prisoner lawsuits claiming conditions of confinement constitute cruel and unusual
punishment are alleging their rights under this Amendment are being violated.
a. Eighth
b. Fourteenth
c. Tenth
d. Sixth
Most state speedy trial laws are designed to protect
a. defendants.
b. the state.
c. the prosecutor.
d. judicial integrity.
Although enthusiasm for helping victims is clearly growing what problem still exists?
a. the willingness to pay for the necessary services is not always present.
b. the ability to pay for the necessary services is not always present.
c. the time to pay for the necessary services is not always present.
d. the willingness to pay for the necessary services is always present.
What is another name for trial juries?
a. grand juries.
b. petit juries.
c. bench juries.
d. non juries.
Lawyers who are less cooperative with the courtroom work group find
a. that they do not get favorable case scheduling considerations.
b. that they get favorable case scheduling considerations.
c. that they get more case information from the prosecutors.
d. that they get better plea bargains.
Efforts have been made to improve police-prosecutor relationships with special
programs. Which of the following statements is true regarding research on the
effectiveness of such programs?
a. Police and prosecutors have different perspectives on the law.
b. Prosecutors complain that police reports are inadequate; names and addresses of
victims and witnesses are lacking, full details about how the crime was committed are
missing, and vital lab reports are not forwarded on time.
c. These programs are highly effective.
d. No research to date has systematically evaluated the effectiveness of these programs.
Much of the Bill of Rights has been made applicable to the states through the:
a. Fourth Amendment
b. doctrine of precedent
c. legislative process
d. Fourteenth Amendment
It is estimated that over 70 percent of all serious criminal offenses are committed by
roughly 7 percent of offenders (DeLisi 2005; Vaughn and DeLisi 2008). What is the
common name for this group of offenders?
a. career criminals.
b. frequent criminals.
c. common criminals.
d. lifetime criminals.
CASE 16.3
One might think that the appeals and postconviction review processes would routinely
correct situations in which a defendant was wrongfully convicted, but that is clearly not
the case. Up until the mid-1990s, public perception was that criminal defendants had
gained too many rights during the Warren era, and, as a result, far too many criminal
defendants escaped criminal punishment on technicalities (Uphoff, 2006). Such
perceptions led manyincluding judges and several Supreme Court justicesto deny that
wrongful convictions were a major problem (see Herrera v. Collins, 1993). Since 1989,
though, over 280 inmates have been exonerated by DNA evidence, largely due to the
efforts of the Innocence Project, the Death Penalty Information Center, and similar
organizations (Zalman, Smith & Kiger, 2008). As a result of these exonerationsand
media portrayals of themnearly 40 states have changed their laws to allow for appellate
or postconviction review on the grounds of actual innocence and the federal
government enacted the Innocence Protection Act of 2004.
Of the following, which is not a leading factor known to contribute to false
confessions?
a. duress c. coercion
b. intoxication d. gender
In which of the following cases did the Court rule that 30 days is too long to wait for a
preliminary hearing?
a. Gerstein v. Pugh
b. Burns v. Reed
c. Terry v. Ohio
d. Tennessee v. Garner
Assistant district attorneys
a. are typically young lawyers.
b. seek promotions to prosecuting more serious crimes.
c. are often loosely supervised.
d. All of these answers are true.
In which case did the U.S. Supreme Court hold that indigent defendants charged with a
felony are entitled to the services of a lawyer paid for by the government?
a. Miranda v. Arizona
b. Gideon v. Wainwright
c. Plessey v. Ferguson
d. U.S. v. Wade
Closed discovery encourages
a. plea-bargains.
b. jury trials.
c. trials without a jury.
d. guilty pleas.
The American Bar Association recommends that all felony cases reach disposition
within
a. six months of arrest.
b. six months of filing.
c. one year of arrest.
d. one year of filing.
Which of the following is not a hardship that victims and witnesses face while
participating in the criminal court process?
a. trial delays.
b. lost wages.
c. fear of retaliation from the defendant.
d. All of the above are hardships victims and witnesses may experience.
In carrying out responsibilities in court, judges mainly react to the work of prosecutors
and
a. interpreters.
b. court reporters.
c. defense attorneys.
d. stenographers.
The burden of proof required at a preliminary hearing is
a. preponderance of the evidence.
b. proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
c. reasonable suspicion.
d. probable cause.
The major alternatives to institutional incarceration include
a. probation.
b. fines.
c. restitution.
d. all of these answers are correct.
A court order directing a specific action or lack of action is known as an:
a. interrogatory
b. indictment
c. injunction
d. interdiction
Collectively, research supports the proposition that which of the following groups are
sentenced more harshly than any other group?
a. young, poor, African-American and Hispanic males.
b. middle-aged, poor, African-American and Hispanic males.
c. young, poor, African-American and Hispanic females.
d. young, middle-class, African-American and Hispanic males.
Which of the following courts make greater use of probation and shorter prison terms?
a. urban courts
b. municipal courts
c. competent
d. county courts
Which of the following is not among the reasons for requiring an initial appearance
without unnecessary delay?
a. To verify that the person arrested is the person named on the complaint.
b. To protect the arrested person from being abandoned in jail and forgotten by, or
otherwise cut off from contact with, people who may help them.
c. To prevent secret and extended interrogation of arrested persons by law enforcement
officers.
d. All of these are reasons for requiring an initial appearance without unnecessary delay
Which of the following is not a requirement of victim compensation fund programs?
a. victims must assist in the prosecution of the defendant.
b. victims must be “innocent victims.”
c. victims living in the same household as the offender are ineligible.
d. The defendant must be found guilty in court.
In contrast to the criminal courtroom work group, in the juvenile courtroom work group
a. the judge has less discretion.
b. the prosecutor has little power.
c. defense attorneys have more power.
d. probation officers and experts play a greater role.
Considerable evidence shows that plea bargaining became a common practice in state
courts sometime after
a. the Civil War
b. World War II
c. World War I
d. the Korean War
The Supreme Court ruled what unconstitutional in 2005?
a. state sentencing guidelines
b. voluntary sentencing guidelines
c. federal sentencing guidelines
d. proscriptive sentencing guidelines
The rules relating to pretrial discovery are uniform in all jurisdictions.
The public often blames ____________________ for allowing guilty defendants to go
free on “technicalities”.
Discuss the constitutional struggle between the U.S. Supreme Court, Congress, and
former President George W. Bush regarding the status of “enemy combatants” and
fighting the “war on terror.”
Interactions between members of the courtroom work group strictly follow the
adversarial model.
If an attorney fails to object at trial it causes no problem on appeal.
Contemporary research provides strong and consistent support for the idea that female
offenders are treated more leniently than male offenders due to judicial paternalism.
Explain some of the problems with the selection of judges through judicial elections.
In Boykin, the Court held that a plea of guilty was more than an admission of guilt and
also involved the waiver of important constitutional rights.
Once a “not guilty” verdict is returned, the prosecutor cannot appeal the acquittal, even
if the original trial was littered with serious mistakes.
The of courts in the United States impacts the processing of cases in several ways.
When a jury imposes a sentence of death, the case must be appealed regardless of the
defendant’s wishes.
Lawyers must always do what their clients ask them to do.
As compared to crimes against adults, crimes against juveniles are less likely to be
reported to the police.
The first juvenile court was established in ________________________ County,
Illinois in 1899.
In ________________ courts, no trials are held, no jurors are employed and no
witnesses are heard.
Research indicates that whether elected by voters, appointed by the governor, or
selected through merit plans, state judges are more alike than different.
Lack of is one major reason for case attrition.
Lawyers must assert valid defense and ensure .