Criminal Law 1 Outline
Fall 2002, Professor Klien
Kadish and Schulhofer, Criminal Law and its Procedures
General Overview
· Criminal Law differs from state to state.
· Majority of all criminal cases are prosecuted in state court.
· Federal courts maintain a large number of drug cases.
· Criminal Law changes can be brought by the public opinion, i.e. DUI Laws, Domestic Violence, and Rape.
NYS Court System
NYC Courts
· NYC Criminal Court – Arraignments, Misdemeanor trials, violations.
· Supreme Court – Felonies
Nassau and Suffolk County Courts
· District Court – Arraignments, Misdemeanor trials, violations
· County Court – Felonies
Adverserial system
· The belief is that the adversarial system is the best way to the truth.
· The better lawyer is going to win; hence a wealthy person can afford a better attorney, and has a better chance of winning.
· The defense lawyer’s obligation is to there client.
· The prosecutor’s obligation is to the state, and to seek justice.
· If a prosecutor knows that a defendant is not guilty he has the obligation to dismiss the charges.
The Criminal trial
Arraignment
· The defendant is formerly told of the charges.
· Bail is set based upon the following criteria:
o Defendants character
o Defendants place in the community
o Defendants employment and financial resources (generally the greater the financial resources the lower the bail)
o Defendants’ family ties and length of time living in the jurisdiction. (the longer the lower the bail)
o Defendants criminal record (more prison time = greater flight risk)
o Defendants record for trial appearances
o Weight of the evidence against the defendant.
o What the sentence would be if convicted.
· The purpose of bail is to ensure that the defendant returns to the court.
· If a defendant cannot make bail he is remanded to the jail to await trial.
· Lawyers cannot put up bail money because it is a conflict of interest because the lawyer will not be working in the best interests of their client.
· When the judge holds a defendant without bail he is remanded to the custody of the Department of Corrections.
· Bail procedure is found under Section 510.30 of the New York State Criminal Procedure Law.
Types of Charges – NY State
· Felony – carries a sentence of more than 1 year in prison
· Class A Misdemeanor – 6 + months in jail.
· Class B Misdemeanor – 90 days in jail.
· Violation – 15 days in jail.
Grand Jury Indictments
· If the defendant is arraigned on a felony charge the DA’s office must be given a grand jury indictment to proceed with the matter.
· Grand Jury consists of 23 members
· To obtain an indictment the State must prove probable cause.
· An indictment is returned with a majority of the juror’s votes.
· No Defense Counsel may be present during grand jury proceedings unless the Defendant is testifying. The Defense counsel plays no role in the examination, only there as a legal advisor.
· Grand jury proceedings are not adversarial.
· A grand jury can:
o Return a true bill of indictment.
o No indictment, defendant not prosecuted for felony charges anymore.
o Return prosecutors information, the defendant should be charged and tried with a misdemeanor charge.
· After indictment the defendant is arraigned again for the felony charge in Supreme Court in NYC or County Court on LI, the charges are read and a plea is entered on the indictment, bail is reviewed.
Preliminary Hearing
· Held before a judge
· Adversarial, both the prosecutor and defense counsel are present and participate.
· Can be used instead of a grand jury.
· Must prove probable cause to the judge in order for the case to proceed.
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The attorneys can prep their witnesses as long as they are not suborning perjury.
· The attorney may pack the courtroom, but a motion can be filled with the judge if the courtroom packing is having an effect on the fairness of the jury.
The Jury
· Duncan v. Louisiana – The Supreme Court states that for all serious offense, those that carry a penalty of more than 2 years of incarceration must be granted a jury trial. Jury trial is a fundamental right under the constitution.
· Baldwin v. New York – no offense is deemed petty where more than 6 months of incarceration is possible, jury trial must be authorized.
· A jury must not have to be unanimous the U.S. Supreme Court held, they must be unanimous in New York (misdemeanor and felony).
· 2 types of Jury Nullification
o The defendant committed the crime but a conviction is inappropriate.
o The jury does not like the law.
· U.S. v Daugherty – The rule of law is that the judge is not obligated to inform the jury of their right to nullify in their instructions. The defendant does not need permission to argue jury nullification, but it may be limited by a motion in liminie (a motion in which one side asks the judge to not allow another side to argue a point)
· Standards of proof:
o Beyond a reasonable doubt (90%) – required for criminal conviction.
o Clear and Convincing Evidence (70%)
o Preponderance of the Evidence (51%) – required
Judge may overturn the verdict of the jury if they find him guilty and the judge felt that the jury rendered it’s decision in
