¶ … Prosecution
One of the harsh realities of the criminal justice system is the ability of defendants to defeat charges against them unless the prosecution has done its homework and prepared for the case properly. Irrespective of how thorough the criminal investigation may have been or how much evidence is available to support a criminal charge, cases can be lost at trial when prosecutors fail to properly prepare for its adjudication. In order to gain some fresh insights in this area, this paper provides a review of the relevant literature to describe the identify the evidentiary stages in the criminal justice process including the discovery process, applicable case law, the defense tactic of impeachment and general expectations for court and applicable rules to describe how officers can best prepare for trial. A summary of the research and important findings are presented in the conclusion.
Review and Discussion
The Discovery Process
Simply stated, the discovery process allows each party to a case to gain access to information that may be of use in prosecuting or defending a case. For instance, according to Black's Law Dictionary (1991), discovery is generally "the ascertainment of that which was previously unknown" but specifically "the pre-trial devices that can be used by one party to obtain facts and information...
U.S. v. O'Hagan case Facts In the U.S. v. O'Hagan case, the defendant, James Herman O'Hagan, was a partner in a major Minneapolis firm, and was involved in a corporate acquisition as a representative of the acquiring corporation (Corley, et al., 2002). D allegedly used insider information to purchase stock before the details of the acquisition were made public. History discovered in 1988 that Grand Met PLC, one of his clients, planned to
Fisher, Fischer did not make physical contact with the copilot, and the plane did land on time despite Fisher's entreaties. He added that even on a flight on a larger aircraft passengers would have access to their carry-on baggage during the flight -- but not when the "Fasten Seat Belt" light was on, as it was throughout the turbulent flight in question. One of the state's witnesses was a lawyer
Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts 557 U.S. 305 (2009), police arrested Luis Melendez-Diaz as the defendant was making an illegal cocaine sale in a Kmart parking lot in Massachusetts. During the trial, the Court brought into evidence, bags of cocaine Melendez-Diaz allegedly distributed along with approved drug analysis certificates a certified lab technician prepared. The lab technician also examined the drugs, identifying them as the illegal substance, cocaine and testified it
Sexual Predators Prosecution TOO HARSH AND DISADVANTAGEOUS Sexual Predators' Prosecution Sexual predators are persons who sexually victimize other persons (ILGA, 2009). They may be rapists, molesters, peeping toms or sexual deviants. A sexual deviant is convicted for rape, attempted rape, child molestation or abuse, incest, sodomy or indecent sexual assault or exposure. A judge may, however, convict a sexual predator for a crime unrelated to the sexual act. If the offender takes a
Supreme Court Case Supreme Court Decision in Re Waterman, 910 2D (N.H. 2006) The Case The case addressed in this section of the report is that of Supreme Court case In Re Waterman, 910 A.2d 1175 (N.H. 2006). In this case, Tracy Waterman, working as a trooper for the New Hampshire State Policy was informed on August 29, 3003 that Vicky Lemere, the wife of one of Waterman's fellow troopers, informed Lieutenant Nedeau,
Sneaky Pete Case Answers to Jake Law's Questions Jake Law is the prosecuting attorney in the armed robbery case of Sneaky Pete. In the current negotiation, Jake must resolve his issues with the defense attorney, Chris Vaughn and the Judge as well. It is important for Jake to remember his role as an officer of the court and do what is right for the jurisdiction he represents and not simply for his
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