Download The Trial Process (cont.)

Chapter 10
The Criminal Trial
Civil Rights During Trial
 The Right to be Competent at Trial
 Defendants must be mentally competent to understand the nature
and extent of legal proceedings
 Courts may force defendants to receive treatment so they can be
tried

Important governmental interest must be at stake

Must significantly further state interests

Other less intrusive treatments unlikely to achieve
substantially the same results

Must be medically appropriate
Civil Rights During Trial
 The Right to Confront Witnesses
 Provide for a control over hearsay evidence and allows the
veracity of witnesses to be challenged
 Helps the accused in preparation of a defense to know who will
present testimony for the state
 Does not necessarily mean a face-to-face confrontation

Court may use alternative methods to protect victims or other
witnesses from trauma
Civil Rights During Trial (cont.)
 The Right to a Jury Trial
 Applies to any crime with a punishment of six months or more
 Constitution does not require a 12 person jury, smaller juries may
be permitted
 The Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments do not mandate a
unanimous verdict in non-capital cases
Civil Rights During Trial (cont.)
 Right to Counsel at Trial
 May choose to represent self (pro se)
 Waiver must be made knowingly and intelligently
 Court may refuse to allow if defendant not believed competent to
waive right
 No right to self-representation in appeals
Civil Rights During Trial (cont.)
 The Right to a Speedy Trial
 No set time which defines the term
 Supreme Court considers a fundamental right:

Improves the credibility of the trial

Avoids lengthy pretrial detentions

Avoids extensive pretrial publicity and other conduct that may
interfere with fair trial

Delay may adversely affect defendant’s ability to defend
themselves
Civil Rights During Trial (cont.)
 Public Trials
 Sixth Amendment guarantees a speedy and public trial
 Designed to ensure fairness of the proceedings
 Both the press and public may attend trials
Civil Rights During Trial (cont.)
 Pretrial Publicity
 Judge may not prohibit press from reporting details of a crime
 Hearings may be closed to public if there is a substantial
probability that the defendant’s right to a fair trial would be
prejudiced by publicity
 Trials must remain open to the press even in sensitive matters
 Defendant can not object to use of cameras in the courtroom –
generally it is the judge’s discretion to allow
Civil Rights During Trial (cont.)
 Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt
 Standard of proof required to convict a defendant
 Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty
 Reduces risk of convictions based on factual errors
 Underlies our belief that it is better to release a guilty person than
convict an innocent one
The Trial Process
 Formal process conducted in a specific and orderly fashion
according to rules of criminal law
 Structured adversary proceeding
 Each side seeks to present its case favorably
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Jury Selection
 Jurors randomly selected from voter registration or licensing lists
(called a “venire”) Few states impose qualifications on jurors
 Usually prohibit convicted felons from serving
 Venire – initial list of persons chosen
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Voir Dire

French for “to tell the truth”

Questioned by prosecutor, defense, and sometimes the judge
about their background, occupations, residences, and
knowledge or interest in the case
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Challenges for Cause
 During voir dire prosecution or defense shows why potential juror
is not unbiased
 No limit to the number of prospective jurors who can be removed
for cause
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Peremptory Challenges
 Prosecution and defense may excuse prospective jurors without
providing a reason or “cause”
 Number of challenges are limited – varies by jurisdiction
 Can’t be used to eliminate jurors on the basis of race, ethnicity or
gender
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Opening Statements
 Prosecutor then defense makes an opening statement
 Statements are designed to provide an overview of each sides
case to the jury
 Must not contain prejudicial remarks, inflammatory statements, or
mention irrelevant facts
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Witness Testimony
 Direct examination: the questioning of one’s own (prosecution or
defense) witness during a trial
 Cross examination: interrogation of opposing sides’ witnesses
during the trial
 Witnesses are restricted to factual information
 Only expert witnesses may offer opinions based on their training
and expertise
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Types of Evidence at a Criminal Trial
 Testimonial evidence
 Real evidence
 Documentary evidence
 Circumstantial evidence
 To be admissible evidence must be relevant
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Motion for a Directed Verdict
 Defense normally makes at conclusion of state’s case
 Judge is requested to order jury to return a verdict of not guilty on
the grounds the state has failed to meet its legal burden of proof
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Presentation of Defense Attorney’s Evidence
 Defendant is under no obligation to present evidence – the
burden of proof is on the prosecution
 Of primary concern is whether the defendant should testify
 After the defense rests its case the prosecution is given the
opportunity for rebuttal which may be followed by the defense’s
surrebuttal
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Closing Arguments
 Used to review facts and evidence
 Prosecution and defense can draw reasonable inferences from
evidence
 Cannot refer to matters not in evidence
 Cannot comment on defendant’s refusal to testify
The Trial Process (cont.)
 Instructions to the Jury
 Judge’s responsibility
 Provides jury with information about the law
 Elements of the crime
 Evidence required for proof
 Burden of proof required
 Improper instructions are often the basis for
an appeal
The Trial Process (cont.)
 The Verdict
 While not constitutionally required, most verdicts must be
unanimous
 If the jury has only six members, a unanimous verdict is required
 Hung jury: jurors cannot reach a verdict. Defendant may be
retried.
 Guilty verdict: judge will normally set a date for sentencing and
ask for a presentence investigation report
 Not guilty: defendant is free and may not be retried.
The Trial Process (cont.)
 The Sentence
 Normally the responsibility of trial judge although in some
jurisdictions jury may impose or make recommendation
 Judges have great deal of discretion in state courts
 Judge will consider information in pre-sentence investigation
report
The Trial Process (cont.)
 The Appeal
 Writ of habeas corpus
 Harmless error
 Indigent’s right to counsel for first appeal
 Court transcript serves as the basis for appellate review