Criminal Justice System Case Study

According to Bohm and Haley (2011), the criminal justice system is made up of 50,000 federal, state, and local agencies. The criminal justice system starts with police contact with suspect, and probable cause being established. The suspect is arrested and booked into a local jail and criminal process is initiated with a complaint or warrant. The suspect then appears before the local judge, usually in Tennessee it is a General Sessions Judge, for an initial appearance. The suspect will usually enter a not guilty plea and possibly enter a guilty plea if the criminal offense is a misdemeanor. The suspect will then get an appearance date and will return with an attorney if they can afford one. If not, the judge will determine if they qualify

The motion is presented to the General Sessions Judge, the judge then decides if the motion will be heard. If the motion is heard the General Session Judge will decide if the motion is valid or not valid. If valid the evidence is suppressed, and the case is dismissed. If not, the case will proceed to a preliminary hearing. After the preliminary hearing the judge will decide if the case has probable cause to be forwarded to Circuit Court. Or if not, the case will be dismissed by the General Session Judge. If the suspect waived the case to the grand jury a hearing will be conducted in front of a panel of jurors, who will decide if there is probable cause for the case to move on to Circuit Court. Once the case is in Circuit Court the suspect and his attorney will make an initial appearance and the Circuit Court Judge will set plea bargain dates, motion dates, and possible trial dates. If the suspect and attorney negotiate a plea agreement, it is at he discretion of the court if the agreement is accepted. If the suspect and the attorney decide to move forward with a trial, they have the option of a jury trial or a bench trial. After the suspect has a trial, they are found either guilty or not guilty. If they are found guilty they move on