Going to Court
• Bring the proper documentation, during your court trial or hearing, you or your attorney will have the opportunity to explain the facts of your case to the Judge or Commissioner. Make sure your paperwork is organized and that it supports your claim. Examples include receipts, contracts, letters, bills and photos. If you plan to enter your paperwork into evidence during your trial or hearing, bring 4 copies (1 original and 3 copies). You must give the Court the original, give one copy to the other side, keep one copy for yourself and have the third copy available should you decide to use it when questioning a witness. Bring a pencil and paper with you to take notes about your case.
• Don't miss your court date, on the scheduled day of trial, you should appear at the time indicated on your “Notice to Appear” and check in with the Bailiff. Do not miss a court date without being excused by the Court or your lawyer in advance of your court date. For criminal cases, not appearing for court
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may result in the court issuing a warrant for your arrest. If you are the plaintiff in a civil case and do not appear for court on your court date, your case may be dismissed. If you are the defendant in a civil case, a default judgment may be ordered if you fail to appear. • Dress appropriately, while there is no written dress code for the courtroom, certain attire is not considered suitable. This includes shorts, swimsuits, midriff and tank tops, and slippers. Non-prescription dark glasses must be removed once you enter the courtrooms. Do not wear a hat unless you do so for religious or medical reasons. Make sure what you wear is clean. You may also want to bring a light jacket or sweater in the summer months as the courthouses are air conditioned. • Proper conduct is also important smoking is not allowed in any public area of the court buildings. When court is in session, you should refrain from reading, talking, chewing gum, listening to personal radios, making distracting noises or any other inappropriate conduct. Food and beverages are prohibited in all courtrooms. Children are not permitted in the courtroom unless they are part of the case. In a situation where you have to bring a child to court, it is often best to leave the child outside the courtroom with a responsible adult. • Court staff cannot give you legal advice. If you have a question about what options you have or what you should do, you should talk to an attorney. • If you have any witnesses who can tell the court what they saw or heard concerning your case, you may wish to bring them with you. Make sure that they also dress appropriately. If you wish for the Court to send "notices" to the witnesses to appear, you must notify the Clerk’s Office at least twenty (20) days before trial. If you believe the witnesses may not appear, you may ask the Court to issue a "subpoena." The Court can also issue a subpoena for documents or other evidence that you may need for your defense and which is not in your possession. The request for subpoenas must be made with the Clerk’s Office no later than twenty (20) days before the date of trial. Failure to respond to a subpoena is grounds for arrest. • The court is a very traditional and polite place where a certain demeanor (way of acting) is expected.
You must act and speak in a way that helps you with your case. Communication with the Judge or Commissioner should be carried out with a proper amount of respect. When speaking to the Judge or Commissioner, you must stand and address him/her as “Your Honor.” Act respectfully, courteously and politely to everyone in the courthouse. Do not talk at a trial or hearing unless it is your turn to speak. If it is not your turn to speak, sit quietly in the courtroom. Do not use profanity, argue, or verbally react to statements given in court by the Judge or Commissioner, opposing party, or attorney. When being asked a question, listen carefully. If you are not sure what is being asked, ask to have the question repeated or asked a different way. Talk directly only to the Judge or Commissioner unless you are answering questions or asking a witness
questions. • If you want to ask the Judge or Commissioner to take a certain action in your case, you should file a written motion with in the Clerk’s Office explaining the type of relief or action you are asking the court to grant you.
Now that we have discussed the pretrial occurrences, we get into the trial portion of the court process. This is the portion of the process in which both the defense and the prosecution present their cases to the jury, the judge, and the rest of the courtroom. To select a jury, the bring in potential jurors and ask them questions,
Integrity, honesty, compassion, loyalty and just plain telling it like it is. These are just a few traits of this truly unique man, Ralph Stephens. One of a kind. If I ever have a question, or if I’m on the fence about something, Ralph, in a few sentences gives me the options and helps me clear it up. You always knew where you stand with Ralph. Politically correct? That isn't a big concern of his. He isn't trying to win a popularity contest.
When an offender is sentenced to imprisonment, post sentencing considerations must be made based on an evaluation of the individual and this will determine the manner in which the prison sentence is served. Post sentencing considerations include security classifications, parole and continued detention orders. These offer different levels of incapacity, accessibility of rehabilitation programs and incentives for good behaviour, and are implicated in order to achieve justice through upholding the rights of the victim, the offender and the wider community.
Siegel, L., & Worrall, J. (2017). Pretrial and Trial Procedures. In Introduction to Criminal Justice (15th ed., pp. 389-395). Wadsworth Pub
as decisive inferences complying with NJ law to validate his position, in contrast with the
Throughout the years there has been limitless legal cases presented to the court systems. All cases are not the same. Some cases vary from decisions that are made by a single judge, while other cases decisions are made by a jury. As cases are presented they typically start off as disputes, misunderstandings, or failure to comply among other things. It is possible to settle some cases outside of the courts, but that does require understanding and cooperation by all parties involved. However, for those that are not so willing to settle out of court, they eventually visit the court system. The court system is not in existence to cause humiliation for anyone, but more so to offer a helping hand from a legal prospective. At the same time, the legal system is not to be abuse. or misused either.
Law is a system of rules that has been set up by the legislative branch of our government. It is a must that every person in that country follow these laws, or severe consequences will be held against that person. In every court house legal systems are held. There are two common types of legal systems used, common law and civil law. Common law is used by countries that are from the British colonies, as this type of system was originated from England, when King Henry II wanted to combine the laws and customs together. Whereas, the countries that use civil law are from the European colonies (Common Law vs Civil Law,2009). Even though, both laws are commonly used, they differ in terms of the constitution, the jury’s opinion, the role of the
The stand your ground law is a law that allows people to defend themselves in a suspicious situation somewhere they are legally allowed before having to retreat the area. This law was derived from the Castle Doctrine, which states the person legally residing in that dwelling has a right to protect themselves if someone on or in their residence threatens their livelihood. Florida was the first state of the United States to implement the sand your ground law into their state laws in 2005. Former Florida governor, Jeb Bush, passed the Florida statute to help the citizens protect themselves in the midst of a dangerous situation. This law became a controversial topic when the Trayvon Martin case was the central subject matter of every media outlet
When talking with the deputy in charge, who was incredibly helpful in my observations, he told me that the people in attendance that day were people that plead out, or as we have discussed in class they have taken a plea bargain where they have agreed to the DA’s terms in order to get a lesser sentence for their offense. This could be community service, pay restitution, and being placed under house arrest or a combination of the latter. There are 3 types of cases that the court reviews in post-arraignment court, the first is sentence modification. This is where the defendant can ask the court for change in their sentence because they cannot pay the issued fines, or they need an extension because they need more time to either service their comm...
Then comes the investigation process. Officers try to sort through the evidence and come up with a solution or a suspect. Next comes the arrest or citation of an individual if the officer believes that there is enough facts and evidence to do so. If an officer does not find enough evidence or a suspect, the case remains open. After the arrest or citation comes the prosecution and pretrial. The prosecutor considers the evidence by the police and makes a decision whether or not to file charges against the accused. If charges are filed, the first court appearance is held. The accused will then appear in court and be informed of their charges and rights. The judge will then decide whether there is enough evidence to hold or release the accused. The judge can decide whether to hold the accused in jail or release them on
When we are young, most of us are somewhat naive. We are inherently taught that
Well, I have done my project on economic theory of criminal law to understand the economic aspects of criminal law. While doing this project I came across the idea as what should be considered as a crime? What should be criteria for determining a crime? By this I mean to say what the acts which should be punished. Now the other follow up question which comes is that after determining which acts are to be punished, how should we determine their extent?
For my field experience, I chose to attend a court case. On October 14th, 2015 I went to the District of Columbia court and watched a sentencing. It was not at all what I initially expected although after sitting in class for several weeks I was not shocked by it. What surprised me most was the informal, personal nature that the whole process had. The experience was interesting and I feel that I learned a lot from it.
Researching and Making the Court Papers: The Lawyers have to brief the court about the case well in advance about the issues to be discussed.
The New South Wales Criminal trial and sentencing process is adequate in balancing the rights of the victims, offenders and society however like any legal system is does have its faults. The options in the trial and sentencing process are stipulated in the Criminal Procedure Act 1986, the Crimes (Sentencing Legislation) Amendment (Intensive Correction Orders) Act 2010 and the Crimes (sentencing procedure) Act 1999 which features the use of charge negotiation, rehabilitation, mitigating factors and intensive corrective orders.