POLS 207 1st Edition Final Exam Study Guide Lectures 16 21 Lecture 16 What makes state courts part of the judicial branch different from the legislative and executive branches Courts are reactive rather than proactive Appearance of Objectivity We expects courts to be unbiased STATE COURTS Special requirements to obtain access to the courts part of the Judicial Branch Range of decision making Precedents stare decisis Procedures are more formal ex micus curaie brief Example of a precedent set by higher court to be followed in lower courts Mapp v Ohio Supreme Court decision that police had no legal justification to enter Mapp s house so could not use the obscene material as evidence precedent set Exclusionary Rule If police enter without a warrant they cannot use that evidence in the trial What is the structure of the state court system Details on Level 4 Courts of Last Resort also called the State Supreme Court about 5 9 justices look at procedural mistakes not innocent guilty After State Supreme Court appeals go directly to National Supreme Court and only if there is a federal issue involved Due to the US s dual system of courts some cases go to state local courts and some go to federal courts Some even can go to either state or federal courts in which case the courts venue shop for the case What are 5 Judicial Selection Methods for selecting judges mainly Major Trial Court judges Criticisms of Missouri Plan is the Judicial Nominating Commission really nonpartisan in selecting nominees judges rarely lose the retention election which means it is not really necessary just wasting more money on another election campaign Lecture 17 TRIAL COURTS AND SUPREME COURTS What is the importance of plea bargaining plea bargaining negotiation between the defense and prosecutor where the defendant pleads guilty in exchange for some benefit from the state prosecutor o reduction of charges less punishment recommend lighter sentences in court important because decides over 90 of criminal cases people argues it allows defendant to get off easy or that it pressures innocent people to plead guilty however it mainly o reduces court case load which the US system would not be able to handle o allows a prosecutor with a weak case to still give the defendant a punishment o sometimes provide a better option for the defendant What is a Jury verse a Judge Jury citizens responsible for evaluating evidence and determining defendants innocent guilty 1 in 20 cases go to Jury Trial but less than 1 criminal cases are resolved by a jury trial Judge overseer to the process in order to prevent reversible error o reversible error procedural error that would allow appellate courts to reverse the decision of the case o oversees selection of jury evidence allowed into the case etc to make sure no mistake is made such that the case can be reversed in an appellate court o also in charge of determining the sentence What is the court tier system in TEXAS More Details about Texas Courts What are the 2 Courts of Last Resort in Texas o Texas Supreme Court only for civil cases o Court of Criminal Appeals only for criminal cases Judges are selected in TEXAS by Partisan Elections Interim Appointments in TEXAS are made by the Governor Jean Kelley won the Democratic nomination for the TX Supreme Court in 1990s because people confused his name with the famous actor Court Procedures in TEXAS o Grand Juries screening mechanisms in criminal cases that evaluate a case to see if it is strong enough to go to trial not deciding innocent guilty o Petit Juries juries selected randomly voter registration DL list to be screened to serve on the trial jury to determine innocent guilty Police Protection in the States Three Strikes and You re Out Reform 1990s Reform in California 3rd time you commit a crime you serve the time for life increased prison inmate number and prison costs increased court case loads due to reduced plea bargaining on 3rd crime US Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional as cruel unusual punishment for normal crimes It was modified to focus more on violent crimes so continues to exist today Death Penalty Overtime 1972 Furman v Georgia US Supreme Court outlawed the death penalty because it was being abused 1976 Supreme Court Guidelines allowed state to reinstate all but 12 states reinstated Texas since 1976 Texas has executed 493 prisoners 1 3rd of the 1400 prisoners executed in US About 80 of executions in the US occur in the South Some states sentence a lot of people but rarely execute them California sentenced 600 only 10 executed Why does Texas have such a large number of death sentences Least complicated statutes o eligible if committed murder while committing another crime killed 2 or more people killed a police officer firefighter or child involved in murder for hire o if the juror says yes to did the defendant act intentionally is the defendant a future threat o then judge can decide on the death sentence public support for the death penalty in TX is about 10 higher than the national average o citizens both support and believe it is an effective deterrent Money and the Death Penalty very expensive because of long trials numerous lawyers make sure all procedures are followed Harris County in Texas about 30 million budget 5th in terms of executions in states Dallas County only 20 million budget 2 3rds of Harris county budget Lecture 18 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ENTITIES LOCAL GOVERNMENT ENTITIES COUNTIES administrative extensions of the state manage activities of STATE wide concern at the local level such as car registration elections etc THREE TYPES 1 Board of Commissioners Supervisors run the county as a group 2 Elected Executive Plan elect a board elect one head executive mainly in charge 3 Council Administrator Plan the board hires one person to be mainly in charge MUNICIPALITIES CITIES meet LOCAL concerns such as police transportation sewage generally deliver more services than counties Charter of Incorporation process to form a city why vote no city taxes HOME RULE local gov runs its own affairs with state oversight 80 of states DILLION s RULE local gov can only exercise powers expressly given to them in the state constitution or law THREE TYPES 1 Mayor Council 2 City Commissioner 3 City or Council Manager SPECIAL DISTRICTS Single Purpose Governments created by state or state legislatures to meet service needs other units of gov will not ex mass transit district flood control district etc Why created MONEY given powers by
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