Miscellaneous
This charge is handed down when someone disrupts or disrespects the courtroom or the judge. Possible punishments for this charge include jail time, fines, or expulsion from the courtroom.
Contempt of Court
These are people from the community sitting in the back of the courtroom during the hearing or trial. They may be student observers, other individuals waiting for their case to be called, or family members of the defendant or the alleged victim.
Name the four pleas.
Guilty, Not Guilty, NGRI, No Contest
Competency can be questioned at any time in the court and trial process. There is no time limit on when someone's competency must be questioned.
True
The first step in the CRIMINAL JUDICIAL process.
A defendant is charged with a crime.
This charge is handed down when someone is proven to be lying on the witness stand when they're under oath.
Perjury
Who in the courtroom is neutral?
The jury, the judge
Name the difference between pleading guilty and being found guilty.
Pleading guilty is done prior to trial, most often in a plea bargain. If a defendant pleads guilty, they are admitting to the court that they committed the crime.
Being found guilty is done by the judge or the jury following trial proceedings. If a defendant had been found guilty, they have entered a previous plea of not guilty and went to trial.
To be charged with a crime means to be pre-convicted of the crime.
False.
What is probable cause?
Strong suspicion with evidentiary support that points to a suspect in a crime.
A legal order that means a defendant has a mental illness or disability and because of that may not understand the court process or legal proceedings, may not understand the charges against them, or may not be able to assist their attorney in preparing a fair and realistic defense.
Incompetent to Stand Trial (IST)
How are members of the jury selected?
Members of the community are summoned for jury duty, where both the prosecutor and the defense attorney ask each potential juror questions to determine if they can be a fair juror. The prosecutor and the defense attorney must agree on each potential juror, eventually leading to a jury of 12 people with an additional 1-2 alternates.
Community members are typically selected randomly from various community registers (i.e., voting registration).
If someone wishes to inform the court that their case was mistaken identity or if they want the prosecutor to prove beyond a reasonable doubt they committed the crime, they should consider pleading _____.
Not guilty
Pleading not guilty is the only way to proceed to trial.
True
The first step in a jury trial process after entering a plea.
Jury selection
What are the steps in being found IST?
1. Charged with a crime
2. Competency is questioned.
3. After an order for an evaluation is issued, the defendant meets with a forensic evaluator who asks the defendant questions about their case, their behaviors, and their symptoms. The evaluator recommends the defendant IST.
4. The Judge agrees with the IST recommendation and signs an IST order.
The only lawyer in the courtroom who can call the defendant to the stand.
Defense Attorney
These specific rights are given up by a defendant when accepting a plea bargain.
1. The right to remain silent.
2. The right to a trial/the right to face your accuser.
3. The right to most appeals.
The defendant can be subpoenaed by the prosecutor to testify.
False
Court processes are relatively similar until this hearing, where it can go in different directions depending on how the defendant answers to the charges against them. At this hearing, the defendant will hear the charges against them once more and will be asked to enter a plea.
Arraignment
What is an example of a mental disease or defect?
Schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, traumatic brain injury, dementia, bipolar disorder...etc.
Who can raise the question of a defendant's competency?
The judge, the defense attorney, or the prosecutor
When a defendant enters this plea, they are not admitting guilt, however they are acknowledging that if the case went to trial they would likely be acquitted. This plea results in a sentencing hearing wherein the judge will determine the sentence.
No contest or Alford Plea
The reason plea bargains are discussed a great deal in competency groups at FSH are because the prosecutors are required to offer a plea bargain to each defendant.
False.
Who decides what type of trial to have?
A defendant makes the ultimate decision regarding what type of trial to have, what plea to enter, and whether or not to testify. Although they will have support and advice from their defense attorney, it is their ultimate decision..