Overview of Criminal Cases | constitutional, investigations, incriminating, investigation, sophisticated, understanding, constitution, jurisdiction, arraignment, differences, enterprises, furthermore, indictments, investigate, journalists, potentially, preliminary, proceedings, prosecuting, prosecution, prosecutors, terminology, trafficking, assistants, challenges, | CLIENTELEVISION - Video on Demand from LTVN

Overview of Criminal Cases

When reporting on the daily dramas of real criminal cases, journalists must be prepared for proceedings that look quite a bit different from those portrayed on prime time television. Like prime time dramas, the high-profile cases that you will cover will involve drama of the very highest order. But to those expecting non-stop excitement, the pace of real cases may leave a lot to be desired. By understanding the process, one can obtain a realistic view of the judicial system, be better prepared for key parts of a case, and enhance the public's understanding of a process that viewers of Boston Legal and Law & Order never see.

Although prime time viewers see a litigation process which takes only sixty minutes, real cases can take many months or even years to resolve. Though defendants have a constitutional right to a speedy trial, they often waive this right as their lawyers prepare for trial or attempt to slow the pace of a case and reach a plea bargain that may eliminate more painful proceedings. Depending on the particular jurisdiction in which a defendant is being prosecuted, cases may take as as much as a year or more to come to trial.

In the United States, crimes may be prosecuted by either the federal government or by prosecutors in each state. Though the division of labor has become blurred as Congress expands the power of federal prosecutors, state prosecutors handle most crimes against persons and property. Thus, State's Attorneys or District Attorneys handle the bulk of murder, rape, assault, robbery and theft cases.

Because states only have power to prosecute crimes that occur within its borders, federal prosecutors often handle crimes which cross state borders or which involve large-scale criminal enterprises. Thus, United States Attorneys and their assistants spend much of their time prosecuting members of organized crime, or those involved in drug trafficking, large scale fraud schemes, and federal corruption. The feds also focus on offenses which violate specific federal statutes, such as tax evasion, espionage and treason. Furthermore, because federal prosecutors typically have access to greater resources available through such agencies as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, they are often better equipped to investigate and prosecute sophisticated and large-scale criminal activity.

While nuances of criminal procedure differ between federal and state courts, the stages of prosecution are quite similar in both systems as all courts are required to protect an accused's rights under the U.S. Constitution. Despite minor differences in terminology, all courts have procedures in place for grand jury investigations and indictments, the issuance of search and arrest warrants, an arraignment of the accused, preliminary hearings and pretrial challenges to the evidence, trials, appeals and post-conviction proceedings. In all criminal cases, the accused has a right to a speedy trial, to confront his accusers, and to refrain from providing potentially incriminating testimony.

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