CH. 2

Question 1

action

Answer 1

A lawsuit or court proceeding.

Question 2

arraignment

Answer 2

The act of calling a prisoner before the court to answer an indictment or information.

Question 3

arrest

Answer 3

To deprive a person of his or her liberty.

Question 4

arrest warrant

Answer 4

A written order of the court commanding law enforcement officers to arrest a person
and to bring him or her before the court.

Question 5

bail

Answer 5

Money or property left with the court to ensure that a person will return to stand trial.

Question 6

beyond a reasonable doubt

Answer 6

When the fact finder is fully persuaded that the accused has committed a crime.

Question 7

bifurcated trial

Answer 7

A trial that is divided into two parts, providing separate hearings for different issues
in the same lawsuit.

Question 8

citation

Answer 8

A written order by a judge or police officer commanding a person to appear in court
for a particular purpose.

Question 9

commutation of sentence

Answer 9

The changing of a sentence to one that is less severe.

Question 10

concurrent sentences

Answer 10

Two or more sentences imposed on a defendant to be served at the same time.

Question 11

consecutive sentences & cumulative sentences

Answer 11

Two or more sentences imposed on a defendant to be served one after the other.

Question 12

convict

Answer 12

A person found guilty of a crime.

Question 13

crime

Answer 13

An offense against the public at large

Question 14

criminal complaint

Answer 14

A written statement of the essential facts making up an offense charged in a criminal
action.

Question 15

defendant

Answer 15

A person against whom a legal action is brought.

Question 16

extradition

Answer 16

The return of fugitives to the state where they are accused of having committed the
crime.

Question 17

fact finder

Answer 17

The jury in a jury trial or the judge in a non-jury trial.

Question 18

grand jury

Answer 18

a jury, typically of twenty-three people, selected to examine the validity of an accusation before trial.

Question 19

guilty

Answer 19

culpable of or responsible for a specified wrongdoing.

Question 20

inadmissible

Answer 20

not accepted as valid.

Question 21

indictment

Answer 21

A formal, written charge of a crime, made by a grand jury.

Question 22

information

Answer 22

A formal written charge of a crime made by a public official rather than by a grand
jury.

Question 23

intent

Answer 23

The necessary mental state that precedes the criminal act.

Question 24

mandatory sentence

Answer 24

A fixed sentence that must be imposed, with no room for discretion

Question 25

Malefactor

Answer 25

one who commits an offense against the law

Question 26

minimum sentence

Answer 26

The shortest amount of time that a prisoner must serve before being released or
placed on parole.

Question 27

Miranda warnings

Answer 27

a statement telling an arrested person about his or her Miranda rights

Question 28

nolo contendere

Answer 28

A plea in which the defendant neither admits nor denies the charges.

Question 29

pardon

Answer 29

A setting aside of punishment altogether, by a government official.

Question 30

parole

Answer 30

A conditional release from prison allowing the person to serve the remainder of a sentence outside of prison under specific terms.

Question 31

parole board & parole commission

Answer 31

A group of people authorized to grant parole.

Question 32

parolee

Answer 32

A person placed on parole.

Question 33

personal recognizance

Answer 33

A personal obligation by a person to return to stand trial

Question 34

plea bargaining

Answer 34

The working out of a mutually satisfactory disposition of a case by the prosecution
and by the defense.

Question 35

preliminary hearing & probable cause hearing

Answer 35

A hearing before a judge to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to believe
that the person has committed a crime.

Question 36

probable cause

Answer 36

Reasonable grounds for belief that an offense has been committed

Question 37

prosecute

Answer 37

to initiate criminal proceedings against a person

Question 38

prosecution

Answer 38

The party by whom criminal proceedings are started or conducted; the state.

Question 39

reasonable doubt

Answer 39

Doubt based on reason.

Question 40

rendition

Answer 40

rendition is a “surrender” or “handing over” of persons or property, particularly from one jurisdiction to another

Question 41

rules of criminal procedure

Answer 41

Regulations that govern the proceedings in criminal cases.

Question 42

seizure

Answer 42

Taking Property upon the production of a search warrant.

Question 43

sentence

Answer 43

the punishment assigned to a defendant found guilty by a court, or fixed by law for a particular offense

Question 44

severance of actions

Answer 44

The separation of lawsuits or prosecutions involving multiple parties into separate,
independent cases, resulting in separate final judgments.

Question 45

suspended sentence

Answer 45

A sentence that is given formally, but not actually served.

Question 46

victims’ impact statements

Answer 46

A statement to the court, at the time of sentencing, relative to the impact that the crime had on the victim or on the victim’s family.