Chapter 8 notes pt. 2

Question 1

Once the initial appearance has been completed and ______ has been set, the prosecutor must establish _________ _________.

Answer 1

bail

probable cause

Question 2

an initial hearring in which a magistrate decides whether there’s probable cause to believe that the defendant committed the crime with which he or she is charged

Answer 2

preliminary hearing

Question 3

The preliminary hearing is conducted in the manner of a _____-______.

Answer 3

mini-trial

Question 4

formal investigation by each side prior to trial

Answer 4

discovery

Question 5

the group of citizens called to decide whether probable cause exists to believe that a suspect committed the crime with which she or he has been charged

Answer 5

grand jury

Question 6

the formal charge against the accused issued by the prosecutor after a preliminary hearing has found probable cause

Answer 6

information

Question 7

the federal government and about 1/3 of the states require a ______ ______ to make the decision as to whether a case should go to _____.

Answer 7

grand jury

trial

Question 8

grand juries are __________, or created, for a period of time not usually exceeding ___ months

Answer 8

impaneled

3

Question 9

a charge or written accusation, issued by a grand jury, that probable cause exists to believe that a named person has committed a crime

Answer 9

indictment

Question 10

If a case is to proceed to trial, the prosecutor must establish _________ _________ that the defendant committed the crime in question.

Answer 10

probable cause

Question 11

One way of doing this involves a __________ hearing, in which a judge or magistrate rules whether the prosecutor has met this burden.

Answer 11

preliminary

Question 12

In the other method, the decision rests with a group of citizens called a __________ _________, who will hand down an ________ if they believe the evidence is sufficient to support the charges.

Answer 12

grand jury

indictment

Question 13

Once the police have initially charged a __________ with committing a crime, the ___________ can prosecute the case

Answer 13

defendant

prosecutor

Question 14

prosecutorial discretion includes the power not to __________ cases

Answer 14

prosecute

Question 15

the process through which prosecutors, by deciding whether to prosecute each person arrested, efffect on overall reduction in the number of persons prosecuted

Answer 15

case attrition

Question 16

nolle prosequi, latin for “_________ ___ ______”

Answer 16

unwilling to pursue

Question 17

most prosecutors have a screening process for deciding when to _________ and when to “____”

Answer 17

prosecute

noll

Question 18

What factors do prosecutors consider in making decisions?

Answer 18

1. the most important factor in deciding whether to prosecute is sufficient evidence for conviction
2. prosecutors also need to establish case priorities
3. sometimes a case is dropped even when it involves a serious crime & a wealth of evidence exists against the suspect
   -these situations usually involve
   uncooperative victims
4. a prosecutor may be willing to drop a case or reduce the charges against a defendant who is willing to testify against other offenders

Question 19

The unreliablity of a ________ can also affect prosecutorial screening decisions.

Answer 19

victims

Question 20

On average, of sixty-five arrestees, a district attorney will prosecute only thirty-five. This process, which is known as case ________, requires that the prosecutor _________ all potential cases and dismiss the ones where the likelihood of ________ is weakest.

Answer 20

attrition
screen
conviction

Question 21

The most important factor is this decision is whether there is sufficient _________ to find the defendant guilty.

Answer 21

evidence

Question 22

Explain how a prosecutor screens potential cases.

Answer 22

1. Is there sufficient evidence for conviction?
2. What’s the priority of the case? The more serious the alleged crime, the higher the priority.
3. Are the victims cooperative? Violence against family members often yields unvooperative, so these cases are rarely prosecuted
4. Might the defendant be willing to testify against other offenders?
5. Are the victims reliable?