Criminal Procedure

Question 1

Probable cause related to arrest

Answer 1

A proper arrest is one that is based on probable cause. supporting probable cause may come from a number of different sources, including a police officers personal observations

Question 2

Plainview doctrine

Answer 2

A werwnt Louis search is valid if it is reasonable in scope, and if it is made incident to lawful arrest under the Plainview doctrine, if an item is in public view, it may be seized without a warrant, since there is no reasonable, expectation of privacy for such an item

Question 3

Custodial interrogation

Answer 3

This is questioning initiated by law-enforcement officers after a person has been taken into custody. This must be preceded by Miranda warnings.

Question 4

Are violations of Miranda, part of the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine?

Answer 4

Not with respect to subsequent statements by the defendant, isolated negligence, by law-enforcement personnel, will not trigger the exclusionary rule. It would only be triggered if the conduct of the police was shown to be sufficiently deliberate in a pattern of conduct that exclusion would deter.

Question 5

Unambiguous request for counsel

Answer 5

In order to invoke the right, the defendant must make a specific unambiguous statement that he wishes of counsel, present statement such as “maybe I need a lawyer” do not qualify

Question 6

Double Jeopardy when tried for multiple crimes

Answer 6

Double Jeopardy is a constitutional right and it protects against multiple punishments for the same offense. if a defendant’s conduct may be prosecuted as two or more crimes, each crime must require proof of an element of the other does not have an order for them to be considered as a separate offense

Question 7

What happens if a judge Misstates a jury instruction

Answer 7

The due process clause requires that the prosecution prove all of the elements of the case beyond a reasonable doubt. A mandatory presumption regarding an element of an offense violates due process requirement. This includes relieving the prosecution of having to prove an element of their case or shifting the burden of proof regarding the element of the offense to the defendant.

Question 8

Does a judge giving a sentence deprive the defendant of his right to a jury trial if a question of fact changes the sentencing time?

Answer 8

Any fact, other than a prior conviction, that can be used to increase a sentence beyond the statutorily prescribed maximum must be charged in an indictment, submitted to a jury, and established beyond a reasonable doubt.

A fact is considered an element of a crime, as opposed to a sentencing enhancement, when it can increase the maximum sentence imposed. The failure to abide by the above procedure is a violation of the defendants due process rights under the fifth amendment and sixth amendment rights to notice and a jury trial