Criminal Procedure Flashcards
Double Jeopardy - Lesser Included Offense
The Fifth Amendment double jeopardy clause generally prohibits a second prosecution after a prior conviction for the same offense. Offenses are considered the same for double jeopardy purposes if one is a lesser included offense of the other. That is because every element of the lesser offense is included in the greater offense. Therefore, when a conviction of a lesser included offense stems from a guilty plea, the double jeopardy clause bars a subsequent prosecution for the greater offense unless:
an event necessary to establish the greater offense occurred after the plea was entered or
the greater offense was charged before the plea was entered.
Court Clerk - Default Judgment
A court clerk must enter a default judgment when (1) the plaintiff’s claim is for a sum certain or a sum that can be made certain by calculation, (2) the plaintiff’s request for default judgment includes an affidavit establishing the amount due, (3) the defendant failed to appear, and (4) the defendant is not legally incompetent or a minor.
Two-Dismissal Rule
Under the two-dismissal rule, a voluntary dismissal is with prejudice when the plaintiff (1) voluntarily dismissed an action in federal or state court without a court order and (2) filed a notice of voluntary dismissal in a second action on the same claim in federal court.
Class Action Certification
A class action is a suit filed by one or more named plaintiffs who act as class representatives on behalf of similarly harmed unnamed plaintiffs. All actions filed by a purported class representative require certification by the court at the earliest practical time. Class action certification is proper if (1) the four prerequisites—numerosity, commonality, typicality, and adequacy—for class representatives to sue or be sued on behalf of all members of the class are satisfied and (2) the case is one of the following types of class actions:
Prejudicial risk – when separate actions would create a risk of inconsistent decisions regarding the parties or impairing absent class members’ interests
Common question – when common questions of law or fact predominate over individual questions and a class action is the best method to fairly and efficiently adjudicate the dispute
Final equitable relief – when injunctive or declaratory relief is appropriate because the opposing party’s actions generally apply to the whole class
Safe-Harbor Rule
A party cannot file a motion for sanctions until 21 days after serving that motion on the alleged violator. This safe-harbor rule gives a violator time to correct the violation.
Exception to Final Judgment Rule
The final-judgment rule generally precludes federal appellate courts from hearing an appeal until the federal district court has entered a final judgment. A final judgment is a decision that fully resolves a dispute on the merits and leaves nothing for the court to do but enforce the judgment. An order denying summary judgment is not final because it merely determines that there is some dispute of material fact—it does not fully resolve the underlying claim. As a result, these orders are typically not appealable.
However, an exception to this final-judgment rule arises when the district court certifies an order for interlocutory appeal by stating in writing that:
there is a substantial difference of opinion on a controlling question of law and
an immediate appeal may materially advance the ultimate termination of the litigation.
Statutory Interpleader
Interpleader is available when multiple persons (i.e., claimants) claim an interest in the same property (i.e., the stake). It allows the possessor of the stake (i.e., the stakeholder) to force potential claimants into a single lawsuit to determine who has a right to the property. There are two types of interpleader: statutory interpleader and rule interpleader. A statutory interpleader action must satisfy special requirements for:
subject-matter jurisdiction – requires an amount in controversy of at least $500 and minimal diversity of citizenship between at least two claimants
personal jurisdiction – exists over any claimant who is served with process anywhere within the U.S.
venue – proper in any judicial district where any claimant resides and
deposit – requires the stakeholder to deposit the property at issue with the court or post a bond in an amount determined by the court
Probation Revocation Proceeding
Due process requires counsel at a probation-revocation proceeding if the person (1) denies committing the alleged violation or (2) asserts that complex reasons justified or mitigated it. The Sixth Amendment guarantees this right if a sentence for the underlying offense (1) has not been imposed and (2) will be imposed if the probation is revoked.
Double Jeopardy - Acquittal
Under the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment, which is applicable to the states through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, a defendant who has been acquitted of a crime generally may not be retried for the same crime. A grant of a demurrer or motion to dismiss in favor of the accused for the prosecution’s failure to prove the elements of a crime at the close of the state’s case is the equivalent to an acquittal.
Preliminary Hearing
A preliminary hearing to determine whether probable cause exists to hold the defendant (i.e., a Gerstein hearing) generally must be held within 48 hours of the defendant’s arrest. There is no need to hold a preliminary hearing if probable cause has already been determined through a grand jury indictment or an arrest warrant.
Derivative-use Immunity
Derivative-use immunity protects a witness from the use of the witness’s own testimony, or any evidence derived from that testimony, against the witness in a subsequent prosecution, but does not protect him from its use in a civil suit.
Dual Sovereignty Doctrine
Under the “Dual Sovereignty” doctrine, prosecution of a defendant by the federal government for a crime arising out of an event does not prevent a state from prosecuting the defendant for a crime arising out of the same event. (Note: Under this doctrine, the reverse is also true.)
