Exam 2 Flashcards
Contempt of Cop
The officer perceives a challenge to their authority and escalates the situation to”re-assert” their authority
- contributes to police being more likely to use force against African-Americans
Stop & Frisk
A short (non-intrusive) police stop of a suspect
- a quick pat-down of the suspect’s outer clothing
- 4th Amendment requires that the police must have reasonable suspicion
Patterns in Use of Force
- African Americans are overrepresented among victims of police shootings
- The police are more likely to shoot unarmed Black people than unarmed White people
- There are substantial differences among police departments regarding the number of people shot and killed
Totality of the Circumstances
A method of analysis where decisions are based on all available information
- severity of the crime, whether the suspect poses an
immediate threat to the safety people, and whether he is resisting arrest / attempting to evade arrest by flight
Theory of Procedural Justice
The way police and other legal authorities interact with the public and how the characteristics of those interactions shape the public’s views of the police
- willingness to obey the law, cooperation with the police in fighting crime, and crime rates
Blue Wall of Silence
The informal code of silence among police officers in the U.S. not to report on a colleague’s errors, misconducts, or crimes
8 Can’t Wait
A new push for 8 concrete police reforms
- 8 procedural rules that can conjointly decrease police violence by 72%
Prosecutorial Discretion
- Cannot legally consider race and class in their charging decisions
- Systematically exercised to the disadvantage of Blacks and Hispanics
- Provides power to prosecutors in the pretrial process
- Not unlimited but largely unregulated
What % of cases end in a plea bargain?
95 - 98 percent
Plea Bargaining
An arrangement between a prosecutor and a defendant where the defendant pleads guilty to a lesser charge in the expectation of leniency
Trial Tax
A judge imposing a more severe sentence on a defendant because they rejected the prosecution’s plea agreement and goes to trial
Jail Boom
The number of people in jail pretrial has nearly quadrupled since the 1980s
- 400,000 people
Mandatory Minimum Sentence
Requires judges to impose a prison sentence of at least the time specified in a statute
- in many jurisdictions, prosecutors have discretion whether to file charges that trigger mandatory
minimum sentence
Pretrial Detention
Begins after arrest and ends
when trial begins
- still legally innocent
- Blacks and Hispanics are overrepresented
- they can’t afford money bail or someone has placed a “hold” on their release
Bail Type
Money Bail: money that has to be posted to ensure you will make future court appearances
Surety bond: enlists the help of a bail bond company, which acts as a surety, covering the defendant’s bail amount in full
What percentage of police encounters involve the use
of force?
About 2%
What percentage of defendants’ need a public
defender?
80%
What percentage of the federal and state criminal
justice budgets is allocated to indigent defense?
2%
Over represented
- African Americans are overrepresented among victims of police shootings, in the pretrial population, and in police stops and searches
What percentage of cases end in plea bargaining?
95-98%
IN BORDENKIRCHER V HAYES (1978), THE SUPREME COURT RULED THAT PROSECUTORS ____________ THREATEN TO ENHANCE CHARGES AGAINST A DEFENDANT IF THEY REFUSE A PLEA DEAL. (can or can’t)
can
POLICE OFFICERS________ USE A MINOR TRAFFIC VIOLATION AS PRETEXT TO STOP A VEHICLE, EVEN THOUGH THE ACTUAL REASON FOR THE STOP IS SOME OTHER PURPOSE (can or can’t)
can
PROSECUTORS _______ DECIDE WHAT CHARGE TO FILE AND HOW MANY CHARGES TO FILE (can or can’t)
can
POLICE OFFICERS ______ USE DEADLY FORCE TO STOP AN UNARMED FLEEING FELON (can or can’t)
can’t
A PERSON ______ LEGALLY BE DETAINED / INCARCERATED EVEN IF THEY HAVE NOT BEEN CONVICTED OF A CRIME (can or can’t)
can
A PERSON_____ BE TRIED IN COURT WITHOUT AN ATTORNEY SO LONG AS IT IS NOT FOR A CAPITAL OFFENSE (can or can’t)
can’t
A JUDGE _____ SENTENCE A DEFENDANT TO LESS THAN THE TIME REQUIRED IN MANDATORY MINIMUM GUIDELINES (can or can’t)
can’t
A POLICE OFFICER _____ CONDUCT A PAT DOWN OF THE OUTER LAYER OF A SUSPECT’S CLOTHING TO ENSURE THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE A WEAPON (can or can’t)
can
A JUDGE_____ DECIDE NOT TO GRANT BOND TO DEFENDANTS BECAUSE OF LEGALLY RELEVANT FACTORS SUCH AS THE DEFENDANT’S PRIOR CRIMINAL RECORD; HISTORY OF NON-APPEARANCE, RISK OF FLIGHT, AND SEVERITY OF THE CHARGE (can or can’t)
can
Public attitude surveys about race and the criminal justice system have consistently found that a _____ exists between how Blacks and Whites view the police
Racial Confidence Gap
The term ______ is defined as any physical force that is more than reasonably necessary to accomplish a lawful police purpose
Excessive Force
