Final Exam Flashcards
Most Americans now consider themselves to be ______
Independents
Register to vote at drivers license and welfare agencies is _____
Motor Voter Act
Which of the following is a criterion through which jobs are given out in the merit system
Competence
In recent years an increasing number of state legislators are considering themselves to be _______________
Full-time representatives
Incumbents usually win for all the following reasons except
They force quality challengers
Courts are ______ institutions because they _________
Political
Resolve conflicts
*thus they make public policy
What determines whether a case is filed in a federal or state court?
It is base on whether the infraction involves a federal or state law
The 5 judicial styles of decision-making
1) passive appearance
- courts wait for a case
2) special rules of access
3) legal procedures
- motions, written briefs, & oral arguments
4) decisions in specific cases
5) appearance of objectivity
- judges can not use political considerations
Statutory Law
Laws that are passed by legislatures that take precedence over common law
Common law
Only applied by the courts when no statutory provisions are relevant or when it must be interpreted
Have the ammount of lawyers increased or decreased?
Significantly increased
Civil case
Disputes between individual or organizations that do not involve law-breaking
Liability
Legal responsibility for damages
Tort
A civil wrong or injury case involving private parties
Tort reform
Capping awards
Restricting “joint and several” liability
Instituting looser pays
Tort:
Proponents vs Opponents
Proponents-organizations
Oppinents-lawyers be less cases
Judicial federalism
State courts exercise of their authority to interperet their own state constitutions to guarantee protections of individual rights
The supremacy clause
Article VI
The federal constitution supersedes state constitutions that bind the judges in every state
BUT state constitutions cover many topics that are not adressed in the constitution
Judicial policy divergance
Judicial federalism creates diversity between federal and state law as well as from state to state
Structure of courts
State courts comprise a single, integrated judicial system
Minor Trail Courts
Key word, MINOR
“Courts of limited jurisdiction” Lowers level courts -traffic courts -family courts -policy courts -small claims
Presided over by justices of the peace, magistrates, or police judges
Production line style
Used in minor trial courts
Decide very quickly (10-15 minutes)
Major trail courts
Handle major civil and criminal cases from statutes, common law, and constitutions
- district courts
- circuit courts
- criminal courts
- common pleas courts
Prosecutor- state attorney or district attorney
Pros and Cons to a small Juries
Pros - saves time and money
Cons- a propensity to lack diversity
Jurors must be a resident and 18+
Public Defenders
If arrested, if you cannot afford an attorney you must be provided one by the state
Gideon vs Wainwright 1963
Appellate courts, district courts, and state supreme courts
Courts of last resort
Consider questions of law rather than questions of facts
Indiana State Supreme Court
5 total justices
1 Chief Justice + 4 associate justices
-Loretta Rush
States options of making a judge
1) partisan election
2) non partisan election
3) appointment by the governor
4) legislative selection (not used often)
5) appointment-retention election plan
Partisan & Nonpartisan Elections
- Few incumbent judges are ever defeated
- majority run unopposed
- benefits of: title of judge, record of action, low information elections
Judges appointment by governor
- Allows independence and isolation from district political invdvement BUT it forces judges into political relationships
- voters are not able to evaluate “legal” qualifications
Appointment-retention election plan
- governor appoints the judges
- judge serves a short period of time
- election allows people to confirm or remove judge
- judge is rarely removed
Nearly _____ of citizens live in urban areas
2/3
Service function
- supplying goods and services
- police protection and sewage disposal
Political Function
- managing conflict over public policy
- where do we put things? (Libraries, Police, etc)
Residential mobility theories
Push factors
Pull factors
Stay or move?
Theories based on a rational calculation of personal costs and benefits
Push: Crime Congestion Noise Racial conflict Etc
Pull:
More space
Larger houses
Better schools
Stay or move? Based on: SES race Immigrant status City/rural residents
True or False
States may not create or destroy any or all units of local government
False. They can
County Government
- created by the state
- primarily performs functions of the state (administrative arm)
- marriage license, birth certificates, death certificates, etc
City government
- granted a charter
- primarily serves local residents
- responsible for sanitation, sidewalks, parks, roads, etc
General purpose vs. special purpose
General : counties, cities, and townships
Special : school districts and other special districts
Rural vs urban government functions
Rural county government is the traditional administrative subdivisions of the state government
Urban county government preforms the traditional plus contemporary urban services like mass transit, convention centers, airports, pollution control, etc
County governments are also known as :
Boroughs in Alaska
Parishes in Louisiana
_____ counties in Indiana
92
Municipal corporations
Boundaries, power, and functions come from the state
Charters
A license to operate as a city granted to a community by the state
Grants powers of local self-government
State have power to take away or alter
Main forms of city government
Which do we have?
1) commission
2) council-manage
3) mayor-council
Commission
Pros and cons
- has both legislative and executive powers
- decisions are split between commissions and other elected/hired officials
- pros: responsibility: fragmented and dispersed
- cons: lacks efficiency and accountability
Council-manage
Pros and cons
- Distinguished legislative “policy making” and executive “administration” in the city
- elected council-policy making
- appointed manager-professional administration
- pros: more politically neutral
- cons: less voter influence
*used by 55% of US cities
Mayor-Council
-designed to separate the powers of the legislative and executive
- mayor : executive
- council : legislative
- pros: Stong mayor-council in large cities
- cons: weak mayor-councils in small cities
Town meetings are what form of government
Democracy
At large elections
All council members run citywide and are voted on by all voters in the city
Single member district elections
You can vote once which is basses off of what district you live in
Combination elections
You can vote for all of the at-large position but only one of the district-based council seats
Ex) Columbus & Fort Wayne Indiana
True or false:
Most cities hold nonpartisan elections
True
Nonpartisan elections
Taking out partisanship tends to benefit:
1) Republican candidates
2) Middle-class candidates
3) Incumbents
Without party systems, __________________ and _____________ are more important
Civic organizations & independent community groups
Citizen Participation
Communitarian values emphasize direct citizen participation in community affairs
Citizen participation usually focuses on ——- but there are potentially ______
Positives. Negative
Consolidated government
Unigov
Local elections citizen participation
Lower turnout Less party allegiance More group identities More group interests Less media Wider variety of candidates
Many local governments hold municipal elections at odd times of the year
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Separating local issues from state/national issues
- minimizing coattails/punishment
Cons:
- reduces voter turnout
- increases disproportionate influence
Local Referenda Voters
1) Initiative- Potition
2) Referendum- Ballot
3) Recall- Take someone out of office
New connections with citizens
Interactive web site
Government access cable television stations
