Introduction Flashcards
What is Due Process?
A possible purpose of the criminal justice system emphasizing the protection of the accused’s rights
- innocent until proven guilty
- allows the system and process to take its time
What is Crime Control?
A possible purpose of the criminal justice system emphasizing the protection of the public
- those that are charged should be punished
- guilty until proven innocent
- no hurdles, quick justice
What are administrative offences?
Not committing a new crime but breaking the orders that were put in place
- not technically breaking the law but broken due to other circumstances
What are substantive offences?
Breaking the law
What is R v Jordan and its impact on the criminal justice system?
Determine the maximum amount of time it can take for a trial to start
- Provincial is 18 months
- federal is 30 months
What is factual guilt?
When the accused actually did commit the crime
- The Canadian Criminal Justice System is not concerned with this guilt
What is legal guilt?
When the accused is legally responsible for their actions, in a criminal sense
- the guilt that the Canadian Criminal Justice System is concerned with
- guilty under law
- is possible that an accused in not factually guilty but is found to be legally guilty
What is Actus Reus?
Action or conduct which is an element of crime
- external element
- guilty act
What is Mens Rea?
The intention or knowledge of wrong doing that constitutes part of a crime
- mental element
- guilty mind
What is a provincial court?
Court staffed by judges appointed by the province that tries all summary conviction offences and some indictable matters, conducts preliminary inquiries
- all crimes except for murder appear in provincial court
What is the court of Queen’s Bench?
The higher court within the province
- murder and robbery trials
What is the Court of Appeal?
The appellate court, the court that appeals cases
What is a summary conviction?
Less serious offences
What are legislative facts?
Facts relating to legislation or judicial policy
What are adjudicative facts?
Facts that relate directly to the issue before the judge
What is the Insider Perspective?
Examining the system from the insiders perspective (legal actors within the system)
- Ex. Lawyers, judges take over the case and determine its outcomes, sometimes with little regard as to what the victims want
What is Common Law?
The body of judge-made law, developed on a case-by-case basis, through the interpretation and extension of decisions in previously decided cases
- rely on judicial interpretation of legislation
What is codification?
The process of reducing the common law to a written statutory form
What is the adversarial system?
A description of the legal system in Canada both parties to a dispute are represented by counsel who argue opposing positions and the dispute is settled by a judge who is an impartial arbiter
- this system has difficulty actually understanding what happened
What is Amicus Curiae?
Someone appointed to assist the court by making representations in matters of law or fact that might not otherwise be addressed
- they offer info or expertise
- considered a friend of the court
What are the different players in the Criminal Justice System?
- victims
- courts
- juries
- police
Under Crime Control and Due Process what are victims rights?
Punitive Model - Emphasis on Punishment
Non-Punitive Model - Emphasis on Crime Prevention
What is the role of the victim in the criminal justice system?
Today, a criminal prosecution can now be processed by the states agents without the victim’s consent, and even against the victims wishes
- it does however make it very difficult to have a case when the victim does not either testify or appear in courts
- the courts are unable to excuse witnesses from giving their testimony even if there is emotional trauma
What is the role of the police in the CJS?
Certain cases they play a reactive role within society - respond to a complaint
Other cases play a proactive role - using undercover agents to catch people committing offences
What is the role of the accused?
- Very dependent on the police, lawyers and other actors within the system as they will largely determine what will happen to the accused
What are the roles of the witnesses and front-line workers
concerns for the witnesses are similar to those of the victims of the crime
- records kept by front-line workers are continuously being demanded by the defence counsel in sexual assault cases, exposing workers to serious dilemmas
What is the role of the crown counsel?
Crown counsel is an objective non-partisan who presents the available evidence fairly
What is the defence counsel?
Is an advocate, representing the interests of the accused
What is the role of judges?
makes decisions based solely on the evidence presented to the court by the Crown and defence counsel
What is the role of jurors?
- Makes research difficult as they are not allowed to discuss their deliberations
- many juror members develop high levels of stress
What is the role of interveners?
The court grants individuals or organizations intervener status to assist the court in interpreting the law - they are not allowed to make arguments based on the merits of the case
What level of government creates offences that appear in the criminal code?
federal government
How is it determined which level of incarceration (prison) you get sent to?
Depends on sentencing
- crimes sentenced two year less a day are in provincial courts
- if someone is sent to a provincial prison does not mean their case went through provincial court
What are federal criminal charges?
They only deal with drug related activity such as trafficking
- federal crowns only deal with drug related crimes
What are provincial crowns in charge of?
Anything else but drug trafficking
How do judges determine what constitutes as a criminal offence?
They will start by looking at the Criminal Code and then rely upon other cases and their own initiative to interpret that legislation
- rely on judicial interpretations
The federal government has jurisdiction over what in the constitution in terms of legal matters?
- The Criminal Law
- Except the Constitution of the Courts of Criminal Jurisdictions - including the procedures in Criminal Matters
The provincial government has jurisdiction over what in the constitution in terms of legal matters?
Maintenance and management of public and reformatory prisons for the province
What is the supreme law of Canada?
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
What is section 1 of the Charter?
Rights and freedoms contained in the Charter are subject to such “reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society
- rights set out in the charter are not absolute rights
