Trial rights, guilty pleas and plea bargaining Flashcards
Trial rights list
speedy trial, evidentiary disclosure, right to a public trial, right to unbiased judge, right to jury, right to counsel,, right to confront adverse witnesses,
Right to speedy trial
all criminal ∆s have const right to a speedy trial, to determine whether that right has been violated, courts should consider the totality of the circumstances, including
i. the length of the delay
ii. reason for delay
iii. prejudice to ∆
Right to evidentiary disclosure
a P must disclose to criminal ∆ all material exculpatory evidence (brady rule)
Right to public trial
c. Right to public trial given by 6th and 14th amdt, but varies depending on the stge
i. preliminary probable cause presumptively open to public and press, as are pretrial suppresson hearings (although they may be closed under some circumstances)
ii. Press has right to attend trial itself, even if both parties oppose. May permit televising the proceedings.
Right to unbiased judge
right to unbiased judge means
i. judge has no financial stake in outcome and
ii. the judge has no actual malice towards the ∆
Right to jury
i. fundamentally: all crim ∆s have right to fair and impartial jury
ii. right to trial by jury if max authorized sentence exceeds 6 months
iii. must have at least 6 jurors
iv. unanimity required only if 6 jurors are used, verdicts in 12 person juries need not be unanimous
1. this is the const limit, most states require unanimity among 12
v. Cross sectional requirement—requires that pool from which jury is drawn represents cross section of the community.
1. just bc jury is all white, doesn’t = violaton. the pool just has to be diverse
vi. Peremptory challenges: permiti bboth sides to exclude jurors without stating their reasons for doing so, but cannot be used to exlude jurors for race or gender
Right to counsel
∆can claim either ineffective assitance of counsel or conflict
ineffective assistance of counsel claim, 2 prongs 1) deficiency and 2) prejudice
- deficiency req: ∆ must show that counsel performance fell below objective standard of reasonableness. very strong showing of deficiency.
- ALSO show prejudice: ∆ must show that but for deficiency, the outcome of the trial would have been different
ex: case where napping during examination of witness didn’t lead to prejudice bc unimportant witness
v. conflicts of interest
1. joint represent not automatically invalid. but if atty tells court of conflict at or before trial, and court refuses to listen→ automatic reversal.
2. ∆ conflict w atty→ not a ground to relief
if ∆succeeds, automatic reversal
- otherwise apply harmless error test
ii. ony available in misdemeanor cass if imprisonment actually imposed.
iii. allowed to waive the right if
1. knowing and intelligent
2. competent to proceed pro se
vi. seizing drug money is not a denial of right to counsel, even if ∆ was going to use that money to pay counsel.
Right to confront adverse witnesses
i. not absolute, for ex it may harm public purpose like protecting V from trauma.
ii. co-∆ confession: if 2 people tried tgether and one has given confession against the other, right of confrontation prohibits use of that statement.
1. however, may be allowed if
a. all references to other ∆ can be eliminated
b. confessor takes the stand and subjects self to cross-x or
c. confession of the nontestifyingg co-∆ is used too rebut the ∆’s claim that his confession was obtained coercively
- Prior testimony of unavailable statement: may not be admitted unless declarant is unavailable and ∆ had opportunity too cross-x declarant at time it was made
a. testimonial = anything under oath. - Result of forensic lab testing—testimonial and unadmissable unless person who did them comes in for cross-x.
a. no witness needed if not introduced for their truth (for ex only to show consistency bw state and fed lab)
iii. Forfeit right to confront if you did something wrong that was intended to keep W from testifying.
Plea taking colloquy and remedy for failure to meet the standards
a. valid plea: judge must establish it is both voluntary and intelligent
b. plea taking colloquy: before accepting the plea, in open court, must address 2 things on the record
i. nature of the charges, including all elements of the offense
ii. maximum possible penalty and any mandatory minimum AND
iii. that ∆ has right not to plead guilty, and if he does pead guilty, he waives the right to trial.
c. Remedy for failure to meet the standards: withdrawal of plea and pleading anew.
Withdrawing the plea
once ∆ has pled gulty and sentenced. difficult to withdraw but can do so in 3 cases
i. plea is involuntary bc of defect in colloquy
ii. ∆ prevails on claim of ineffective assistance of councel or
1. special circumstance—if a guilty plea carries risk of deportation, counse failure to inform client of that fact satisfies the deficiency, but ∆ must also prove that decision to reject the plea would have been rational under the circumstances
iii. if prosecutor fails to fulfill his or her part of the bargain.
1. for ex: P agrees to make no sentence recommendation but breaks agreement. ∆ can withdraw plea
Burden of proof, sufficiency of evidence, and jury instructions
i. DP requires that in criminal cases, the STATE must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. BUT, state is allowed to impose burden of proof on the ∆ in regard to an affirmative defense, like insanity or self defense. But only those defences that add a new mitigating element, not defenses that merely show an element of the crime is not present, like an alibi
1. Presumptions: Mandatory presumption that shifts burden of proof to the ∆ violates 14th amendment requirement that the state prove every element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
a. For ex: state cannot require that ∆ prove consent in rape case by a lower standard, because lack of consent is an element of the crime of rape→ it’s up to prosecution
2. Jury instruction: judge is to give a jury instruction requested by the ∆ or prosecution if the instruction is correct, hasn’t already been given, and is supported by some evidence.
