United States criminal procedure

United States criminal procedure derives from several sources of law: the baseline protections of the United States Constitution, federal and state statutes, federal and state rules of criminal procedure (such as the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure), and state and federal case law either interpreting the foregoing or deriving from inherit judicial supervisory authority.

Sources of law

U.S. Constitution

Main article: United States constitutional criminal procedure

The United States Constitution, including the United States Bill of Rights and subsequent amendments, contains the following provisions regarding criminal procedure. Due to the incorporation of the Bill of Rights, all of these provisions apply equally to criminal proceedings in state courts, with the exception of the Grand Jury Clause of the Fifth Amendment, the Vicinage Clause of the Sixth Amendment, and (maybe) the Excessive Bail Clause of the Eighth Amendment.

• Article Three, Section Two, Clause Three of the United States Constitution:
  • Jury Clause
  • Venue Clause
• Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution:
  • Grand jury clause
  • Double Jeopardy Clause
  • Self-Incrimination Clause
  • Due process clause
• Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution:
  • Speedy Trial Clause
  • Public trial clause
  • Impartial Jury Clause
  • Vicinage Clause
  • Information Clause
  • Confrontation Clause
  • Compulsory Process Clause
  • Assistance of Counsel Clause
• Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution:
  • Excessive Bail Clause
• Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution:
  • Due process clause
  • Equal Protection Clause

Federal statutes and rules

Federal statutes and rules apply to criminal proceedings in federal courts, such as:

• Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure
• Jencks Act

State statutes and rules

Each state has its own statutes and rules of criminal proceeding applying to proceedings in its courts.

Charging instruments

In a criminal case, the government generally brings charges in one of two ways: either by accusing a suspect directly in a "bill of information" or other similar document, or by bringing evidence before a grand jury to allow that body to determine whether the case should proceed. If the grand jury determines that there is enough evidence to justify the bringing of charges, then the defendant is indicted. In the federal system, a case must always be brought before a grand jury for indictment if it is punishable by death or more than one year in prison; some states, however, do not require indictment.

Petit juries

Once charges have been brought, the case is then brought before a petit jury, (or what is commonly recognized as the normal courtroom jury of six to twelve members), or is tried by a judge alone, if the defense requests it. Any petit jury is selected from a pool by the prosecution and defense.

After both sides have presented their cases and made closing arguments, the judge gives the jury legal instructions; the jury then adjourns to deliberate in private. The jury generally must unanimously agree on a verdict of guilty or not guilty; however, the Supreme Court has upheld non unanimous jury verdicts, so long as the jury is larger than 6 people. In 1972, the Court upheld convictions in Apodaca v. Oregon and Johnson v. Louisiana where Oregon and Louisiana convicted Petitioners on 10-to-2 and 9-to-3 verdicts respectively. In 1979, the Court ruled in Burch v. Louisiana that where a jury was made of 6 people, the verdict must be unanimous.

Presentation of evidence

Main article: United States evidence law

The prosecution gives their opening statements/argument followed by the defense. However, the defense may defer their opening statement/argument until the prosecution has rested its case. The prosecution presents its case first, and may call witnesses and present other evidence against the defendant. After the prosecution rests, the defense may move to dismiss the case if there is insufficient evidence, or present its case and call witnesses. All witnesses may be cross-examined by the opposing side before they have left the witness stand for the first time. Under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the defendant is not required to testify, but must answer the prosecution's questions if he or she does testify.

Verdict

Burden of proof

The burden of proof is on the prosecution in a criminal trial, which must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty of the crime charged.

Sentencing

If a defendant is found guilty, sentencing follows, often at a separate hearing after the prosecution, defense, and court have developed information based on which the judge will craft a sentence. The United States Sentencing Commission has promulgated guidance on what restitution and prison terms should be assessed for different crimes. In capital cases, a separate "penalty phase" occurs, in which the jury determines whether to recommend that the death penalty should be imposed. As with the determination of guilt phase, the burden is on the prosecution to prove its case, and the defendant is entitled to take the stand in his or her own defense, and may call witnesses and present evidence.

Appeals

After sentencing, the defendant may appeal the ruling to a higher court. American appellate courts do not retry the case; they only examine the record of the proceedings in the lower court to determine if errors were made that require a new trial, resentencing, or a complete discharge of the defendant, as is mandated by the circumstances. The prosecution may not appeal after an acquittal, although it may appeal under limited circumstances before verdict is rendered, and may also appeal from the sentence itself. Increasingly, there is also a recognition that collateral consequences of criminal charges may result from the sentence that are not explicitly part of the sentence itself.

See also

• Criminal procedure