CRJ 203: Exam 3 Study A+Graded
Define the two methods of estimating the amount of crime in the United States - ✔In the
United States the two methods of estimating the amount of crime are the Uniform Crime
Reports, based on crimes reported to the police, and the National Crime Victimization
Survey, based on self-reports from households.
Discuss how arrests made by the police impact the criminal court process - ✔Arrests
made by the police impact the criminal court process in two ways: (1) if the police fail to
gather enough evidence, it will be difficult for the police to gain a conviction, and (2) the
increase in the number of arrests has swollen the dockets of the courts.
Describe the four layers of the criminal justice wedding cake. - ✔(1) celebrated cases
(which are very atypical), (2) serious felonies (which are treated as meriting major
attention), (3) lesser felonies (which are treated as of less importance), and (4) the
lower depths (which comprise the large volume of misdemeanor arrests
List the four ways that criminals are formally charged in court and the major actors in
each of these important documents - ✔Defendants are formally charged in court with a
violation of the criminal law by, (1) a complaint signed by the victim, (2) a bill of
information filed by the prosecutor, (3) an arrest warrant prepared by the police, or (4) a
true bill issued by a grand jury.
List the four most common ways that defendants secure pretrial release - ✔The four
most common ways defendants secure pretrial release are (1) release on recognizance
(ROR), (2) cash bond, (3) property bond, and (4) bail bond through the services of a
commercial bail agent.
Compare and contrast "law on the books" and "law in action" approaches to bail setting,
including the overall effects of the bail system on criminal defendants and their cases -
✔Law on the books expresses a strong preference for bail unless clear and convicting
evidence establishes that (1) there is a serious risk that the person will flee; (2) the
person may obstruct justice or threaten, injure, or intimidate a prospective witness or
juror; or (3) the offense is one of violence or one punishable by life imprisonment or
death. In contrast, law in action affects bail setting in terms of uncertainty, risk, jail
overcrowding, and situational justice. How these factors coalesce in a bail decision
affects the processing of criminal defendants in terms of jail conditions, disparate impact
on racial and ethnic minorities, the failure of some defendants to appear in court as
promised, and case disposition.
Explain the role bail agents play in the criminal justice system - ✔The bail agent
provides a specialized form of insurance and makes a profit by focus- ing on low-risk
offenders accused of less serious crimes
,Contrast how the law on the books approach to criminal justice and the law in action
perspective offer contrasting views of the preliminary hearing - ✔The law on the books
approach to criminal justice emphasizes that during the preliminary hearing the judge
decides whether there is probable cause to hold the defendant, while the law in action
perspective emphasizes that in most jurisdictions there is a strong probability that the
case will proceed.
Explain why some jurisdictions use grand juries extensively and others do not - ✔Grand
juries are used extensively in jurisdictions where the constitution requires a grand jury
indictment in all felonies. In jurisdictions that do not have this constitutional requirement,
grand jury indictments are required in only select offenses.
Delineate the three major reasons for case attrition - ✔The three major reasons for case
attrition are (1) legal judgments (lack of evidence), (2) policy priorities (some cases are
considered too minor to be prosecuted), and (3) personal standards of justice (attitudes
of the courtroom work group about what actions should or should not be punished
arraignment - ✔a hearing in which a suspect is charged and pleads guilty or not guilty
arrest - ✔cause to stop; bring into custody
arrest warrant - ✔an order signed by a judge naming the individual to be arrested for a
specific crime
bail - ✔A sum of money used as a security deposit to ensure that an accused person
returns for his or her trial
bail agent - ✔employee of a private, for-profit company that provides money for
suspects to be released from jail; also called a bondsman
bail bond - ✔A document guaranteeing the appearance of a defendant in court as
required and recording the pledge of money or property to be paid to the court if he or
she does not appear, which is signed by the person to be released and anyone else
acting on his or her behalf.
bench warrant (capias) - ✔A document that authorizes a suspect's or defendant's arrest
for not appearing in court as required.
bind over - ✔If at the preliminary hearing the judge believes that sufficient probable
cause exists to hold a criminal defendant, the accused is said to be bound over for trial.
grand jury - ✔a jury, normally of twenty-three jurors, selected to examine the validity of
an accusation before trial.
, hierarchy rule - ✔In a multiple-offense incident, only the most serious crime is counted.
index crimes - ✔the eight types of crime reported annually by the FBI in the Uniform
Crime Reports: murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-
theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson
indictment - ✔a formal charge or accusation of a serious crime
initial appearance - ✔an accused's first appearance before a judge or magistrate
following arrest
National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) - ✔Program that requires local
police agencies to provide a brief account of each incident and arrest within 22 crime
patterns, including incident, victim, and offender information.
nolle prosequi - ✔An entry, made by a prosecutor on the record of a case and
announced in court, indicating that the charges specified will not be prosecuted. In
effect, the charges are thereby dismissed.
no true bill - ✔The decision of a grand jury not to indict a person for a crime.
preliminary hearing - ✔An initial hearing in which a judge decides if there is probable
cause to believe that the defendant committed the crime with which he or she is
charged
pretrial release services programs - ✔Units within court systems whose employees
collect and evaluate information that judges use to determine the suitability of
defendants for release from custody while criminal charges are pending. Many units
also employ officers who supervise defendants who are granted pretrial release.
preventive detention - ✔a law which allows federal judges to order that an accused felon
be held, without bail, when there is good reason to believe that he or she will commit yet
another serious crime before trial
probable cause - ✔reasonable cause for issuing a search warrant or making an arrest;
more than mere suspicion
property bond - ✔The setting of bail in the form of land, houses, stocks, or other tangible
property. In the event that the defendant absconds before trial, the bond becomes the
property of the court.
release on recognizance (ROR) - ✔pretrial release granted on the defendant's promise
to appear in court, because the judge believes that the defendant's ties in the
community guarantee that he or she will appear
Define the two methods of estimating the amount of crime in the United States - ✔In the
United States the two methods of estimating the amount of crime are the Uniform Crime
Reports, based on crimes reported to the police, and the National Crime Victimization
Survey, based on self-reports from households.
Discuss how arrests made by the police impact the criminal court process - ✔Arrests
made by the police impact the criminal court process in two ways: (1) if the police fail to
gather enough evidence, it will be difficult for the police to gain a conviction, and (2) the
increase in the number of arrests has swollen the dockets of the courts.
Describe the four layers of the criminal justice wedding cake. - ✔(1) celebrated cases
(which are very atypical), (2) serious felonies (which are treated as meriting major
attention), (3) lesser felonies (which are treated as of less importance), and (4) the
lower depths (which comprise the large volume of misdemeanor arrests
List the four ways that criminals are formally charged in court and the major actors in
each of these important documents - ✔Defendants are formally charged in court with a
violation of the criminal law by, (1) a complaint signed by the victim, (2) a bill of
information filed by the prosecutor, (3) an arrest warrant prepared by the police, or (4) a
true bill issued by a grand jury.
List the four most common ways that defendants secure pretrial release - ✔The four
most common ways defendants secure pretrial release are (1) release on recognizance
(ROR), (2) cash bond, (3) property bond, and (4) bail bond through the services of a
commercial bail agent.
Compare and contrast "law on the books" and "law in action" approaches to bail setting,
including the overall effects of the bail system on criminal defendants and their cases -
✔Law on the books expresses a strong preference for bail unless clear and convicting
evidence establishes that (1) there is a serious risk that the person will flee; (2) the
person may obstruct justice or threaten, injure, or intimidate a prospective witness or
juror; or (3) the offense is one of violence or one punishable by life imprisonment or
death. In contrast, law in action affects bail setting in terms of uncertainty, risk, jail
overcrowding, and situational justice. How these factors coalesce in a bail decision
affects the processing of criminal defendants in terms of jail conditions, disparate impact
on racial and ethnic minorities, the failure of some defendants to appear in court as
promised, and case disposition.
Explain the role bail agents play in the criminal justice system - ✔The bail agent
provides a specialized form of insurance and makes a profit by focus- ing on low-risk
offenders accused of less serious crimes
,Contrast how the law on the books approach to criminal justice and the law in action
perspective offer contrasting views of the preliminary hearing - ✔The law on the books
approach to criminal justice emphasizes that during the preliminary hearing the judge
decides whether there is probable cause to hold the defendant, while the law in action
perspective emphasizes that in most jurisdictions there is a strong probability that the
case will proceed.
Explain why some jurisdictions use grand juries extensively and others do not - ✔Grand
juries are used extensively in jurisdictions where the constitution requires a grand jury
indictment in all felonies. In jurisdictions that do not have this constitutional requirement,
grand jury indictments are required in only select offenses.
Delineate the three major reasons for case attrition - ✔The three major reasons for case
attrition are (1) legal judgments (lack of evidence), (2) policy priorities (some cases are
considered too minor to be prosecuted), and (3) personal standards of justice (attitudes
of the courtroom work group about what actions should or should not be punished
arraignment - ✔a hearing in which a suspect is charged and pleads guilty or not guilty
arrest - ✔cause to stop; bring into custody
arrest warrant - ✔an order signed by a judge naming the individual to be arrested for a
specific crime
bail - ✔A sum of money used as a security deposit to ensure that an accused person
returns for his or her trial
bail agent - ✔employee of a private, for-profit company that provides money for
suspects to be released from jail; also called a bondsman
bail bond - ✔A document guaranteeing the appearance of a defendant in court as
required and recording the pledge of money or property to be paid to the court if he or
she does not appear, which is signed by the person to be released and anyone else
acting on his or her behalf.
bench warrant (capias) - ✔A document that authorizes a suspect's or defendant's arrest
for not appearing in court as required.
bind over - ✔If at the preliminary hearing the judge believes that sufficient probable
cause exists to hold a criminal defendant, the accused is said to be bound over for trial.
grand jury - ✔a jury, normally of twenty-three jurors, selected to examine the validity of
an accusation before trial.
, hierarchy rule - ✔In a multiple-offense incident, only the most serious crime is counted.
index crimes - ✔the eight types of crime reported annually by the FBI in the Uniform
Crime Reports: murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-
theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson
indictment - ✔a formal charge or accusation of a serious crime
initial appearance - ✔an accused's first appearance before a judge or magistrate
following arrest
National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) - ✔Program that requires local
police agencies to provide a brief account of each incident and arrest within 22 crime
patterns, including incident, victim, and offender information.
nolle prosequi - ✔An entry, made by a prosecutor on the record of a case and
announced in court, indicating that the charges specified will not be prosecuted. In
effect, the charges are thereby dismissed.
no true bill - ✔The decision of a grand jury not to indict a person for a crime.
preliminary hearing - ✔An initial hearing in which a judge decides if there is probable
cause to believe that the defendant committed the crime with which he or she is
charged
pretrial release services programs - ✔Units within court systems whose employees
collect and evaluate information that judges use to determine the suitability of
defendants for release from custody while criminal charges are pending. Many units
also employ officers who supervise defendants who are granted pretrial release.
preventive detention - ✔a law which allows federal judges to order that an accused felon
be held, without bail, when there is good reason to believe that he or she will commit yet
another serious crime before trial
probable cause - ✔reasonable cause for issuing a search warrant or making an arrest;
more than mere suspicion
property bond - ✔The setting of bail in the form of land, houses, stocks, or other tangible
property. In the event that the defendant absconds before trial, the bond becomes the
property of the court.
release on recognizance (ROR) - ✔pretrial release granted on the defendant's promise
to appear in court, because the judge believes that the defendant's ties in the
community guarantee that he or she will appear
