Document Analysis



Chapter 8: Due Process and Rights of the Accused You Be the JudgeDirections.—As a class, read the selections about due process of law presented and discuss the meaning. Then, with a partner, read the scenarios on the back of this handout and respond. Make sure when you respond to the scenarios you cite parts of the US Constitution that could support your opinions.Due Process of Law Selections“No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land.”― Magna Carta, Clause 39 (1215).“[N]or shall any person . . . be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law . . . .”― U.S. Const., amend V (1791).“[N]or shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law . . . .”― U.S. Const., amend. XIV, § 1 (1868).“[Due process of law is] a system of rights based on moral principles so deeply imbedded in the traditions and feelings of our people as to be deemed fundamental to a civilized society as conceived by our whole history. Due Process is that which comports with the deepest notions of what is fair and right and just.”― Solesbee v. Balkcom, 339 U.S. 9, 16 (1950), Justice Felix Frankfurter dissenting.“Due process has not been reduced to any formula; its content cannot be determined by reference to any code. The best that can be said is that . . . it has represented the balance which our Nation, built upon postulates of respect for the liberty of the individual, has struck between that liberty and the demands of organized society . . . . The balance of which I speak is the balance struck by this country, having regard to what history teaches are the traditions from which it developed as well as the traditions from which it broke. That tradition is a living thing . . . .“. . . . This "liberty" is not a series of isolated points pricked out in terms of the taking of property; the freedom of speech, press, and religion; the right to keep and bear arms; the freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures; and so on. It is a rational continuum which, broadly speaking, includes a freedom from all substantial arbitrary impositions and purposeless restraints . . . .”― Poe v. Ullman, 367 U.S. 497, 542-43 (1961), Justice John M. Harlan II dissenting.A judge in a small town himself files a lawsuit against his neighbor over a property dispute. As it happens, he is the only judge in town, He decides the case himself in his favor. His neighbor appeals the case to an appellate court and asks that court to overturn the judge’s ruling in favor of himself and have the case sent to a different court in a nearby county. The judge says he followed all the proper rules of procedure and evidence.Ruling. If I were the appeals court, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________In a criminal court, during the trial, the prosecutors present evidence that the defense was unaware of, even though they had filed a proper request to see the evidence. The defense makes a motion in the court for a mistrial (which would lead to a new trial).Ruling. If I were the judge, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________In a pre-trial hearing, police bring in an accused prisoner. The prisoner tells the judge, “I don’t know why I’m here. No one has told me anything. I don’t have a lawyer. I don’t know what’s going on. I’ve been in prison for 5 days.”Ruling. If I were the judge, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A prisoner files suit in a federal district court to have his case heard. The prosecutors say he is an American citizen, but he was captured overseas while helping an enemy terrorist group—and that he is therefore an enemy combatant and they have no intention of having a trial for him.Ruling. If I were the judge, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________During a trial, during a moment when the jury was waiting outside the courtroom, one juror overhears two jurors talk about how they “know the defendant is guilty—all people like him are guilty of something.” The juror that overhears this notifies the judge.Ruling. If I were the judge, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________At a trial, a defendant is not allowed to present a case in her own defense. The prosecution had argued to the trial judge that the case was “open and shut” and the evidence against the accused was overwhelming. The judge agreed in order to save the state the cost of a lengthy trial.Ruling. If I were the appeals court, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A criminal defendant is found guilty of theft. For punishment, the prosecutors ask the judge to have the defendant’s hands cut off.Ruling. If I were the judge, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________While in “hot pursuit,” police chase a suspect into someone’s house (not the suspect’s). Inside, they find illegal weapon that do, in fact, belong to the home-owner. Police arrest the home-owner on weapons charges. At a pre-trial hearing, prosecutors ask that the illegal weapons be admitted as evidence. The defense attorney asks that the weapons not be admitted as evidence—and the case dismissed—because police did not have a warrant and did not have probable cause. Ruling. If I were the judge, I would:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download