Courts

A Text/Reader
Third Edition
Cassia Spohn - Arizona State University, USA
Craig T. Hemmens - Washington State University, USA
Wesley S. McCann - College of New Jersey
SAGE Text Reader Series in Criminology and Criminal Justice
Courts
September 2018 | 536 pages | Sage US
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Description

“The book is a focused, well-written, and adequately resourced introductory text on the court system.”
—Anita Kalunta-Crumpton, Texas Southern University  

Courts: A Text/Reader, Third Edition, helps students understand the U.S. court system in context, with each brief authored section of the text enhanced by edited research articles that illustrate the questions and controversies in the judicial system today. The articles reflect both classic studies of the criminal court system and state-of-the-art research, and they often have a policy perspective that demonstrates the potential impact research can have on the court system. Designed to enhance understanding, the book includes a helpful “How to Read a Research Article” section before the first reading, as well as article introductions and discussion questions that capture students’ interest and help them develop critical thinking skills.   

New to the Third Edition

  • Ninety percent of the journal articles have been updated and introduce students to important topics, such as the effects of trial judges’ sex and race, perceptions of plea bargaining, wrongful convictions, and the sentencing of drug offenders.    
  • New “Current Controversy” debates in each chapter highlight contentious issues in the courts, such as public defender caseloads, the impact of social media on criminal trials, and the need for more drug courts.  
  • A new “Current Cases” boxed feature elaborates on recent key court decisions and the impact they have had on issues such as defining “effective” counsel, racial bias in sentencing and jury deliberations, and the importance of judicial impartiality.
  • Coverage of critical topics has been expanded throughout to introduce students to important issues, such as specialized courts, bail and pretrial release, the death penalty, and restorative justice.
  • Statistics, graphs, and tables have all been updated to demonstrate the most recent trends in the court system.

 

Contents

Foreword

Foreword

Preface

  • Why This Book?
  • Structure of the Book
  • New to This Edition
  • Acknowledgments
  • SECTION I. Introduction: Courts and Case Processing
  • Why Study the Courts?
  • The Role of Courts in the Criminal Justice System
  • The Structure and Jurisdiction of U.S. Courts
  • A Brief Historical Overview
  • Federal Courts
  • State Courts
  • The Juvenile Court
  • Court Actors
  • Overview of the Criminal Process
  • Justice, the Law, and Packer’s Models of Criminal Justice
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • How to Read a Research Article
  • READING 1. The Process Is the Punishment
  • READING 2. Wrongful Conviction: Perceptions of Criminal Justice Professionals Regarding the Frequency of Wrongful Conviction and the Extent of System Errors
  • SECTION II. Historical and Contemporary Perspectives on Law and the Courts
  • What Is Law?
  • How Judges “Make Law”
  • Development of the Common-Law System
  • The Rule of Law
  • Contemporary Sources of Law
  • Sources of Individual Rights
  • What Is the Difference Between Criminal Law and Civil Law?
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 3. Ideological Divisiveness in Criminal Procedure Cases: Measuring Variability in U.S. Supreme Court Outcomes
  • READING 4. The Racial Politics of Due Process Protection: Does Partisanship or Racial Composition Influence State-Level Adoption of Recorded Interrogation Policies?
  • SECTION III. Prosecutors and Defense Attorneys
  • The Adversarial System
  • Prosecutors
  • Defense Attorneys
  • Diversity in the Adversarial System
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 5. Violated Trust: Conceptualizing Prosecutorial Misconduct
  • READING 6. Prosecuting Intimate Partner Sexual Assault: Legal and Extra-Legal Factors That Influence Charging Decisions
  • SECTION IV. Judges and Jurors
  • Judges and Jurors: Fact Finding and Applying the Law
  • Judges
  • Jurors and Jury Decision Making
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 7. Representation on the Courts? The Effects of Trial Judges’ Sex and Race
  • READING 8. Jury Nullification: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?
  • SECTION V. Pretrial and Trial Processes
  • The Pretrial Process
  • Plea Bargaining
  • The Trial Process
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 9. The Impact of Race, Gender, and Age on the Pretrial Decision
  • READING 10. Confession Evidence: Commonsense Myths and Misconceptions
  • SECTION VI. Plea Bargaining and Trial Dynamics
  • Plea Bargaining
  • The Courtroom Workgroup
  • Media Influence in Criminal Trials
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 11. Justice Served? Perceptions of Plea Bargaining Involving a Sexual Assault in Child and Adult Females
  • READING 12. Is a Plea Really a Bargain? An Analysis of Plea and Trial Dispositions in New York City
  • SECTION VII. Sentencing
  • The Goals of Sentencing
  • The Judge’s Options at Sentencing
  • How Do Judges Decide? Modeling the Sentencing Process
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 13. Do the Drugs, Do the Time? The Effect of Drug Abuse on Sentences
  • READING 14. Sentencing Transferred Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Court: The Direct and Interactive Effects of Race and Ethnicity
  • SECTION VIII. The Appellate Process
  • The Appellate Courts
  • Underlying Concepts
  • The “Right” to Appeal
  • Appealing to a Higher Court
  • The Writ of Habeas Corpus
  • Considering Clemency
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 15. Merciful Justice: Lessons From 50 Years of New York Death Penalty Commutations
  • READING 16. Preventing Wrongful Convictions: An Analysis of State Investigation Reforms
  • SECTION IX. Specialized Courts and Other Trends in Adjudication
  • Problem-Solving Courts
  • Drug Treatment Courts
  • Domestic Violence Courts
  • Other Problem-Solving Courts
  • Juvenile Courts
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 17. An Integrated Theory of Specialized Court Programs: Using Procedural Justice and Therapeutic Jurisprudence to Promote Offender Compliance and Rehabilitation
  • READING 18. Domestic Violence Courts: A Multisite Test of Whether and How They Change Offender Outcomes

Glossary

Glossary

References

References

Index

Index

About the Authors

About the Authors

Description

“The book is a focused, well-written, and adequately resourced introductory text on the court system.”
—Anita Kalunta-Crumpton, Texas Southern University  

Courts: A Text/Reader, Third Edition, helps students understand the U.S. court system in context, with each brief authored section of the text enhanced by edited research articles that illustrate the questions and controversies in the judicial system today. The articles reflect both classic studies of the criminal court system and state-of-the-art research, and they often have a policy perspective that demonstrates the potential impact research can have on the court system. Designed to enhance understanding, the book includes a helpful “How to Read a Research Article” section before the first reading, as well as article introductions and discussion questions that capture students’ interest and help them develop critical thinking skills.   

New to the Third Edition

  • Ninety percent of the journal articles have been updated and introduce students to important topics, such as the effects of trial judges’ sex and race, perceptions of plea bargaining, wrongful convictions, and the sentencing of drug offenders.    
  • New “Current Controversy” debates in each chapter highlight contentious issues in the courts, such as public defender caseloads, the impact of social media on criminal trials, and the need for more drug courts.  
  • A new “Current Cases” boxed feature elaborates on recent key court decisions and the impact they have had on issues such as defining “effective” counsel, racial bias in sentencing and jury deliberations, and the importance of judicial impartiality.
  • Coverage of critical topics has been expanded throughout to introduce students to important issues, such as specialized courts, bail and pretrial release, the death penalty, and restorative justice.
  • Statistics, graphs, and tables have all been updated to demonstrate the most recent trends in the court system.

 

Contents

Foreword

Foreword

Preface

  • Why This Book?
  • Structure of the Book
  • New to This Edition
  • Acknowledgments
  • SECTION I. Introduction: Courts and Case Processing
  • Why Study the Courts?
  • The Role of Courts in the Criminal Justice System
  • The Structure and Jurisdiction of U.S. Courts
  • A Brief Historical Overview
  • Federal Courts
  • State Courts
  • The Juvenile Court
  • Court Actors
  • Overview of the Criminal Process
  • Justice, the Law, and Packer’s Models of Criminal Justice
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • How to Read a Research Article
  • READING 1. The Process Is the Punishment
  • READING 2. Wrongful Conviction: Perceptions of Criminal Justice Professionals Regarding the Frequency of Wrongful Conviction and the Extent of System Errors
  • SECTION II. Historical and Contemporary Perspectives on Law and the Courts
  • What Is Law?
  • How Judges “Make Law”
  • Development of the Common-Law System
  • The Rule of Law
  • Contemporary Sources of Law
  • Sources of Individual Rights
  • What Is the Difference Between Criminal Law and Civil Law?
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 3. Ideological Divisiveness in Criminal Procedure Cases: Measuring Variability in U.S. Supreme Court Outcomes
  • READING 4. The Racial Politics of Due Process Protection: Does Partisanship or Racial Composition Influence State-Level Adoption of Recorded Interrogation Policies?
  • SECTION III. Prosecutors and Defense Attorneys
  • The Adversarial System
  • Prosecutors
  • Defense Attorneys
  • Diversity in the Adversarial System
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 5. Violated Trust: Conceptualizing Prosecutorial Misconduct
  • READING 6. Prosecuting Intimate Partner Sexual Assault: Legal and Extra-Legal Factors That Influence Charging Decisions
  • SECTION IV. Judges and Jurors
  • Judges and Jurors: Fact Finding and Applying the Law
  • Judges
  • Jurors and Jury Decision Making
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 7. Representation on the Courts? The Effects of Trial Judges’ Sex and Race
  • READING 8. Jury Nullification: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?
  • SECTION V. Pretrial and Trial Processes
  • The Pretrial Process
  • Plea Bargaining
  • The Trial Process
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 9. The Impact of Race, Gender, and Age on the Pretrial Decision
  • READING 10. Confession Evidence: Commonsense Myths and Misconceptions
  • SECTION VI. Plea Bargaining and Trial Dynamics
  • Plea Bargaining
  • The Courtroom Workgroup
  • Media Influence in Criminal Trials
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 11. Justice Served? Perceptions of Plea Bargaining Involving a Sexual Assault in Child and Adult Females
  • READING 12. Is a Plea Really a Bargain? An Analysis of Plea and Trial Dispositions in New York City
  • SECTION VII. Sentencing
  • The Goals of Sentencing
  • The Judge’s Options at Sentencing
  • How Do Judges Decide? Modeling the Sentencing Process
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 13. Do the Drugs, Do the Time? The Effect of Drug Abuse on Sentences
  • READING 14. Sentencing Transferred Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Court: The Direct and Interactive Effects of Race and Ethnicity
  • SECTION VIII. The Appellate Process
  • The Appellate Courts
  • Underlying Concepts
  • The “Right” to Appeal
  • Appealing to a Higher Court
  • The Writ of Habeas Corpus
  • Considering Clemency
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 15. Merciful Justice: Lessons From 50 Years of New York Death Penalty Commutations
  • READING 16. Preventing Wrongful Convictions: An Analysis of State Investigation Reforms
  • SECTION IX. Specialized Courts and Other Trends in Adjudication
  • Problem-Solving Courts
  • Drug Treatment Courts
  • Domestic Violence Courts
  • Other Problem-Solving Courts
  • Juvenile Courts
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 17. An Integrated Theory of Specialized Court Programs: Using Procedural Justice and Therapeutic Jurisprudence to Promote Offender Compliance and Rehabilitation
  • READING 18. Domestic Violence Courts: A Multisite Test of Whether and How They Change Offender Outcomes

Glossary

Glossary

References

References

Index

Index

About the Authors

About the Authors

September 2018 | 536 pages | Sage US

Format Published Date ISBN Price

“The book is a focused, well-written, and adequately resourced introductory text on the court system.”
—Anita Kalunta-Crumpton, Texas Southern University  

Courts: A Text/Reader, Third Edition, helps students understand the U.S. court system in context, with each brief authored section of the text enhanced by edited research articles that illustrate the questions and controversies in the judicial system today. The articles reflect both classic studies of the criminal court system and state-of-the-art research, and they often have a policy perspective that demonstrates the potential impact research can have on the court system. Designed to enhance understanding, the book includes a helpful “How to Read a Research Article” section before the first reading, as well as article introductions and discussion questions that capture students’ interest and help them develop critical thinking skills.   

New to the Third Edition

  • Ninety percent of the journal articles have been updated and introduce students to important topics, such as the effects of trial judges’ sex and race, perceptions of plea bargaining, wrongful convictions, and the sentencing of drug offenders.    
  • New “Current Controversy” debates in each chapter highlight contentious issues in the courts, such as public defender caseloads, the impact of social media on criminal trials, and the need for more drug courts.  
  • A new “Current Cases” boxed feature elaborates on recent key court decisions and the impact they have had on issues such as defining “effective” counsel, racial bias in sentencing and jury deliberations, and the importance of judicial impartiality.
  • Coverage of critical topics has been expanded throughout to introduce students to important issues, such as specialized courts, bail and pretrial release, the death penalty, and restorative justice.
  • Statistics, graphs, and tables have all been updated to demonstrate the most recent trends in the court system.

 


Table Of Contents:

  • Foreword
  • Preface
  • Why This Book?
  • Structure of the Book
  • New to This Edition
  • Acknowledgments
  • SECTION I. Introduction: Courts and Case Processing
  • Why Study the Courts?
  • The Role of Courts in the Criminal Justice System
  • The Structure and Jurisdiction of U.S. Courts
  • A Brief Historical Overview
  • Federal Courts
  • State Courts
  • The Juvenile Court
  • Court Actors
  • Overview of the Criminal Process
  • Justice, the Law, and Packer’s Models of Criminal Justice
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • How to Read a Research Article
  • READING 1. The Process Is the Punishment
  • READING 2. Wrongful Conviction: Perceptions of Criminal Justice Professionals Regarding the Frequency of Wrongful Conviction and the Extent of System Errors
  • SECTION II. Historical and Contemporary Perspectives on Law and the Courts
  • What Is Law?
  • How Judges “Make Law”
  • Development of the Common-Law System
  • The Rule of Law
  • Contemporary Sources of Law
  • Sources of Individual Rights
  • What Is the Difference Between Criminal Law and Civil Law?
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 3. Ideological Divisiveness in Criminal Procedure Cases: Measuring Variability in U.S. Supreme Court Outcomes
  • READING 4. The Racial Politics of Due Process Protection: Does Partisanship or Racial Composition Influence State-Level Adoption of Recorded Interrogation Policies?
  • SECTION III. Prosecutors and Defense Attorneys
  • The Adversarial System
  • Prosecutors
  • Defense Attorneys
  • Diversity in the Adversarial System
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 5. Violated Trust: Conceptualizing Prosecutorial Misconduct
  • READING 6. Prosecuting Intimate Partner Sexual Assault: Legal and Extra-Legal Factors That Influence Charging Decisions
  • SECTION IV. Judges and Jurors
  • Judges and Jurors: Fact Finding and Applying the Law
  • Judges
  • Jurors and Jury Decision Making
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 7. Representation on the Courts? The Effects of Trial Judges’ Sex and Race
  • READING 8. Jury Nullification: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?
  • SECTION V. Pretrial and Trial Processes
  • The Pretrial Process
  • Plea Bargaining
  • The Trial Process
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 9. The Impact of Race, Gender, and Age on the Pretrial Decision
  • READING 10. Confession Evidence: Commonsense Myths and Misconceptions
  • SECTION VI. Plea Bargaining and Trial Dynamics
  • Plea Bargaining
  • The Courtroom Workgroup
  • Media Influence in Criminal Trials
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 11. Justice Served? Perceptions of Plea Bargaining Involving a Sexual Assault in Child and Adult Females
  • READING 12. Is a Plea Really a Bargain? An Analysis of Plea and Trial Dispositions in New York City
  • SECTION VII. Sentencing
  • The Goals of Sentencing
  • The Judge’s Options at Sentencing
  • How Do Judges Decide? Modeling the Sentencing Process
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 13. Do the Drugs, Do the Time? The Effect of Drug Abuse on Sentences
  • READING 14. Sentencing Transferred Juveniles in the Adult Criminal Court: The Direct and Interactive Effects of Race and Ethnicity
  • SECTION VIII. The Appellate Process
  • The Appellate Courts
  • Underlying Concepts
  • The “Right” to Appeal
  • Appealing to a Higher Court
  • The Writ of Habeas Corpus
  • Considering Clemency
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 15. Merciful Justice: Lessons From 50 Years of New York Death Penalty Commutations
  • READING 16. Preventing Wrongful Convictions: An Analysis of State Investigation Reforms
  • SECTION IX. Specialized Courts and Other Trends in Adjudication
  • Problem-Solving Courts
  • Drug Treatment Courts
  • Domestic Violence Courts
  • Other Problem-Solving Courts
  • Juvenile Courts
  • SUMMARY
  • DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
  • KEY TERMS
  • WEBSITES
  • READING 17. An Integrated Theory of Specialized Court Programs: Using Procedural Justice and Therapeutic Jurisprudence to Promote Offender Compliance and Rehabilitation
  • READING 18. Domestic Violence Courts: A Multisite Test of Whether and How They Change Offender Outcomes
  • Glossary
  • References
  • Index
  • About the Authors

Recent Product Reviews:

The title should reflect that the book is about the criminal justice process.
Professor Karen Swenson, Political Science Dept, Eastern Illinois University
“The book is a focused, well-written, and adequately resourced introductory text on the court system.”
Anita Kalunta-Crumpton, Texas Southern University
“A combination of both research articles and text to understand the court system. The use of research articles increases the text’s scholarly approach to criminal justice.”
William R. Pruitt, J.D., Ph.D., Virginia Wesleyan College
“I would describe the text as a comprehensive discussion of important issues related to the processing of criminal cases. I would especially emphasize the authors’ use of journal articles and the related questions in the development of the literature on criminal courts.”
Jimmy J. Williams, The University of Alabama
“This is a well-written and concise text that provides additional resources for students who are learning about the court system.”
Lisa M. Olson, Southeastern Louisiana University

Recommendations