The Sixth, Seventh and Fourteenth Amendments. The Sixth Amendment The right to a speedy and public...
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Transcript of The Sixth, Seventh and Fourteenth Amendments. The Sixth Amendment The right to a speedy and public...
The Sixth Amendment
• The right to a speedy and public trial• The right to an impartial jury – where the
crime has been committed• The right to be informed of the nature and
causes of the accusation• Right to be confronted with the witnesses
against him/her• Right for the assistance of counsel
Speedy Trials
• Barker v. Wingo (1972)
• No specific timetables for trials BUT some things to consider:– Length of delay?
– Prosecutions reasons for delay?
– Did the defendant say he wanted a speedy trial?
– Was there harm in delaying the trial?
Public Trials
• In re Oliver (1948)• Public trial is a
safeguard against any attempts to employ our courts as instruments of persecution.
Can trials be TOO public?
• Can a defendant be “convicted by the media” before they go to court?
• Sheppard v. Maxwell – Supreme Court ruled that too much pretrial publicity prevented Dr. Sam Sheppard from getting a fair trial
What can be done if there is too much info about the case in the
media?
• Change of Venue (location) for the trial
• Sequestering the jury– Keeping the jury from
hearing the news. Only know what is said in court.
Whose right is it to have a public trial? The PUBLIC or the
DEFENDANT?
• The Defendant! • The public and or
media doesn’t have the right to attend ALL trials.– Gannett Co. v. De
Pasquale (1979)
Exceptions to the Right to a Public Trial
• Rape, child molestation – names of victims are kept secret.– Courts can be emptied.
• Cases of National Security
Impartial and Local Jury
• Tradition of 12 members– Some communities
have only six
• Unanimous verdict in CRIMINAL trials.
Impartial Jury
• Parker v. Gladden (1966): No juror should be prejudiced against the defendant
• Judge, defense lawyer and prosecution conduct a Voir Dire to find out if a potential juror is unprejudiced.
Impartial Jury
• Defense has right of Peremptory Challenge.– Doesn’t even have to
say why a juror isn’t acceptable.
• Prosecution and the judge can also exclude potential jurors they see as prejudiced.
A Fair Cross-Section of the Community for Juries
• No systematic exclusion of identifiable groups.– Keeping women or African
Americans from serving.
– You can’t necessarily exclude a juror in a capital case just because they are against the death penalty.
Cases to Remember
• Batson v. Kentucky (1986) – prosecution wouldn’t accept 4 black members to the jury because the defendant was black.
Local Juries
• Juries must be from the state where the crime happened.– Right of the public to
judge
– The right of the defendant not to be shipped to someplace that will be hostile toward them.
Knowing the Charges
• Unless you know the charges – how can you defend yourself?
• Initial Appearance – Defendant told the
charges
– Have to be specific
– Chance to plead
Knowing the Charges
• Due Process Clause of 14th Amendment says Initial appearance or a GRAND JURY indictment must be given to the defendant before going to trial.– No skipping this step!
Grand Juries v. Juries
• 23 members of Grand Juries / 12 in juries
• Grand Juries decide if there is enough evidence for charges.– Some states mandatory– Nebraska uses when
prosecution might be prejudiced.
• Juries decide guilt or innocence.
Right to Confront
• Right to Cross-examine witnesses– No hearsay testimony.
• Joe told me that Jack said ….
• EXCEPTIONS:– Last words
• Right to ask questions challenging testimony.
Right to Confront: Face to face?
• Problem in child abuse or spouse abuse situations.
• Coy v. Iowa (1988) stopped putting defendants behind screens.– Witnesses might change
minds when they saw the defendant
– Less likely to lie if the defendant is “in their face”
Right to Confront: Face to face
• 1990 Supreme Court changed their mind.
• Courts can be closed to the general public– Meet in judge’s
chambers
• Close-circuit tv can be used in testimony of children
Compulsory Process: SUBPEONAS
• The defese has the right to force witnesses to appear in court on their behalf.
• Or evidence to be turned over
• Even Presidents have to follow!
The Right to Counsel: The most important of the 6th Amendment
• Powell v. Alabama (1932)
• Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
The Right to Counsel: Powell v. Alabama “Scottsboro Boys”
• 9 young black men were accused by 2 white women of raping them.
• No attorneys showed up to defend the boys.
• All their trials were in one day.
• All were found guilty and sentenced to death.
• Supreme Court overturned the case – eventually.
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
• Gideon was an ex-con drifter in Panama City, Florida in 1961
• Convicted of stealing beer and $65 from vending machines.
• Don’t I have a right to a lawyer?
YES!
• Lawyers for those unable to pay for it themselves MUST be provided at state expense in ALL cases where loss of freedom might happen.– Later included
misdemeanors.
Lawyers Before a Trial
• Escobedo v. Illinois– Mr. Escobedo kept asking if
he could have a lawyer while being questioned by police.
– Police denied him one and later used testimony gained to convict him of murder.
– SUPREME COURT SAID NO! Lawyers must be obtained if a defendant being in custodial interrogation asks for one.
The Seventh Amendment
• Trial by Jury is a right
• A judge cannot overrule a jury unless there are particular laws that allow that.– Juries to rule on “just the facts”