Exam 5: The Dynamics of Courthouse Justice

Various researchers have found that the passage of speedy trial laws in many states has led to

Legal ethics is an example of applied and _____ ethics.

Delay is a problem because it wastes court resources.

The Speedy Trial Act of 1974 (amended in 1979) allows how many days from arrest to indictment in federal courts?

_____ is best defined as the lawful ability of an agent of government to exercise choice in making a decision.

The law on the books approach to delay focuses on

Legal ethics seek to ensure clients that their lawyers are working in their best interests.

What do we all the authority to make decisions without reference to specific rules or facts?

Case scheduling is a simple process.

The clerk of court is responsible for maintaining order in the courtroom.

Speedy-trial laws are not based on an analysis of why _____ occurs.

What concept stresses the importance of the patterned interactions of judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys?

What are important because they provide necessary boundaries on conflict represented by the adversary system?

According to the _____ Trial Act of 1974 (amended in 1979), certain time periods, such as those associated with hearings or pretrial motions and the mental competency of the defendant, are considered excludable time.

What factors often influence discretionary decision making by members of the courtroom work group?

Law in action approaches to solving the problem of delay can prove effective because

Which of the following courtroom actors works mostly behind the scenes?

Legal ethics are an example of what type of ethics?

Most cases end in a plea of guilty.

Explain why discretionary decision making occurs in the criminal courts and provide some specific examples of prosecutorial discretion.