Courtroom Work group paper PDF

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Courtroom Work group paper...

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Daryle Smith Courtroom Work Group Paper CPSS/210: Introduction to Criminal Justice 11/12/2019 Professor Denaya Wininger

A courtroom workgroup is when occurs when the judicial officer, criminal defense attorney, and criminal prosecutor has an informal arrangement. In America, the criminal justice system is categorized as an adversarial system. Within the criminal justice system are the organizations known as the courts, in which the courtroom work is performed as a group activity (Bach, 2009). “Workgroup members develop relationships that are cemented by exchanges of inducements as well as by the shared goals” (Eisenstein & Jacob, 1977. p. 10). As workgroup members further operate in a shared task environment, they are provided with resources and are imposed by common constraints regarding their actions. While the judicial officers, criminal defense attorney, and criminal prosecutor are the main members of a courtroom work group, courtroom clerks, jurors, witnesses, police officers, and bailiffs also have a role in the group as well. I would recommend the everyone in the courtroom workgroup are all treated equally no matter their role in the group. For example, jurors and witnesses should be treated with the same respect as the defense attorney, court officials, and prosecution team. The role of a prosecutor is using the legal skills they have obtained to protect, defend, and uphold justice. Both the prosecutor and the criminal defense attorney share the same roles, however, they both interpret these roles from different perspectives depending on their role in the case. Before there is the option of a trial, the prosecutor must be able to submit cases to the grand jury based upon the facts submitted and the amount of evidence available for use. If the prosecutor has produced enough evidence, they then press charges against the criminal based on the crime or crimes committed. Once the prosecution has determined a fair and just punishment, the defense is offered plea bargains, while having the evidence presented to them. If the criteria for taking cases were less stringent, criminals would have more of a possibility of getting away

with committing crimes. If anything, I think that these cases should have less protocol for gathering evidence so that it is not as hard to convict a criminal for their crimes. Sentencing is determined based upon the results of a criminal being found guilty of the charges set upon them. They would have to return to court after being proved guilty so that a date for them to be remanded into the state's correctional facility and how long they will be there is put in place based on the crimes they have committed. There are several different types of punishments that are determined based on the degree of the crime. Some of the most common types of punishments are incarceration, probation, fines, death penalty, and deportation or loss of citizenship. These punishments hold different levels depending on how severe and heinous the crimes committed may have been. The wedding cake model depicts the criminal justice system as a tiered wedding cake with four different layers. The top layer is the smallest group consisted of the most serious cases and the bottom tier being the biggest layer with the least serious of cases. This model explains that not all cases can be treated and handled the same way. Cases are classified by severity and are treated accordingly. The serious cases get more media attention and force the case to move forward and for justice to take place whereas the misdemeanors result in fewer convictions (Meyer & Grant, 2003). I think that there would be less backlog if those who are responsible for handling cases take them more seriously and do not allow cases to just sit cold. There should be changes in certain roles such as judges, prosecution, officers, and defense attorneys so that changes can be effectively and efficiently made.

References Chretien, P. (2014). Dynamics of the Courtroom Workgroup. Retrieved November 12, 2019,from https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgiarticle=1117&context=honorsprojects&httpsre dir=1&referer=. Meyer, J. F., & Grant, D. R. (2003). Court Room Processes. In The Courts in Our Criminal Justice System (p. Part 3). Prentice-Hall....