A Criminal Justice System Overview

A Criminal Justice System Overview

Purpose - The basic purpose of the Criminal Justice System is to deal with those who commit or are accused of committing acts against individuals and society that have been deemed to be crimes. Crimes are the reason for the system's existence.
Public Record - All criminal records maintained by the clerk's office are public records as provided by Chapter 119.07 Florida Statutes. This does not include Juvenile records.
Types of Crime - There are basically three types or classifications of crime that are dealt with by the Criminal Justice System.

a. Felony - Crimes that are punishable by imprisonment for more than one-year in the State Department of Corrections. Examples include murder, sexual battery, burglary and grand theft.

b. Misdemeanor - Crimes that are punishable by imprisonment for up to one-year in the county jail. Examples are petit theft, simple battery, prostitution and trespass.

c. Criminal Traffic - Specifically listed violations of the traffic laws punishable by imprisonment of up to one year in the county jail. Examples include DUI, reckless driving, driving while license suspended and fleeing and attempting to elude an officer.

Components of the Criminal Justice System - While a whole multitude of specific agencies exist that perform some function of the criminal justice nature, the system can be divided into four basic components; each of which has its own broad functions to perform. They are: Law Enforcement, Prosecution, Criminal Courts (The Judiciary) and Corrections.

a. Law Enforcement - Law Enforcement is comprised of those agencies that enforce the criminal laws of society at the local, state or federal level. Within the Ninth Judicial Circuit, which includes Orange and Osceola Counties, there are 12
municipal (city) police departments, two sheriff's offices and various state and federal law enforcement agencies. While most of our cases come from the law enforcement of local and state laws, they may also be referred to the State Attorney's Office by federal agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (F.B.I) and the Drug Enforcement Agency (D.E.A.)

b. Prosecution - The prosecution of those accused by committing crimes is conducted by the Office of the State Attorney. They are responsible for representing the State of Florida in all criminal proceedings that result from the charging of someone with a crime by the Law Enforcement and/or the State Attorney's Office.

Each accused is entitled to legal counsel in our system and that is provided by those private attorneys hired by the defendant or by the Office of the Public Defender, appointed by the court to those who cannot afford to hire a private attorney.

c. Judiciary - The third component or part of the Criminal Justice System is the Criminal Court System known as the Judiciary. Its main function is the adjudication of cases to fairly determine guilt or innocence and the proper sentencing of those found guilty.

       Criminal Court can be divided into two types:

1. Circuit Court - There are two divisions:

a. Circuit Criminal - This division handles all adult felony cases that are prosecuted.

b. Circuit Juvenile - This division handles all felony and misdemeanor crimes which are committed by defendants under 18 years of age.

2. County Court - This division handles all adult
     misdemeanor and traffic cases that are
     prosecuted.

d. Corrections - The last component of the Criminal Justice System is Corrections. Its primary function is the administration of those sanctions (sentences) handed down by the court against a criminal defendant. These sanctions range from a fine (monetary penalty), to probation, to a suspended sentence, to time in a jail or state prison.

Stages of the Criminal Justice System Process

a. Arrest - After a crime has come to the attention of law enforcement, an investigation into the crime is conducted. The investigation may include interviewing witnesses and obtaining statements from them, and the collection and preservation of physical evidence. Upon the completion of the investigation, law enforcement will either arrest the person (s) responsible and file charges with the State Attorney's Office or file the "warrant" pending an arrest in the future.

b. Initial Appearance - All persons who are arrested are entitled to appear before a judge within 24 hours of their arrest. Known as the "Initial Appearance", its purpose is for the accused to be advised as to why he or she has been arrested; for the judge to make a determination of probable cause that the accused did indeed commit the crime; and for the accused to be advised of the amount of bail needed to be released from jail.

c. Charging Decision - Usually within 2 weeks of an arrest, a case package is submitted to the Criminal Intake Bureau of the State Attorney's Office by law enforcement. Included in this package are affidavits from law enforcement and other witnesses and a description of the physical evidence collected during the investigation. From this package, the Criminal Intake Bureau of the State Attorney determines what charges, if any, should be filed against the defendant. Those charges are filed with the Clerk of Court by the State Attorney's Office in a document called an "Information." In the case of a criminal traffic offense the charges are filed directly with the Clerk of Court by the law enforcement officer in a Uniform Traffic Citation (UTC). Cases involving capital felonies (e.g. murder) are taken to a Grand Jury for its consideration and charges are issued through an indictment if the jury so desires.

d. Arraignment - After a defendant has been formally charged by an Information, UTC, or Indictment, he or she is "arraigned" on the charges by the court. At the arraignment the defendant is given a copy of the Information, advised of the nature of the formal charges, and asked to enter a plea of NOT GUILTY, GUILTY or NO CONTEST. If the defendant enters a plea of NOT GUILTY, a date for trial is set. If there is a plea of GUILTY or NO CONTEST, a date for sentencing is set or sentencing can be done immediately, if appropriate.

e. Pretrial or Docket Sounding - Between the arraignment and the trial, both the State and Defense prepare for trial by interviewing their own witnesses and by taking "depositions" (sworn statements) from each other's witnesses.
Also, motions are filed to determine what evidence will be permitted to be introduced at trial.

Prior to the trial date, it is decided whether the trial will be held before a jury or in front of the Judge without a jury. This is called a Bench Trial.

f. Trial - If the trial is to be by jury, both the State and Defense will be allowed to question the possible jury members to determine if they are fit to sit as jurors in this case. After jury selection is completed, the State will present its witnesses and/or evidence. Then the Defense is given the opportunity to present their witnesses and/or evidence. Because the defendant is legally presumed to be innocent and the State has the burden of proving the charges against the defendant beyond a reasonable doubt, the defendant is not required to present any witnesses or evidence. After all the evidence is presented, the State and Defense give closing arguments to try to persuade the jury to vote either GUILTY or NOT GUILTY. The Judge then instructs the jury on the law they are to apply to the case and the jury retires to deliberate in secret until they reach a verdict. Sometimes juries are unable to reach a verdict. This results in a mistrial, putting the case back in a pretrial status where a decision on retrying the case must be made.

g. Sentencing - If the jury finds a defendant GUILTY (or there is entered a plea of GUILTY or NO CONTEST prior to the completion of the trial), a date is set for sentencing. Before the defendant is sentenced, a complete background check may be conducted. This is called a PRE-SENTENCE INVESTIGATION (PSI). At sentencing, the Judge reviews the defendant's PSI and decides the appropriate sentence for this defendant. The sentence may include imprisonment, fines and/or probation.