University of Maryland Global Campus Wk 6 The Court Systems Discussion

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It is often stated that the United States does not have two systems of courts (i.e. State and Federal), rather, we have 51, because each State has its own system, and then there is the Federal system.  Discuss two pros and two cons of our current court system and then detail how having 51 “systems” may impact the idea of equality under the court of law in your opinion.  

hello, this is the link to the book – https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/ccj230/and here are the weekly readings related to this topicFor week 6, you are to read the following sections in this book:7.1-7.10Here is a bit of information about each of the readings:Topic: Introduction to the U.S. Court System & Jurisdiction            Readings 7.1, 7.2The U.S. court system is the only like its kind in the world. Gaining and understanding of the system and how it operates, in addition to how jurisdiction works will help you to obtain an overall understanding of the courts component of the Criminal Justice system.Topic: Structure of the Courts: Dual Court & Federal Court System            Reading 7.3Understanding the structure of the courts will help you to understand the foundational elements put in place to distribute power within the courts system.  This reading will help you understand the dual court and federal court system and why we the court system is set up as it is.Topic: Structure of the Courts: State and Trial Courts            Readings 7.4, 7.5Each state has its own structure of courts.  These readings will introduce you to the structure of state court systems, and the hierarchy within the state courts.  You will also learn about trial courts and the principle of orality which requires that the jury (or judge) considers only the evidence that was developed, presented and received into the recording during a trial be considered when determining guilt or innocence.  Understanding trial courts and this principle is fundamental to considering the constitutionality of a court proceeding.Topic: Appeals process, standard of review and appellate decisions            Readings 7.6, 7.7Understanding the appeals process, standard of review, appellate decisions and the federal courts review of state appellate cases will enhance your knowledge of fully understanding the court process and the continuous effort to maintain constitutional rights of defendants.  These readings will discuss each of these critical topics.Topic: Courtroom playersThis section of readings will introduce you to the various actors within the courts system.  You will learn about judges, courtroom staff, prosecutors and defense attorneys. Understanding the role that each play is vital to understanding how the court works.Reading 7.8Judges and courtroom staff are vital to our courts system.  This reading will introduce you to their important roles.Reading 7.9            This reading will help you to gain an understanding of the role of a Prosecutor.Reading 7.10            This reading discusses Defense Attorneys and the court room working group.