CASE 10.1 A careful reading of the Eighth Amendment reveals that the Constitution does not specifically provide that all citizens have a right to bail. Rather, if bail is granted, it must not be “excessive,” as defined by the Supreme Court in Stack v. Boyle (1951), as an amount higher than reasonably calculated to ensure the defendants presence at trial. A right to bail, however, was recognized in common law and in statutes as early as 1789 for all those accused of committing noncapital crimes. In 1966, Congress enacted the Bail Reform Act, thereby creating a statutory presumption favoring pretrial release of federal arrestees. In most communities, the lower-court judges have adopted which kind of bail schedule?

Prior relationships are most notable in what kind of crime?

Which event following the Civil War produced fundamental changes in the structure of the American judiciary?

Which term emphasizes fundamental fairness insofar as a person should always be given notice of any charges brought against him or her, that a person should be provided a real chance to present his or her side in a legal dispute, and that no law or government procedure should be arbitrary or capricious?

Which approach to criminal justice emphasizes that during the preliminary hearing the judge decides if there is probably cause to hold the defendant?

Members of the courtroom work group generally enjoy interacting with victims and witnesses.

CASE 9.2 The criminal courts confront a double bind with regard to victims. On the one hand, victims are valued for the cases they bring to the system; their misfortunes become the raw material of the court process. On the other hand, individual victims represent a potential source of irrationality in the process. The personal and often emotional involvement of victims in the crime experience can generate particular demands for case outcomes that have little to do with the public interest. Members of the courtroom work group may perceive that the victim’s demands for public justice actually mask a desire for:

At which of the following stages in the criminal justice process is an indigent defendant provided counsel paid by the government?

Drug crimes are categorized as Type I offenses in the Uniform Crime Reporting.

Which statements consist of written or oral information about the impact of crime on the victim and the victim’s family?