Chapter One – The Court
System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
Rolando V. del Carmen
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Introduction
Federal Courts
State Courts
U.S. Supreme Court
State Supreme Court
U.S. Court of Appeals
Intermediate
Appellate Courts
U.S. District Courts
Trial Courts
of General Jurisdiction
Magistrate Courts
Lower Courts
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 The Structure of the Court System
– The Federal Court System
• Original jurisdiction
• Rule of Four
– The State Court System
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 The Territorial Effect of Judicial
Decisions
 Judicial Precedent (Stare Decisis)
 Federal versus State Jurisdiction
– Dual Sovereignty
– No Double Jeopardy
 Jurisdiction versus Venue
– Frisbie v. Collins (1952)
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Court Cases
– Case Citations
– Internet Sources
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 How to Brief a Case
– Case title
– Citation
– Year decided
– Facts
– Main issue
– Court decision
– Holding
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Example of a case briefing:
– Case title: Minnesota v. Dickerson
– Citation: 508 U.S. 366
– Year decided: 1993
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Example of a case briefing (cont.):
– Facts: During routine patrol, two police officers spotted Dickerson
leaving an apartment building that one of the officers knew was a
“crack house.” Dickerson began walking toward the police but,
upon making eye contact with them, reversed direction and walked
into an alley. Because of his evasive actions, the police became
suspicious and decided to investigate. They pulled into the alley
and ordered Dickerson to stop and submit to a pat-down search.
The search revealed no weapons, but one officer found a small
lump in Dickerson’s pocket, which he examined with his fingers
and determined, after the examination, that it felt like a lump of
cocaine in cellophane. The officer then reached into Dickerson’s
pocket and retrieved the lump, which turned out to be a small
plastic bag of crack cocaine. Dickerson was arrested and charged
with possession of a controlled substance.
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Example of a case briefing (cont.):
– Main issue: Was the seizure of the crack cocaine valid
under stop and frisk? No.
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Example of a case briefing (cont.):
– Court decision: The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the
decision of the Minnesota Supreme Court that held the
seizure to be invalid.
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Example of a case briefing (cont.):
– Holding (sometimes also known as the doctrine or the
ruling): A frisk that goes beyond that allowed in Terry v.
Ohio in stop and frisk cases is not valid. In this case,
the search went beyond the pat-down search allowed by
Terry because the officer “squeezed, slid, and otherwise
manipulated the packet’s content” before knowing it
was cocaine. The evidence obtained is not admissible in
court.
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 Sources of Rights
– Constitutions
– The Federal Constitution
– State Constitutions
– Statutory Law
– Case Law
– Court Rules
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 The Incorporation Controversy:
Does the Bill of Rights Apply to the
States?
– Background
– Approaches to Incorporation
– Rights Held to Be Fundamental and
Incorporated
– Rights Not Incorporated
– Nationalization of the Bill of Rights
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 The Judicial Review Doctrine
– Marbury v. Madison (1803)
– Indianapolis et al. v. Edmond et al. (2002)
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
 The Rule of Law
– Adherence
– Justice
– Supremacy
– Obedience
– No person is above the law
The Court System, Court Cases, and
Sources of Rights
Criminal
Civil
Who Files
Government
Private person/entity
Purpose
Punishment
Money/injunction
What must be proved
A crime has been committed by
the defendant
Duty/Breach of that duty
Proof required to win
Guilty Beyond Reasonable Doubt
> 95%
Preponderance of Evidence > 50%
Bill of Rights
Limits conduct of government
officials
Does not apply
Lawyers
Government Prosecutor/Private
Attorney/Public Defender
Own lawyer(s) for each side
If trial by jury
Usually unanimous vote
Usually nonunanimous vote
Defendant’s presence
in court
Required with exceptions
Not required
Testimony
Cannot be forced to testify
Can be forced to testify
Appeal
Defendant can appeal
Either side can appeal