CRIMINAL PROCEDURE II: ADJUDICATION BAIL TO JAIL Spring 2015 Tuesday and Thursdays: 1:30 PM 2:55 PM Three Credits Room 118 COURSE SYLLABUS Professor Yolanda Vázquez Phone: 513-556-0022 Office: 429 Hours: Wednesdays from 12:30 PM -2:30 PM or by appointment Email: yolanda.vazquez@uc.edu Course Description Criminal Procedure II, coined Jail to Bail, focuses on the way in which cases are processed through the criminal justice system. Criminal procedure determines the relationship between individuals and the government, determined through the connection and tensions between the Constitution, courts, legislatures, and demands of a rapidly changing world. For this reason, this course will explore these relationships and delve into its goals, tensions and practical reality. This course is designed to provide an introduction to the basic rules, concepts, theories, and players of the American criminal justice system. It is also designed to provide a theoretical, contemporary, and practical framework of criminal procedure and its role in the criminal justice system. The development of this law will be examined in the context of historical, political, moral, and legal considerations that have influenced criminal procedure and its place in the criminal justice system in the past and in contemporary society. Topics will include decisions to arrest and charge, right to counsel and effective assistance of counsel, prosecutorial discretion, the role of the grand jury and Probable Cause hearing, pretrial actions (such as discovery, plea bargaining, joinder and severance), the right to jury trial, trial, sentencing, and appellate issues. Course Objective The course has three goals. First, the course will teach you the fundamental process of the criminal justice system, its rules and doctrines. Second, the class will seek to help you understand the role that criminal adjudication has played in shaping the legal history, culture, and notions of justice and rights inside and outside the criminal justice system of the United States. You will do this by studying various laws, theories and policies that have existed historically as well as in their current state. In addition, you will observe how the criminal adjudication process functions in practice by visiting the site of one of the various players in the system. These activities will aid you in understanding and allow you to critique the jurisprudence of criminal procedure as well as the criminal justice system. Third, the course will assist you in developing Page 1 of 6
your basic lawyering skills. This includes the ability to spot the issue, state a rule, and draw conclusions and examine its application in other cases and contexts. You will also be expected to practice the art of legal persuasion through discussion as well as through written assignments. The course will include lectures, class discussion, videos, learning assessments, site visits, guest lecturers, and written assignments. I. Required Course Materials -ALLEN ET. AL, CRIMINAL PROCEDURE: ADJUDICATION AND RIGHT TO COUNSEL (Aspen, 2014), ISBN 978-1-4548-2403-9 (referred to below as CB ) -I will also assign additional cases, articles, written or other assignments, etc., which you will need to download from TWEN. II. TWEN As stated above, I will use TWEN to communicate with the class. This means all course information, assignments, supplemental materials, etc. will appear on TWEN. You will also turn in assignments via the Assignment Drop Box on TWEN. All students, therefore, are required to register for the course s TWEN website before the first week of class. *To access the site, go to www.lawschool.westlaw.com, click the link for TWEN, and follow the directions to register. Important class announcements also will be emailed via TWEN, so when you register please use an email address that you check regularly. III. Laptops and Other Electronic Devices This course does not lend itself to laptop note taking. First, research has found that taking notes by laptop is detrimental to learning as it impairs conceptual learning as well as long-term factfinding. 1 Second, this finding correlates to the studies that have been done that show multitasking is not conducive to learning as it decreases attention and focus. 2 Third, surveys have found that students prefer a no-laptop learning environment because students feel they are more engaged during the class with fewer distractions. 3 1 Pam A. Mueller & Daniel M. Oppenheimer, The Pen is Mightier than the Keyboard: Advantages of Long-hand Over Laptop Note Taking, 25 PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 1159, 1159-68 (June 2014), available at http://www.academia.edu/6273095/the_pen_is_mightier_than_the_keyboard_advantages_of_longhand_over_ Laptop_Note_Taking 2 See, e.g. David M. Sanbonmatsu et. al., Who Multi-Tasks and Why? Multi-Tasking Ability, Perceived Multitasking Ability, Impulsivity, and Sensation Seeking, PLOS ONE (Jan. 23, 2013), available at http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3adoi%2f10.1371%2fjournal.pone.0054402;jsessionid=1c499237e56e5530 B7AB8E8046DA1D46; Jon Hamilton, Think You re Multitasking? Think Again, NPR (Oct. 2, 2008 at 1:47 PM), available at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyid=95256794; Douglas Merrill, Why Multitasking Doesn t Work, FORBES (Aug. 17, 2012 1:21 PM), available at http://www.forbes.com/sites/douglasmerrill/2012/08/17/why-multitasking-doesnt-work/. 3 See, e.g. David Cole, Laptops vs. Learning, WASH. POST (April 7, 2007), available at http://pss.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/04/22/0956797614524581.abstract Page 2 of 6
For the above reasons, laptops are NOT permitted in class. Use of cellphones, IPads, or other electronic devices is also prohibited. Use of laptops, cell phones, IPads, or other technological devices not permitted during class will result in penalties to a student s participation grade or other sanctions as deemed appropriate. IV. Office Hours and Emailing the Professor My office hours are Wednesdays from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM in Room 429. I am happy to meet with you at another time if you cannot meet during my office hours. To schedule an appointment email me with a few times that you are available. Feel free to contact me by email with logistical questions such as expected absences or scheduling an appointment to see me. However, substantive questions always require a longer and deeper explanation than can be appropriately addressed in an email. For this reason, no substantive questions sent to me via email will be answered but I will happily discuss them with you in person during office hours or a scheduled appointment. V. Grades Your grade will consist of four components, explained more fully below: Final Exam 45% Engagement 20% Guest Speaker Attendance and Assignment (2) 20% Criminal Court Observance and Assignment 15% A. Final Exam: Your final exam will take place in May 2015 (The exact date will be provided by the registrar.) It will be a closed-book exam taken during your exam period. You will not be allowed to use your textbook, notes, or outlines. B. Engagement: I am using this term in lieu of the usual attendance and participation, because I think it better describes what is being assessed with this component of your grade. Each student is expected to be appropriately engaged as a participant throughout the semester. This includes being present, doing the assigned reading, participating in class discussion, completing assignments and meeting deadlines. Further explanation is below: 1. Preparedness: I expect students to be prepared for each class. If you are not prepared for a particular class, please let me know by 12:00 PM before class via email so that I will know not to call on you that day. This privilege is available no more than twice and counts towards your absences (see below). If you are not prepared for a question during class you may not pass on the question. I reserve the right to count you as absent if your inability to answer questions is the result of being unprepared for class. Page 3 of 6
2. Respect: For those who are NOT speaking, this means you should be listening to and learning from your colleagues; for those who ARE speaking, this means being prepared and making time for others to participate in class. In addition, individuals have differing views on issues. To ensure that everyone will feel comfortable sharing their ideas and views, we will all listen and respond respectfully. 3. Questions: You are required to post five thoughtful theoretical or conceptual questions during the course. The question must be posted to the discussion board by 9:00 PM the day prior to the class for which the reading is assigned. Late questions will not count toward your five question total. 4. Attendance: Attendance is mandatory and failure to attend class will impact your grade. You are, however, allowed three absences (excused or unexcused). If you exceed the permitted absences, I reserve the discretion to refuse to give credit for the course. Please notify me in advance, via email, if you know you will be absent from class. 5. Tardiness: I expect all students to be in class and in their seats at the start of class. Late attendance is disruptive to the class and will count as an absence. 6. Class Assignments: You will be required to prepare short assignments from time to time throughout the course. I will consider these assignments as part of your class participation. You will receive a check minus, check or check plus for each assignment. The assignments will be calculated in your participation grade. All assignments must be submitted to the course s online Assignment Drop Box on TWEN by 9:00 PM the day prior for which it is assigned. C. Guest Speaker Attendance and Assignment: All students will be required to attend two speaker events. Both events will take place in room 114. Each speaking event will require a response paper to be written and submitted after the event. The requirements and guidelines for the papers are posted on TWEN. The presentations are listed below: 1. The first one will be on Thursday, February 5, 2015 from 12:15 PM- 1:30 PM. Professor Ingrid Eagly, UCLA School of Law, will be discussing issues pertaining to the criminal prosecution and enforcement of noncitizens in state and federal criminal court. The response paper for this event must be submitted to the proper folder located in the course s online Assignment Drop Box on TWEN by 12:00 PM on Tuesday, February 10, 2015. 2. The second speaking event will be on Thursday, April 2, 2015, from 12:15-1:30PM. Professor Motomura, UCLA School of Law, and Professor Emily Ryo, USC Gould School of Law, will be discussing the growing use of immigration status, specifically unauthorized status, to determine rights and the political debate that accompanies the ultimate determination. The response paper for this event must be submitted to the Page 4 of 6
proper folder located in the course s online Assignment Drop Box on TWEN by 12:00 PM on Tuesday, April 7, 2015. D. Criminal Site Visit Requiremenst: All students will be required to complete a criminal procedure-related field trip to eviction court. There is a writing assignment due after you complete the field trip. The requirements and guidelines for this are posted on TWEN. VI. Deadlines and Assignment Submissions You are entering the professional world. That world is filled with deadlines. If deadlines are missed, your client suffers as well as your license and reputation. For that reason, late work will not be accepted. Therefore, any assignments or papers received after the deadline will be given a zero (0). VII. Reading Assignments The course schedule (posted on TWEN) is designed as a guide to the class. I may, at times, need to change class assignments and I will do so by an in-class announcement or revision to the course schedule. As a general rule, we will cover one assignment in each class period, although I may cover less or more, depending on class discussion. Unless I instruct you otherwise, you are expected to read the next day s assignment even if we do not completely cover the previous day s assignment in class. Due to time constraints, we may not discuss everything that you have read. However, you are still responsible for all assigned readings for future classes and exam purposes. VIII. Other Matters A. If you qualify for an accommodation because of a documented disability, please consult with the College of Law s Registrar and Associate Dean for Curriculum and Student Affairs to determine an appropriate accommodation based on the documented disability. B. I will make every effort to reasonably accommodate all students who, because of religious and other obligations, have conflicts with required attendance. 1. In order to receive the accommodation, you need to notify me at least one week in advance of the scheduled conflict. IX. Course Outline A. Introduction to the Criminal Justice System B. The Idea of Due Process C. The Right to Counsel D. The Adjudication Process 1. Bail and Pre-Trial Detention Page 5 of 6
2. Charging the Defendant 3. Pre-Trial Screening and the Grand Jury 4. The Scope of the Prosecution 5. Discovery and Disclosure 6. Guilty Pleas and Plea Bargaining 7. The Jury and the Criminal Trial E. Posttrial Proceedings 1. Sentencing 2. Double Jeopardy 3. Appellate and Collateral Review Page 6 of 6