Contrary to the dramatic scenarios that are portrayed on television, few criminal cases are decided by a sensational trial in which a defendant must fight for his life. The majority of cases in the real world do not make it to a court room to be heard by a jury. Instead, most criminal cases are […]
Multiple crimes are said to be “merged” when they are treated as a single crime for the purposes of a criminal case. Crimes may be merged when they are deemed to result from a single criminal act. For instance, an individual may be accused of driving while intoxicated (DWI) as well as reckless driving as […]
You have the right to a fair trial with an impartial jury as guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment. An impartial jury is made up of a cross-section of the public. However, a 2012 study of 700 felony trials published by The Quarterly Journal of Economics suggested that juries without at least one member of the […]
A subpoena is a writ, or written command, that is issued by a legal authority. It orders an individual to appear in court as a witness. Subpoenas include specific information like time, date and the location of the courthouse. Subpoenas may also used by other legislative panels such as investigative committees. In the absence of […]
Thanks to thousands of police drama episodes and murder mysteries, most people are familiar with the Miranda rights which have to be read to anyone that gets arrested. This includes the line, “If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.” This does not mean that everyone arrested gets a free lawyer or […]
