Term
| How does the Adversarial System work? |
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Definition
The Adversarial system has two opposing sides:
• The crown – represents society
• The defence – represents the accused |
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Term
| What 2 things must the Crown prove? |
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Definition
• Actus reus – wrongful deed
• Mens rea – guilty mind |
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Term
| What is the role of the Judge? |
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Definition
| The Judge has full control of the courtroom and decides if evidence is admissible. When there is no jury the judge also decides guilt. |
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Term
| What is the role of the Crown Prosecutor? |
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Definition
| The Crown Prosecutor is the lawyer for the Crown or society. He must present all available evidence even if it weakens the case. The Crown Prosecutor also meets with the Police to review the evidence and decides whether or not criminal charges will be laid. |
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Term
| What is the role of the Defence Council? |
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Definition
| The Defence Council must represent the client as best as possible even when the crime is offensive. |
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Term
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Definition
| Testimony is a declaration sworn under oath. |
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Term
| What is the role of the Court Clerk? |
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Definition
| The Court Clerk reads the charge, swears in witnesses and tags evidence. |
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Term
| What is the role of the Court Recorder? |
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Definition
| The Court Recorder must copy word for word all of the evidence that is heard. |
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Term
| What is a stay of proceedings? |
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Definition
| A stay of proceedings is an order made by a judge that stops the trial until further action is taken. It may even stop the trail for good. |
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Term
| What are the advantages of a Jury? |
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Definition
Juries:
• Involve and educate the public
• Helps make sure decisions reflect social values
• The diverse background of juries can help ensure fairness
• Decisions must be unanimous (all in agreement) so convincing even one juror will result in not guilty |
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Term
| What are the advantages of a Judge? |
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Definition
Judges:
• May be less prejudiced than some jurors
• Understands legal technicalities that may confuse jurors
• Judges are trained to decide based on fact and law but jurors can be emotional
• Judges present reasons for decision and this can help with appeals |
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Term
| What types of offences require a Jury? |
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Definition
| Serious offences like murder, treason and more require a jury. |
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Term
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Definition
| Empanelling is the process of selecting a Jury. |
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Term
| What are the steps to select a jury? |
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Definition
1. List of all people in area where court is located
2. Random selection of 75 to 100 people from the list
3. People selected are summoned to appear at court
4. Each person’s name is placed in a barrel and names are drawn
5. Each person steps forward as name is drawn
6. Judge exempts those with personal interest in the case or hardship
7. Crown and defence question prospective jurors, judge must approve the questions
8. Crown and defence challenge, eliminate or accept jurors |
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Term
| What is a peremptory challenge? |
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Definition
| A peremptory challenge is when a juror is eliminated without any reason being given. Each side is given a certain number of peremptory challenges. |
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Term
| What are things are jurors not allowed to do? |
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Definition
Jurors are not allowed to:
• Discuss the case with anyone other than other jurors
• Follow media reports about the case
• Disclose information that is not revealed in open court |
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Term
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Definition
| Sequestered is when a jury is required to stay in a certain location away from home and public until the end of a trial. This keeps them isolated from their friends and families and media. This helps them to not be influences by anything other than the evidence in the trial. |
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Term
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Definition
| The arraignment is the first step in a trial; it is the reading of the charge to the accused. |
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Term
| What type of Evidence is admissible? |
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Definition
| Evidence must be relevant, reliable and fair. |
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Term
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Definition
| Direct evidence is evidence obtained in testimony of witnesses who saw the offence being committed. There isn’t always direct evidence and it can be contradictory or unreliable as memories change over time. |
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Term
| What is circumstantial evidence? |
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Definition
| Circumstantial evidence is indirect evidence. It suggests it is likely that the accused committed the crime. |
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Term
| What is examination in chief? |
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Definition
| Examination in chief is the first questioning of the witness. This questioning is done by the Crown. The Crown cannot use leading questions. |
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Term
| What is cross-examination? |
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Definition
| Cross-examination is the questioning by the defence which comes after the Crown. The defence is allowed to use leading questions to test the credibility. |
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Term
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Definition
| A subpoena is a court document that orders a witness to appear for testimony. A witness who refuses to appear can be arrested and detained for 30 days, if they refuse to give evidence at a trail they can be charged with contempt of court and put in prison for 90 days. |
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Term
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Definition
| Perjury is to give false or misleading evidence as a witness in court. |
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Term
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Definition
Self-incrimination – witness testimony cannot be used to later to incriminate the witness in another proceeding. This is to encourage the witness to be truthful.
Voir dire – is a separate trial within a trial to determine if certain evidence is admissible. |
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Term
| 10 Types of Evidence are: |
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Definition
1. Privileged communications – communications that cannot be required to be presented in court such as communication between spouses, clergy and parishioners, patients and doctors etc.
2. Similar fact – evidence that shows the accused has committed similar offences in the past. This type of evidence must be relevant to the case.
3. Hearsay evidence – something that someone other than the witness has said or written. Generally not admissible. Would be allowed to quote a person who was dying as long as the evidence would have been admissible if the person had lived.
4. Opinion evidence – this is admissible if from a qualified expert.
5. Character evidence – evidence of negative character. The crown is limited in use but the defence can use to support the accused’s credibility.
6. Photographs – admissible if identified as accurate portraits of the crime scene.
7. Electronic devices and surveillance – procedures must be strictly followed. Recording of private conversations is only allowed if authorized by court order or one of the parties knew of the recording.
8. Polygraph evidence – this is lie detector test evidence and it is not admissible
9. Confession – for a confession to be admissible the accused must have been advised of their charter rights and the confession must have been voluntary.
10. Illegally obtained evidence – debated and the measured used to decide admissibility is that of a reasonable person’s reaction to the evidence being allowed. |
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Term
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Definition
• Self-defence – use of reasonable and necessary force to protect yourself and property
• Legal Duty – allows certain people to commit acts as necessary, ie police can speed
• Excusable Conduct – provocation, duress or honest mistake
• Mental disorder – not fit to stand trial or not mentally fit at time of offence
• Intoxication – intoxication can remove the requirement of intent and change the charge such as aggravated assault reduced to assault
• Automatism – unconscious behaviour such as sleep walking or convulsions that caused behaviour
• Consent – party injured could and did consent to the action, often a defence in sports injuries
• Entrapment – defence that police action encouraged the offence
• Mistake of fact – ignorance of law is not a defence, but ignorance of the facts can be as long as not neglecting to learn the facts
• Double jeopardy – cannot be tried twice for the same offence. |
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Term
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Definition
| After all the evidence is presented, each side summarizes their case. |
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Term
| What is the Charge to the Jury? |
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Definition
| The judge makes a charge to the jury which is where the judge reviews the facts and the law that applies and provides any special direction. |
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Term
| What is the deliberation? |
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Definition
| The deliberation is the process of the jury discussing the evidence and reaching a verdict. |
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Term
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Definition
| A hung jury is a jury that is unable to reach a decision. A hung jury will require a new trial by a new jury. |
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