criminal procedure: an overview

Criminal procedure is composed of the rules governing the series of proceedings through which the substantive criminal law is enforced. In the United States, most crimes are defined by local and state government, though the federal government has adopted its own criminal code, at Title 18, to deal with activities extending beyond state boundaries or having special impact on federal operations.

The procedure for criminal trials in federal courts is outlined in Title 18. States also have statutes that set out the framework for criminal procedure, subject to important constitutional limits. For example, the U.S. Constitution Bill of Rights (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.billofrights.html) provides basic protections including the right to an attorney, the right to not testify, the right to confront witnesses, and the right to a jury trial, among others. State constitutions may increase, but not take away from the federal protections.

The American criminal system is an adversarial and accusatorial model. Criminal procedure must balance the defendant's rights and the state's interests in a speedy and efficient trial with the desire for justice. Therefore, the rules of criminal procedure are designed to ensure that a defendant's rights are protected.

The rules of criminal procedure are different from those of civil procedure, because the two areas (criminal and civil) have different objectives and results. In criminal cases, the state brings the suit and must show guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, while in civil cases the plaintiff brings the suit and must only show the defendant is liable by a preponderance of the evidence.

menu of sources

Federal Material

Federal Constitution and Statutes

• U.S. Constitution (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.overview.html)
• U.S. Code: 18 U.S.C. - Crimes and Criminal Procedure

Federal Court Rules

• Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcrmp/)
• Federal Rules of Evidence (http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/fre/)

Federal Judicial Decisions

• U.S. Supreme Court:
  • Historic criminal procedure decisions (http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/search/index.html?query=criminal+and+procedure&scope=onlyhistoric)
  • Recent criminal procedure decisions (http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/search/index.html?query=criminal+and+procedure&scope=onlyrecent)
• U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals: Recent criminal procedure decisions (http://www.law.cornell.edu/usca/search/index.html?query=criminal+and+procedure)

State Material

State Statutes

• State criminal procedure statutes (http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/state_statutes2.html#criminal_procedure)

State Judicial Decisions

• N.Y. Court of Appeals:
  • Recent decisions on criminal procedure (http://www.law.cornell.edu/nyctap/search/index.html?query=criminal+and+procedure+not+liibulletin)
  • commentary from liibulletin-ny (http://www.law.cornell.edu/nyctap/search/index.html?query=liibulletin+and+criminal+and+procedure)
• Appellate Decisions from Other States (http://www.law.cornell.edu/states/)

International Material

Conventions and Treaties

• Dealing with Human Rights (http://fletcher.tufts.edu/multi/humanRights.html) (Including in the Criminal Justice Context)

Other References

Key Internet Source

• Nolo Legal Encyclopedia (http://www.nolo.com/encyclopedia/crim_ency.html)
• ABA Criminal Justice Section, Committee on Rules of Evidence and Criminal Procedure (http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/rules.html)
• Litigator's Internet Resource Guide: rules of court (http://www.llrx.com/columns/litigat.htm)
• Federal Judicial Center Publications (http://www.fjc.gov/newweb/jnetweb.nsf/pages/556)
• Senate Judiciary Committee (http://www.senate.gov/~judiciary/)
• House Judiciary Committee (http://www.house.gov/judiciary/)
• Vera Institute of Justice (http://www.vera.org/)

Online Journal Abstracts

• Criminal Law & Procedure (http://www.ssrn.com/update/lsn/lsn_clpa.html) (abstracts of working papers & articles accepted for publication in the criminal law & procedure fields)

Useful Offnet (or Subscription - $) Sources

• Good Starting Point in Print: Wayne R. LaFave & Jerold H. Israel, Hornbook on Criminal Procedure (http://west.thomson.com/product/22092304/product.asp), West Group (2003)

other topics

• Category: Courts and Procedure
• Category: Criminal Justice