Exam/Paper Three Assignment Instructions
POLI 277 Spring 2022
Exam/Paper 3
Due Wednesday May18 at 6:00 PM
This exam has two parts. Each is ½ of your grade. Submission instructions begin on page 3. Presume that each of the two essays should be at least two and a half pages, double spaced, (at least 5 pages total). Both essays should be in one file, uploaded as PDF.
Part I: Answer ONE of the following two questions, and indicate which you are answering.
CRIMINAL LAW
The criminal justice system is marked by a tension between procedural and substantive justice. The former is intended to facilitate achievement of the latter, of course, but strict adherence to procedural justice does not always result in substantive justice. Are there particular elements of criminal procedure that are especially sensitive to producing results that are not consonant with substantive justice? We also know that many actions that are not legal do not end up with a trial or a conviction. What are the primary factors that influence whether or not a person will be charged with a crime? What are the stages in which such charges can be dropped or dismissed? The textbook authors suggest that sometimes the process is the punishment. What do they mean by that, and what are some examples that can illustrate it. Are they right? Legislatures have sought to insure significant punishment, by mandatory sentencing, three strike laws, and other elements. How do these impact the criminal process? What factors increase the chance that a defendant will plead guilty? How are these affected by plea bargaining? (As you answer this, discuss the three stages of plea bargaining, as well as its advantages and disadvantages). Are public defenders as effective as a private lawyer? How do each of these elements of procedural and substantive impact racial justice, and justice overall?
b. TRIAL COURTS & JURY TRIALS
Most disputes do not go to trial, as you surely know. And yet some cases do go to trial, and in most of those there is a jury that will play an important part. Why are there juries? Where did the idea of a jury of peers come from? What is the role of the jury in jury trials, compared to the role that judges have? What happens in trial courts prior to jury selection (what are the basic procedures)? What determines the size of the jury, and the composition of the jury? What roles do lawyers play in jury selection; how do they try to shape it? What is scientific jury selection? How can such specialists be employed to shape jury composition (what do they do)? What roles does the Judge play in jury selection? We know that sometimes trials are conducted as bench trials (no jury). To what degree does the available evidence suggest that outcome in a bench trial differ compared to those with a jury? What is the difference? Finally, consider the dynamics of jury deliberation. What are the essential roles of jurors in that deliberation? What does the portrayal of a jury in “Twelve Angry Men” suggest about jury deliberation and jury dynamics? How confident are you in the jury system in arriving at the correct result?
Part II: Answer ONE of the following two questions, and indicate which you are answering.
c. APPELLATE COURTS
In what ways are Appellate courts are very different from trial courts? Describe in brief the basic elements of trial court procedures, and contrast them with appellate courts procedures. What elements are prevalent in a trail court that are not in an appeals court? What are the elements in an appeals court that are not prevalent in a trial court? Who is given the opportunity to speak in oral arguments in appellate courts? Of course, not all losers at the trial level actually file an appeal. What proportion of trial court decisions are actually appealed, what are the key obstacles to making appeals, and what are the chances of the appeal being successful? Does it make a difference as to the type of appellant, whether a government, business, or private individual, or someone without resources? Who is most likely to be successful. Do the “haves” come out ahead on appeal? How do we know? Finally, where is it in the process that judges can make policy? What features of appellate courts allow policy making to happen? What are the basic models of judicial decision making that the textbook suggests have been used by court observers to explain these policy outcomes? Are these neutral in terms of politics, or are judges just politicians in robes?
d. SUPREME COURT & IMPACT
How does the operation of the Supreme Court differ from other Federal appellate courts? What is the difference between “deciding to decide” stage and the merits stage of decisionmaking? What are the roles and how much influence do the clerks have? How does the agenda setting certiorari process work? How do the Justices (and their clerks) decide which cases to accept, and which to reject? What influence might outside interests have on the Court? Describe the legal, attitudinal models of judicial decisionmaking, and how they apply to the courts. How would you describe and explain each of these models of decision making to an interested but uninformed observer? What evidence could we look for to judge which model is a superior explanation of the choices judges make? Which model of decisionmaking best describes their actual operation, based on your knowledge thus far. Once the decision in made, we might question how its decisions are implemented. What are the major tools the Courts have to get significant social change? What elements potentially what give them power to have an impact? What are the elements in Courts have to rely on in order to implement their orders? How might ordinary persons react, such as is already evident regarding the Court’s likely reversal of the Roe v. Wade decision? Can courts, acting alone, generate meaningful social change?
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SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS
The papers are due Wednesday May 18 at 6:00 PM. They must be 5+ pages in length, double spaced, with 1.25 inch margins on all sides, and a normal 12 point font (Times New Roman or equivalent); this will amount to about 1500-1800 words. Your paper should have your name, and the date submitted. Indicate it is for POLI 277. Please also include page numbers at the bottom of the pages, and a word count at the top of the first page. You do not need to have a title page
PLEASE UPLOAD AS A SINGLE PDF FILE (both questions in one file).
PENALTIES
Late papers will be charged a penalty of 1/3 a grade per day late, unless proper reasons for an extension were agreed to in advance. Not including a “works cited” will result in a loss of 5 points. You must have four page citations per essay (eight in total). Less than the required number of page citations result in a penalty of 2 points each.
Please cite page numbers in parentheses, i.e. (CWM 234). If it is clear you are discussing the textbook, just the page number will do, i.e. (234). Follow a standardized citation method: APA. MLA, or Chicago. Place a works cited at the end of your paper if you use parenthetical notes; if you use footnotes, the full citations should be there. YOU MUST PROVIDE AT LEAST FOUR PAGE CITATIONS IN EACH ESSAY (at least eight in all).
Electronic Turn-in
Your paper will be turned in electronically. You will upload the electronic copy to an OnCourse Turnitin drop box, and to the Assignment Drop Box immediately below it. Both are in the Assignments Block on OnCourse. Please convert it to a PDF before uploading.
Please name your file: lastname_firstname_paper_name.pdf
Thus Mary Smith’s paper might be: smith_mary_Exam-Paper-2.pdf
Plagiarism is not acceptable, and will result in an F on your paper. Don’t do it. This means you must use your own words. Fredonia’s policies are HERE.
Use of Quotes
In general I discourage the use of quotes, unless parsing the text, or if there is something particularly significant about the exact words used. Do not quote passages unless the exact phrasing needs to be dissected. Instead, paraphrase the passage in your own words. If you do use another person’s words, they must be in quotes, and must be cited.
Other Considerations
Grammar – Check your grammar carefully. Look to eliminate extra spaces, or other small errors. Look for odd word formulations.
Use of Language – Check your sentences for readability. Are the sentences simple enough and compact enough to read and grasp easily. If not, go through and edit until they are. This may take some time. It is work, but it will make your paper MUCH better. Look for awkward sentences. Rephrase them to make them simple.
Word Choice – Look for instances where you may not have selected the best word to convey they idea that you have. Try to find a more appropriate word. Use a thesaurus if needed.
Paragraph Construction – Look over the sentences that make up a paragraph. Are the sentences in a logical order? Do they need to be there? Some may belong in a different paragraph, or not be needed at all.
Try to make each paragraph proceed in a logical manner.
Works Cited
You should properly document works cited in an appropriate citation style (APA, Chicago, or MLA). For this assignment, please use parenthetical citation, and not footnotes.
List your works cited with a Works Cited section. The point of these is that someone who reads your paper may want to know where it came from. The parentheses in the body of your paper (called parenthetical citations) indicate the specific page or location in the source (if there is one). They also provide a short hand version of the referenced work that points to the full citation that you provide in the Works Cited. The Works Cited will have the information a reader will need to find the source in a library or online.
The appropriate Works Cited (bibliography) format in Chicago for CWM textbook is:
Pamela C. Corley, Artemus Ward, and Wendy L. Martinek. 2016. American Judicial Process: Myth and Reality in Law and Courts, 1st ed. New York: Routledge.
Please cite page numbers in parentheses, i.e. (CWM 42) in the body of your paper. If it is clear which case you are discussing, just the page number will do, i.e. (809).
A parentheses in the text should include (name year, page), if there is specific page referenced. If not, it should include (name year). The first reference should definitely include name and year; subsequent references, if it is obvious what the source is, merely need to include the page number. Pay close attention spacing, commas, and periods.
Thus, a reference to page 57 from the Textbook would be (Corley et al 2016, 57). A subsequent reference, say to page 85, when it is obvious to any reader that the source is identical would be (85). Again, you must do this at least FOUR TIMES per essay.
You may include outside references as well (you are not required to do so), but you must include them in the works cited, and also cite them in the text. Outside references should supplement any argument you make: they should not be central to your paper in this
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