Criminal Justice System Response Paper

The criminal justice system response to a crime starts when a crime is reported or when a crime has been observed by the police (Bohm & Haley, 2011). Once probable cause has been established by the police that a crime was committed, the suspect is placed under arrest. When a suspect is placed under arrest, it means that they have been seized by legal authority. The suspect is then transported to jail and booked in. The book in process typically involves gathering all of the suspect’s personal information and recording it onto a book in card. The book in process also involves finger printing and having their photo taken. The arresting officer will then go to the magistrate’s office and take out the warrant (s) on the suspect. The suspect …show more content…
The general session judge will advise the defendant that he or she has the right to an attorney if they do not have an attorney present. If the defendant chooses right to counsel, the judge will reset their court date to give them time to retain an attorney or to apply for a public defender. On the next appearance, the defendant will be given the opportunity to plead guilty to the charge (s). If they do not wish to plead guilty, a preliminary hearing will be conducted. The purpose of a preliminary hearing is “for a judge to determine whether there is probable cause to believe that the defendant committed the crime or crimes” that he or she are charged with (Bohm & Haley, 2011, p 13). Probable cause means that the judge sees enough evidence to believe the charges are warranted enough to turn the case over to the grand jury for review. After hearing testimony from the arresting officer and reviewing the evidence in the case, the grand jury determines that there is enough probable cause to bring a “true bill”, or not enough probable cause and issue a “no bill”. A “true bill” means that a law or laws were disrupted and the evidence supports the indictment. If the grand jury brings a “no bill”, the charges against the