Court Systems

In the United States Court System, there are two types of systems, civil and criminal. Civil cases usually involve somebody suing another person for some kind of negligence. There are other types, such as the breach of a contract, but the most popular kind of civil case is one involving negligence. Then there are criminal cases, which involve someone breaking the law.

There are three types of criminal cases, petty crimes, misdemeanors, and felonies. Petty crimes are trivial crimes like littering and loitering. Misdemeanors are a little higher up on the crime chain, with crimes including vandalism and trespassing. Felonies are the major crimes, such as burglary, arson, murder in the first degree, murder in the second degree, manslaughter, justified murder, and robbery. By the way, the difference between burglary and robbery is that burglary is invading someone's home and robbery is robbing a store or similar establishment.

There are many steps from the time somebody commits a crime to when they are jailed (or put on probation). First, one has to actually commit a crime. Then, police conduct an investigation. After they conduct the investigation (which can last just a few minutes if they catch someone red-handed), the accused is arrested. Then they are either released if they are found innocent, or they go to their initial court appearance to be officially charged with the crime. After that, the charges for the crime are either dropped, or the accused goes to the Pleas and Grand Jury Indictment, where a grand jury determines whether there is enough evidence for the accused to have a formal criminal charge (which is actually difference then what happens at the initial court appearance). After that, the charges are either dropped, or the accused goes to the arraignment, when the Judge reads the defendant his formal charge. This is where the accused can either plead guilty or not guilty. If they plead Guilty, they immediately receive their sentence, and if they plead Not Guilty, they go to the trial, where they are either acquitted or, if found guilty, given their sentence. The sentence can just be probation, which after a certain amount of time would lead to the criminal being discharged, or, if they violate their probation, then they are imprisoned. Then they can get parole and be released, or have a parole violation and go back to prison (it's like a cycle, except if someone breaks their parole many times, that person probably won't get parole again).

In the civil court system, there are fewer steps than the criminal court system and usually the outcome isn't life-ruining. First, there is a dispute/disagreement between two parties. Then, the plaintiff hires a lawyer and the defendant is summoned to court. The plaintiff can then choose to simply dismiss the case, or the defendant gives in and the plaintiff becomes the victor. Most likely, if the defendant disagrees with the plaintiff, they will answer (make a formal response to the complaint). Next comes mediation, in which both sides are given the opportunity to explain their side of the dispute. This can either resort in a resolution without trial, or if the mediation fails to lead to the case being resolved, both parties go to the trial, where a judge determines who is right. If the defendant wins, they don't need to pay anything or conform to any penalty, but if the plaintiff wins, the defendant is either forbade from doing something or has to pay a sum of money to the plaintiff. This is called injunctive relief.

In any case, it is important to hire a good lawyer because they can defend you better than you can defend yourself. Lawyers train for years in law, and even if you can't afford a lawyer, one will be provided, and it is extremely unwise to ever turn down a free lawyer.