Chapter 8: The Prosecution, Defense, and Pretrial Activities

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. The United States uses an ______ legal system that pits one side against the side in order to reveal the truth.

A. advocacy

B. adversarial

C. inquisitorial

D. instructional

2. Which model of the courtroom work groups displays prosecutors and defense attorneys as competing against each other for the search of truth?

A. advocacy system

B. due process model

C. adversarial system

D. intellectual model

3. A defense attorney believes that her main purpose is to zealously fight on behalf of her client, no matter what. She is using the ______.

A. sponsorship model

B. adversarial model

C. activist model

D. advocacy model

4. In the courtroom, the prosecutor represents the interests of the ______.

A. accused

B. victim

C. people

D. police

5. Which of the following is not a responsibility of the prosecuting attorney?

A. conducting criminal investigations

B. filing an appeal in the case of an acquittal

C. establishing charges against the defendant

D. presenting evidence in court

6. Which of the following created the Office of the U.S. Attorney General?

A. Judiciary Act of 1789

B. Title 28 of the United States Code

C. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution

D. Marbury v. Madison (1803)

7. The U.S. attorney general is the head of the ______.

A. Department of State

B. Department of Defense

C. Department of Justice

D. Department of Homeland Security

8. At the state level, the decision to file charges against an offender lies with ______.

A. the prosecutor

B. the arresting officer

C. the chief of police

D. the victim and/or their family

9. Which of the following is not a responsibility of U.S. attorneys?

A. prosecuting criminal cases at the federal level

B. collecting debts owed to the federal government

C. representing federal government employees charged with a crime

D. prosecuting and defending civil cases when the United States is a party

10. Evidence that is favorable to the defendant is called ______ evidence.

A. discovery

B. inadmissible

C. exculpatory

D. circumstantial

11. ______ is the process through which the defense learns about the evidence held by the prosecution.

A. Discovery

B. Declaration

C. Deliberation

D. Deposition

12. Which attorney advocates for society and its role as a victim in city, state, or federal jurisdiction?

A. defense attorney

B. prosecutor

C. public defender

D. plaintiff

13. A prosecutor allows a witness to provide false testimony in court because it undermines the alibi of the witness. This is an example of ______.

A. judicial misconduct

B. ethical misconduct

C. prosecutorial misconduct

D. state misconduct

14. The defense attorney is responsible for ______.

A. ensuring that their client is acquitted or found not guilty

B. determining whether or not his or her client is guilty

C. telling the defendant which plea to enter in court

D. ensuring the constitutional rights of the defendant are protected

15. At the federal level, the ______ decides whether someone should be charged with a crime.

A. petit jury

B. grand jury

C. U.S. attorney

D. U.S. attorney general

16. ______ determine guilt or innocence in a criminal trial.

A. Petit juries

B. Grand juries

C. Trial juries

D. Special juries

17. When a defendant is released on their own recognizance, they ______.

A. must pay the full bail amount

B. must pay a percent of the bail, usually 10%

C. must put up collateral, such as the deed to property

D. do not have to post any bail money

18. Which of the following is not a factor considered in the decision to grant bail?

A. if the person is a flight risk

B. the person’s previous criminal record

C. the desire to punish the offender

D. the person’s ties to the community

19. Excessive bail is prohibited under the ______ Amendment of the Constitution.

A. Fourth

B. Fifth

C. Sixth

D. Eighth

20. ______ are used for people who are financially unable to post bail.

A. Bail bondsmen

B. Bounty hunters

C. Insurance companies

D. Credit unions

21. The purpose of the ______ is to determine if there is enough evidence to establish probable cause that a crime was committed.

A. arraignment

B. preliminary hearing

C. bail hearing

D. complaint

22. Which of the following does not occur at arraignment?

A. Defendants are re-advised of the charges.

B. Defendants enter a plea.

C. Defense counsel cross-examines witnesses.

D. Defendants request a jury trial.

23. The majority of criminal cases are ______.

A. dismissed by the prosecutor or the court

B. resolved through plea bargaining

C. tried in front of a jury

D. tried through a bench trial

24. Rick Gates, a former Donald Trump campaign aide, was facing multiple felony charges which could have resulted in a lengthy prison sentence. However, he made a deal with Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller to testify against others, and in exchange he was allowed to plead guilty to one charge of making false statements and one conspiracy charge. This is an example of ______.

A. an arraignment

B. prosecutorial misconduct

C. a plea bargain

D. prosecutorial manipulation

25. A woman is charged with the murder of her three young children. The case has been in the news for several weeks. Which of the following pretrial motions will the defense likely file?

A. motion for a change of venue

B. motion in limine

C. motion to suppress

D. motion for recusal

26. A defense attorney in an antitrust case learns that his client once had a professional relationship with the trial judge in the case. Which of the following pretrial motions might he file?

A. motion for discovery

B. motion for expenses of experts

C. motion to suppress

D. motion for recusal

27. The speedy trial guarantee generally requires that a trial be conducted within ______ months of the date of arraignment.

A. 3

B. 6

C. 12

D. 18

28. A defense attorney files a motion requesting all of the information that the prosecution has on her client’s case. This is called ______.

A. motion for discovery

B. motion for recusal

C. motion to suppress

D. motion in limine

29. In preparation for the second trial of Paul Manafort, Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, his attorneys argued that there had been so much publicity that their client could not receive a fair trial in Washington D.C. What motion did they file?

A. motion in limine

B. motion for recusal

C. motion for a change of venue

D. motion to suppress

30. In 2005, Brendan Dassey was 16 years old when he was interrogated by police without his mother or an attorney. He eventually confessed to raping and murdering a young woman. What motion did his attorneys file to try and stop the illegally-obtained confession from being used against him in court?

A. motion for expenses of experts

B. motion for recusal

C. motion in limine

D. motion to suppress

31. Richard’s attorney believes that the testimony his ex-business partner will give at trial will be based on hearsay. She hopes that the judge will determine that the testimony cannot be heard by the jury. In order to get the judge to address her concerns, she files a ______.

A. motion in limine

B. motion to suppress

C. motion for recusal

D. motion for discovery

32. A woman is charged with murder, and cannot afford an attorney. Her court-appointed public defender believes his client is suffering from a severe mental illness affecting her ability to tell right from wrong, but he needs a psychological evaluation. Unfortunately, his client does not have the money to hire a psychologist. What motion should he file on behalf of his client?

A. motion for expert witnesses

B. motion for expenses of experts

C. motion to hire an expert

D. motion for expertise

33. Prior to the beginning of a murder trial, the defense attorney discovers that the judge is friends with the victim’s family. The attorney believes that the judge cannot be impartial, so they file a ______.

A. motion to suppress

B. motion for judicial dismissal

C. motion for recusal

D. motion in limine

34. Shortly before the trial, a prosecutor discovered that the trial judge was related to the defendant. She believed this would compromise the judge’s ability to fairly oversee the trial, so she filed a ______.

A. motion to recuse

B. motion to suppress

C. motion in limine

D. motion for change of venue

35. The list of potential juries from which a jury is selected is called the ______.

A. venire

B. voir dire

C. grand jury

D. petit jury

36. A potential juror in a domestic violence case identifies that she once left an abusive relationship. The defense attorney should ______.

A. challenge the array

B. file a motion to remove this juror from the pool

C. use a peremptory challenge to eliminate this juror

D. strike this juror for cause

37. It is unconstitutional to remove a prospective juror based on their ______.

A. sexuality

B. ethnicity

C. gender identity

D. gender

38. The ______ Amendment guarantees the right to an impartial jury.

A. Fourth

B. Sixth

C. Eighth

D. Fourteenth

39. If an attorney believes that the entire jury panel should be discharged, they would present a ______.

A. motion to suppress

B. peremptory challenge

C. challenge to the array

D. motion in limine

40. In order to prepare for trial, members of the court randomly select names of potential jurors from various sources in order to create the ______.

A. array

B. juror list

C. voir dire

D. venire

41. The attorney for a Black defendant questions jurors to try and determine whether they have any racial bias. In response to his questions, one of the jurors claims that he believes Black people are genetically predisposed to criminality. How should the attorney respond to this situation?

A. request the removal of the juror by using a challenge for cause

B. request the removal of the juror by using a peremptory challenge

C. request the removal of the juror by filing a motion for recusal

D. request the removal of the juror by requesting an exclusion

42. Batson v. Kentucky (1986) was a landmark Supreme Court case involving a Black man accused of burglary in Kentucky. During jury selection, the prosecutor used their limited number of challenges to dismiss all of the Black jurors without giving a legal reason. The court ultimately decided that the ______, which do not require a legal reason, cannot be used if the sole reason for removal deals with race or ethnicity.

A. challenge for cause

B. peremptory challenge

C. challenge to the array

D. challenge to venire

43. A Black woman is on trial in a predominantly Black community. However, during jury selection, her attorney recognizes that the entire jury pool is White. If the attorney believes that the jury pool was selected improperly, the attorney might seek to discharge the entire venire using a ______.

A. challenge for cause

B. peremptory challenge

C. challenge of the venire

D. challenge to the array

44. During jury selection for a trial involving a Latino defendant, the judge recognizes one of the potential jurors as a leader of a local anti-immigrant organization. Although the juror claims they would be unbiased, the judge decides to remove them using a ______.

A. challenge for cause

B. peremptory challenge

C. bias challenge

D. challenge to the array

45. During voir dire, an attorney removes 30 individual jurors, but does not have any concerns about the venire. What kind of challenge was she using to remove the jurors?

A. peremptory challenges

B. challenges for cause

C. challenges to the array

D. challenges of substance

46. It was not until ______ that women could serve on juries in the same capacity as men.

A. 1921

B. 1942

C. 1975

D. 1994

47. Which of the following is least likely to be offered the opportunity of bail?

A. White women

B. White men

C. Black women

D. Black men

48. There is no federal law that prevents removing ______.

A. Hispanic jurors

B. LGBTQ jurors

C. female jurors

D. American Indian/Alaskan Native jurors

49. Based on what you know about race, gender, and bail, which of the following individuals would be likely to be offered the highest bail, even if they were all charged with same crime?

A. a Black man

B. a Black woman

C. a White woman

D. a White man

50. During voir dire, an attorney used their peremptory challenges to remove all the women from the potential jury pool. According to the Supreme Court ruling in J.E.B. v. Alabama ex rel. T.B. (1994), which of the following statements would be accurate?

A. This would be unconstitutional because only challenges for cause can be used to remove potential jurors based on sex.

B. This would be unconstitutional because peremptory challenges cannot be based on sex alone.

C. This would be constitutional, because the requirement that juries represent a cross section of the community does not relate to gender.

D. This would have been constitutional, because during the time of the Supreme Court decision, women were not allowed to serve on juries.

51. James and Richard are both charged with the same crime under the same circumstances. During plea bargaining, James is offered a more lenient plea deal with a 5-year sentence, while Richard is offered a plea deal with a much harsher 10-year sentence. According to research, which of the following is likely true about James’ race?

A. James is Native American.

B. James is Hispanic.

C. James is White.

D. James is Black.

52. Which landmark Supreme Court case ruled that women should not be excluded from jury duty because this would result in all-male juries that did not represent a cross section of the community?

A. Hoyt v. Florida

B. J.E.B. v. Alabama ex rel. T.B.

C. Taylor v. Louisiana

D. Strauder v. West Virginia

53. Which of the following prohibited the exclusion of African Americans from jury duty?

A. Thirteenth Amendment

B. Fourteenth Amendment

C. Fifteenth Amendment

D. Civil Rights Act of 1875

54. Which Supreme Court case ruled that the rights guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment applied not only to White and Black people, but to all other racial and ethnic minorities?

A. Hernandez v. Texas

B. Strauder v. West Virginia

C. Batson v. Kentucky

D. Norris v. Alabama

55. How did the Naturalization Act of 1870 impact juries?

A. It declared that immigrants who were racial minorities could not become naturalized citizens, which barred them from serving on juries.

B. It made it illegal to remove Asians from juries based on their race.

C. It established a process for immigrants to become naturalized citizens, and citizens are the only people allowed to serve on juries.

D. It granted noncitizens the right to serve on juries.

56. American Indians who retained their tribal membership could not serve on juries because ______ claimed they were not considered American citizens.

A. an 1884 Supreme Court decision

B. the Fourteenth Amendment

C. the Naturalization Act of 1870

D. the J.E.B. v. Alabama ex rel. T.B. Supreme Court decision

57. A juror was legally removed from a jury because of their personal characteristics. Based on what you know about the legal and constitutional rules regarding juror removals, which of the following describes this juror?

A. American Indian

B. LGBTQ

C. Hispanic

D. female

58. ______ are less likely than other crimes to be given lenient plea bargains.

A. White-collar crimes

B. Vandalism crimes

C. Drug-related crimes

D. Immigration offenses

59. A judge decides not to allow a female juror to be removed because he believes that the attorney is trying to remove her based on her sex. He also believes that this is a violation of the juror’s equal protection rights. Which of the following Supreme Court decisions is he using to justify his decision?

A. J.E.B. v. Alabama ex rel. T.B.

B. Hoyt v. Florida

C. Taylor v. Louisiana

D. Strauder v. West Virginia

60. A Black man was convicted of a crime after the prosecution used their peremptory challenges to remove all Black people from the pool of prospective jurors. On appeal, the judge asks the prosecution to explain why they removed the Black jurors, and the prosecution cannot come up with a valid reason. Therefore, the judge concludes that they were removed based on their race and overturns the conviction. What Supreme Court case was the basis for the judge’s decision?

A. Strauder v. West Virginia

B. Norris v. Alabama

C. Batson v. Kentucky

D. Hernandez v. Texas

61. A defendant was convicted of a crime by an all-White jury. He lived in a community with a large percentage of Middle Eastern immigrants, and his attorney discovered that no people of Middle Eastern ethnicity had ever served on a jury in that community, in spite of their large population. As a result, he appealed the case, based on the precedent set in the Supreme Court ruling on the very similar circumstances of the ______ case.

A. Hernandez v. Texas

B. Batson v. Kentucky

C. Norris v. Alabama

D. Strauder v. West Virginia

62. What can a bail bond company do if their client is ignoring their phone calls?

A. They can use caller ID spoofing to trick them into answering the phone.

B. They can have the client arrested.

C. They can petition the judge to increase their clients’ bail.

D. They can ask the court to revoke the client’s bail.

63. What is a result of technology that allows bail forms to be filled out electronically, and gives individuals the option to pay bail online?

A. Bail bonds companies are going out of business.

B. People are more likely to take advantage of the technology and skip out on bail.

C. People can be released from jail more quickly.

D. People are more likely to pay bail.

64. What is a benefit of using software to help judges set bail?

A. Software automatically calculates the ideal bail amount to discourage people from failing to return for trial.

B. Software provides brain scans that identify the neurology of people who are a risk to the community.

C. Judges do not have to worry about a person’s flight risk because software can help police find them if they leave the country.

D. Software analyzing search engines, credit reports, and social media help judges make faster and more informed decisions.

65. A judge is trying to determine whether or not an accused person is a flight risk. Which of the following would help the judge make a more informed decision when setting bail?

A. software that analyzes online credit reports and social media

B. psychological evaluation

C. interviews with the accused’s family

D. statistics about racial and ethnic characteristics and flight risk

1. Prosecutors represent the victims of crime at trial.

2. The U.S. attorney general is a cabinet position.

3. Most state prosecutors are elected.

4. Law enforcement decides whether to charge an offender with a crime.

5. After a mistrial, prosecutors have the power to refile charges.

6. A majority of those charged with a crime hire private counsel.

7. A defense attorney must determine if a client is guilty prior to taking the case.

8. Grand juries determine guilt or innocence.

9. Grand juries operate in secret with subpoena powers and are not bound by rules of evidence.

10. High bail is used for serious offenses to punish the offender.

11. The Bail Reform Act of 1966 gives noncapital defendants the right to be released on bond or personal recognizance.

12. Most states require that the victim of a crime be notified when the defendant is released prior to trial.

13. In some locations, forfeited bail bond funds are used to compensate crime victims.

14. The burden of proof at the preliminary hearing is “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

15. In accepting a plea bargain, a defendant waives several constitutional rights.

16. All states require 12 jurors for capital cases.

17. Drug-related offenses are more likely to be given lenient plea bargains.

18. The Civil Rights Act of 1875 established the right for Blacks to serve on juries nationwide.

19. Only U.S. citizens can serve on a jury.

20. The Supreme Court has not ruled on whether the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits the use of peremptory challenges to strike prospective jurors on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

1. Compare the role and responsibilities of prosecutors and defense attorneys.

2. Describe the factors that influence a prosecutor’s decision to file charges.

3. Identify the types of cases that U.S. attorneys handle.

4. Describe the forms of prosecutorial conduct outlined in Brady v. Maryland (1963).

5. Trace the sequence of events from a crime occurring to the initial court proceeding.

6. Describe the purpose of bail and the factors used to decide when bail will be granted.

7. Explain the conditions placed upon an individual who has been released on bail.

8. Describe what occurs at an arraignment hearing.

9. Describe the pros and cons of plea bargaining.

10. Identify how juries are selected for criminal trials.

1. Explain the legal and ethical concerns that prosecutors face.

2. Describe why the role of the defense attorney is often misunderstood by the public.

3. Explain why grand juries are considered controversial.

4. Identify how race and gender affect plea bargain decisions.

5. Explain how females and minorities have been formally and informally excluded from jury duty.