AJS 502 Criminal Courts and the Judicial Process

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The United States court system is a multi tiered structure made up of sever al courts. Legal cases begin in lower courts and depending on the outcome, can work their way up to higher courts. The adversarial process gives each party involved in a legal dispute the opportunity to state their case to a non- biased judge and jury. Each represented by an attorney. State Court - General jurisdiction where facts and laws are tried. State Court of Appeals - Appellate jurisdiction, facts of state and court trials. Supreme Court - Reviews must be granted, sets administrative policies for the court system.

In the case of Miller v. Alabama (Certiorari to the court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama). Defendant Miller aged 14, along with a friend beat Miller's neighbor, set fire to his trailer and killed him after a night of alcohol and drug use. Miller was charged as a juvenile. The District Attorney sought to move the case to adult court where he was charged with murder and arson. A jury finding Miller guilty, imposed a sentence of life in prison without parole. The Alabama Court of Appeals thought his sentence fair considering the crime he committed and that its mandatory nature was

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