The Term Arraignment in a Judicial Setting

For a long time, courts, and even the ordinary citizen misuse the term arraignment as used in a judicial setting. The most controversial instance being a differentiation between arraignment and initial appearance. Initial appearance refers to the proceeding where an accused individual appears before the legal professionals after an arrest on a criminal charge. Arraignment, on the other hand, is the formal proceeding at which the defendant learns what he or she has been accused of by the victim. As witnessed from the Cohalan Court Complex arraignment courtroom during the arraignment process the defendant is notified of the offense charged in the complaint, indictment, information, or other charging documents. Arraignments process takes place mainly within the first forty-eight hours after arrest, but this excludes holidays and weekends. However, if the suspect was issued a citation or has bailed out the process may commence much later. The exact timing of arraignment defers from one state to another and from one court to the other. For instance, in Cohalan Court Complex the arraignment hearing is held every day of the week, but the process mainly starts at eleven oclock.

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During the arraignment section, the judicial officials should advise the defendant on the various legal issues such as the right to counsel, trial and self-incrimination. The process proceeds the perpetrator appearance in the jury. If the accused asks for a lawyer, the process halts until they get one. Also, among the key reason for arraigning offenders is to let them enter a plea. Once the court has advised the offender on the charges against him or her they are supposed to take a plea of not guilty, guilty or nolo contendere (meaning no contest). After consultation with other legal officials, the judges decide if the liberation of the defendant may pose any danger to the society or not. If the liberty of the accused does not conflict with the safety of the community, the defendant receives a bailout after making cash or bond payment at the clerks office. However, defendants can waive the arraignment if they have an attorney. The counsel communicates to the prosecutor and the court by submitting a waiver of arraignment in writing, and the jury plans a separate hearing to decide the conditions of release.

The Constitutional Roots of Arraignment

Arraignment can trace its constitutional roots at the common law heritage whereby the society ruled a unique circumstance where there was no formal precedent. The ruling later had an impact on all similar situations, and this developed in the current judicial setting. However, arraignment aimed at exercising equal protection of law which was one of the earliest established principles in the United States. For instance, President Thomas Jefferson had asked his audience to observe the sacred principle in the United States indicating that the majoritys will prevails in most cases, but they need to respect the fact that minority possess equal rights protected by the law and violating their rights would be oppression (Roberson 48). The common law heritage and the need for equality in the society were among the factors that contributed to the sixth amendments of the Constitution to protect defendants from any form of discrimination. Therefore, arraignment as a formal judicial process can trace its roots back then. In criminal procedures, the judiciary enforces the substantive law on an equal basis, and they should observe the rights of defendants without any discrimination.

Though states may have different criminal codes, they must adhere to the federal rules outlined by the United States Constitutions Bill of Rights. During the arraignment, the defendant is protected from interrogation until they learn their constitutional rights. According to the provisions of the fifth and sixth amendments of the United States Constitution, the defendants can remain silent until they acquire an attorney for their defense. The Sixth Amendment of United States Constitution reads, in all criminal prosecutions the defendants are entitled to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury. At this stage of the trial, the accused should be informed the nature and the cause of the accusation and can obtain witnesses in his or her favor. The defendant can also seek assistance from a counsel during interrogation (Gaines et.al 63). All this aims at setting a fair ground for the accused to defend himself against the raised allegations.

How do Sections 500, 510, etc. of New Yorks Criminal Procedure Law control the judges decision vis-a-vis the defendants release (or confinement)?

Article 500 Recognizance, Bail and Commitment- Definition of terms

Article 500 of the New York criminal procedure law outlines the definition of the terms recognizance, bail, and commitments. The article defines a principal as a suspect in a proceeding or criminal action and is required by law to appear before a court for the purpose of the court exercising control over his person to secure his future attendance ("Article 500 | CPL | Recognizance Bail Commitment Definitions" 2). During the arraignment, a principal is released on their recognizance if he or she have acquired control over his or her person. At this instance, the judge is obliged to allow the principals remain at liberty during the pendency of the proceeding or criminal action on condition that they will avail themselves whenever their attendance is required. The principals may also be granted a release on payment of a bail as they await the criminal proceedings. For one to acquire recognizance inform of a bond or bail, the accused must apply for it instead of being retained in custody pending their hearing. Lastly, if the accused possesses any threat to the society, they are committed to the supervision of the sheriff.

Article 510 Application for Recognizance or Bail, Issuance of Securing Orders and Related Matter

When a defendant is required to attend a future court attendance securing of order is significant. It involves acquiring a new securing order in case the previous one was revoked. Secondly, if the principal is under the age of sixteen and the judge has issued a commitment to the custody of the sheriff they must be detained in a lodge certified by the state as a juvenile detention facility. However, for a judge to make any decision on bail, he or she must comply with a provision of Article 510 section 30 which outlines the application of recognizance or bail and laws and rules controlling their determination.

How does this process reflect with the due process and crime control models that we have studied?

Crime control models refer to the conservative approaches to offenses and mainly aims at protecting or securing the society from criminal activities by regulating criminal justice and conduct. On the other hand, the due process model is the contrast of the crime control model as it is a liberal approach to criminal justice that favors criminal rights. The difference between the two models is that crime control models only aims at the effective and efficient administration of justice through a swift procedure and direct handling of the cases from the start to the completion. Arraignment is widely related to the crime control model as it assumed that the police respected the persons right from the time they start an investigation. Therefore, during the pleading process, the defendant is likely to plead guilty to avoid a trial hastening the time used for a person to receive a sentence. The crime control model saves the government finances and avoids unnecessary delays for victims in receiving justice (Gaines et.al 71).

However, due process model focuses on the rights of the defendant and not the speed of the resolution. The due process model ensures that the police observed the rights of the accused during investigations and made sure that the accused are given their priorities by all means. It is for this reason that a case is abandoned on the basis of technicalities. During the arraignment, the judiciary is keen to exercise the rights of the defendant such as right to a speedy trial, right to a public trial and a counsel among others.

How many different careers are necessary to bring the defendant to this point of their prosecution?

Apart from the accused and the victim they are some professional involved before a case reaches the arraignment process. The victim is supposed to record a statement with a police department who makes the arrest of the suspect after an investigation. Secondly, the suspects attend the initial appearance in the judiciary lead by a judge. The prosecutor reads the accusations and the defendant may request for a public attorney or acquire a counsel to offer him with legal advice when needed.

Conclusion

In conclusion, judicial matters are systematic, and all the outlined processes are essential for justice and equality to prevail. For instance, the Cohalan Court Complex have all the necessary arrangements in place before any judicial healing takes place. It is evident from the various criminal models that the parties involved in a case are both entitled to their individual rights. Both the defendant and the victim before the law are equal, and until the accused is proved guilty or pleads guilty, they remain innocent (Roberson 51). Lastly, the United States law protects both parties, and none of them is superior before the law.

Work cited

"Article 500 | CPL | Recognizance Bail Commitment Definitions". Yonkerspd.com. N.p., 2016 Web. 14 Dec. 2016.

Gaines, Larry K, Roger L. R. Miller, Don R. Hopkins, Neil Stratton, and MarcNeithercutt. Criminal Justice in Action: The Core. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2014. Print.

Roberson, Cliff. Constitutional Law and Criminal Justice. 1st ed. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2009. Print.