Jurisdiction

Unit V

U.S. Constitution

Constitutional right violation such as freedom of speech, religion, or other related to Constitutional Articles I-VII and Amendments

Examples-– Flag Burning– Executive Branch– Mall of America– Capital punishment of 8 year-old

Federal Laws

Federal crimes such as tax evasion, kidnapping, bank robbery or any laws created by Congress or Executive Agencies

Examples-– Crime crossing a state or international

border– Checking constitutionality of local, state,

and federal laws

Admiralty and Maritime Laws

Concerns or crimes that occur on the high seas, related to the seas, or international waters

Examples-– Shipwrecks– Pirates– Drug traffic– Zebra Mussels– Asian Carp

Disputes where the U.S. is involvedExamples

– Violation of government contracts– Involvement of government property– Italian Gondola Accident– Nuclear Testing– Japanese Internment– IRS

Controversies between States

Examples-– Disputes over milk prices– Pollution from factories– Interstate system– Hwy 36 Bridge– Asian Carp

Controversies between Citizens of different StatesExamples-

– Interstate commerce– Product bought somewhere else in U.S.– Jurisdiction limit to case involving $50,000

or more

Disputes involving Foreign GovernmentsExamples-

– Case involving international law – Citizen or company

* However, American businesses and U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents must respect laws and practices of other nations as they do ours

U.S. Ambassadors, Ministers, and Consuls serving in Foreign Countries

American citizen working for the American government violates American law in a foreign country

May be legal in respective country but employee may be liable for actions in U.S. Court system

Usually high civilian officials

Jurisdiction

Under most of these situations, the Federal Court System has Exclusive Jurisdiction

Eight District Courts- Downtown Mpls.SCOTUS has the final say…if they

want to…

Minnesota Government

3 branches:Executive BranchLegislative BranchJudicial Branch

Functions of Judicial Branch

Guardian of MN state constitution & interprets U.S. Constitution

Make sure laws applied fairlyHelp preserve order in society

Minnesota Court System

District Court District Court 10th District CourtSherburne County

Anoka CountyIsanti County

District Court

Minnesota Court of Appeals

Minnesota Supreme Court

District or trial court

Judges– 272 judges, 10 districts, appointed by governor

& then elected to 6 year terms Jurisdiction / Process

– Criminal & Civil matters over $7,500– Ex: murder, DUI, divorce– More than 2 million cases a year– Trial by judge or jury

Di

Conciliation Court

Also called small claims court or people’s court

Division of the trial courtsFor civil claims under $7,500No lawyers, simple, fast process

Minnesota Court of Appeals

Judges– 16 judges hear cases in groups of 3– Appointed by governor & then elected for 6 year terms

Jurisdiction / Process– Hears appeals from trial court– 2,000 cases per year– Reviews trial court’s decision, doesn’t repeat trial– End of the road for 95% cases

Minnesota Supreme Court

Justices– 7 Justices ( chief justice is Russell Anderson)– Appointed by governor & then elected to 6 year terms

Jurisdiction / Process– Hear appeals from Court of Appeals (exception: hear

appeals for 1st degree murder convictions)– Justices look for error in the lower courts– Only 5% of all trial court cases come to SC - they decide

which cases to review– If unhappy w/decision, can appeal to U.S. Supreme Court

(rare cases accepted)

Trial Court Jury Selection

Trial court cases may be heard by judge or jury Juries consist of 6 or 12 members Jury pool picked randomly from voter registration

lists & MN I.D. card/drivers’ license lists Jurors selected after lawyers & judge ask questions

about ability to keep an open mind & knowledge of the case

Defendant Arrested

Trial Court

Guilty Not Guilty

can appeal to

Court of Appeals

Reverse Conviction

UpholdConviction

Defendant Free

can appeal to

MinnesotaSupreme Court

Reverse Conviction

Defendant Free

UpholdConviction

DefendantFree

Goal of the court system is to provide equal justice for all.

Jurisdiction

Unit V