LAW-2960 Federal Criminal Practice Seminar
The seminar consists in a detailed study of the federal criminal process, beginning with the grand jury investigation, indictment and arrest of a defendant, and covering all subsequent phases until sentence. Among the topics to be discussed are: 1) the Grand Jury, 2) the Bail Reform Act of 1984, 3) Discovery and pre-trial proceedings, 4) Speedy Trial Act, 5) the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, 6) Sentencing under a non-mandatory Guideline regime (post 2005); 7) federal death penalty proceedings, and 8) transfer of juveniles to adult status. The two credit seminar will consist of daily lectures and class discussion of these topics, which will include discussion of relevant jurisprudential concepts, as well as applicable statutory authority and the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Students will also participate in practical class exercises, for example, in a sentencing problem, a student will be instructed to serve as the judge, while others act as a prosecutor, defense attorney and probation officer. In addition, learning of the various topics will be enhanced by visits from actual federal magistrate and/or district judge, US Probation officer, Assistant US Attorney and Federal Public Defender, who each day will be invited to discuss his/her real life experience in the federal criminal process. Intersession Course