LAW 639 - Advanced Criminal Procedure

Unit(s): 2 to 3

This course covers the practical courtroom applications of Criminal Procedure from investigation and arrest through conviction. We will examine the power of the government in its ability to charge an individual with a crime, and the checks on that power which are created by the Constitution, the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, and California state law. Topics will be approached with an emphasis on how these issues are raised, litigated, and adjudicated in court in the course of a criminal case with an emphasis on outside-the-box thinking and innovative legal strategy. Students will learn about prosecutorial discretion to bring criminal charges, the complaint, initial appearance, bail, preliminary examination, grand jury, joinder and severance, motion practice, discovery, pleas, continuance, time limitations, jurisdiction and venue, trial, double jeopardy, sentencing, and direct and collateral appellate review. They will also learn about how that power can be tested, and checked. Prerequisite: Criminal Procedure.

Prerequisite: LAW 605
Restriction: College restricted to School of Law
School of Law