Other federal judges

Bankruptcy judges and magistrate judges are judicial officers of the district courts, but they are not Article III judges. They are not appointed under a political process, and the President and Senate play no role in their selection. Rather, they are appointed by the courts of appeals and the district courts, respectively, with the assistance of merit selection panels composed of local lawyers and other citizens.

Bankruptcy judges are appointed by the judges of the courts of appeals for 14-year terms. Magistrate judges are appointed by the judges of the district court for eight-year terms. Before reappointing a bankruptcy judge or a magistrate judge to an additional term, the appointing court must publish a public notice seeking comments on the incum­bent’s performance and convene a merit panel to recommend to the court whether the incumbent should be reappointed.

Judges of the Court of Federal Claims are appointed for terms of 15 years by the President, subject to confirmation by a majority of the Senate.

part iii

State judges

State judges handle most cases in the United States, but they are not part of the federal court system. Rather, they serve in the state court systems estab­lished by state governments. Like federal judges, state judges are required to support the federal Constitution and may invalidate state laws that they find inconsistent with the Constitution. State judges are selected in several ways, according to state consti­tutions and statutes. Most are either elected by the public in general elections or are appointed by the governor of the state for an original term and may be retained for additional terms by popular vote in a general election.

Preparation for trial

Part I

Very careful preparation on the part of the state and the defense precedes the trial. However, the defense may first enter a motion challenging the jurisdiction of the court over the particular offense involved, or over the particular defend­ant. The defense attorney also may file a demurrer, or mo­tion for dismissal. In preparing for trial, attorneys for both sides will interview prospective witnesses, and if deemed necessary, secure expert evidence, and gather testimony con­cerning ballistics, chemical tests, casts, and other similar data.

tried before a jury, the judge rules upon points of law dealing with trial procedure, presentation of the evidence and the law of the case. If the case is tried before the judge alone, he will determine the facts in addition to performing the afore­mentioned duties.

The court clerk is an officer of the court, also either elect­ed or appointed, who at the beginning of the trial, upon the judge’s instruction, gives the entire panel of prospective ju­rors (veniremen) on oath. By this oath the venireman promises that if called he will truly answer any questions touching upon his qualifications to sit as a juror in the case. Any ve­nireman who is disqualified by law, or has a valid reason to be excused under the law, ordinarily is excused by the judge at this time. A person may be disqualified from jury duty because he is not a resident voter or householder, because of age, hearing defects, or because he has served recently on a ju­ry. Then the court clerk will draw the names of the additional, veniremen from a box, and they will take seats in the jury-box. After twelve veniremen have been approved as jurors by the judge and the attorneys, the court clerk will adminis­ter an oath to the persons so chosen "to well and truly try the cause".

The bailiff is an officer of the court whose duties are to keep order in the courtroom, to call the witnesses, and to take charge of the jury, as instructed by the court, at such times as the jury may not be in the courtroom, and particu­larly when, having received the case, the jury is deliberating upon its decision. It is the duty of the bailiff to see that no one talks with or attempts to influence the jurors in any man­ner whatsoever.

The court reporter has the duty of recording all of the proceedings in the courtroom, including testimony of the witnesses, objections made to evidence by the attorneys and the rulings of the court thereon, and listing and marking for identification any exhibits offered or introduced into evi­dence. In some states, the clerk of the court has charge of ex­hibits.

The attorneys are officers of the court whose duties are to represent their respective clients and present the evidence on their behalf, to the end that the jury or the judge may reach a just verdict or decision.

The role of the attorney is sometimes misunderstood, particularly in criminal proceedings. The present system of jurisprudence presumes every defendant to be innocent until other training in the institution or medical treatment will substantially enhance his capacity to lead a law-abiding life when released at a later date.

Part II

Beyond these grounds of decision, the Code puts forward a set of considerations that a board should take into account, measuring them against the criteria, in determining whether the prisoner should be released at that time. These guides are somewhat similar to the variables that have been included in various parole prediction tables, though their focus is more largely upon the prisoner’s response to the institutional treat­ment program, his parole plan, and his attitude rather than merely upon the background factors associated with personal adjustment. Attention is directed toward the prisoner’s rel­ative readiness at the time of eligibility, as compared with some later time, and toward relevant considerations involv­ing the community and the offender’s adjustment there, rather than toward the absolute probabilities of parole vio­lation. These are the matters the Code proposed that parole agencies should take into account in weighing the criteria noted above:

1. The prisoner’s personality, including his maturity, stability, sense of responsibility and any apparent develop­ment in his personality which may promote or hinder his conformity to law.

2. The adequacy of the prisoner’s parole plan.

3. The prisoner’s ability and readiness to assume obliga­tions and undertake responsibilities.

4. The prisoner’s intelligence and training.

5. The prisoner’s family status and whether he has rela­tives who display an interest in him, or whether he has other close and constructive associations in the community.

6. The prisoner’s employment history, his occupational skills, and the stability of his past employment.

7. The type of residence, neighborhood or community in which the prisoner plans to live.

8. The prisoner’s past use of narcotics, or past habitual and excessive use of alcohol.

9. The prisoner’s mental of physical make-up, including any disability or handicaps which may affect his conformity to law.

10. The prisoner’s prior criminal record, including the na­ture and circumstances, recency and frequency of previous offenses.

11. The prisoner’s attitude toward law and authority.

12. The prisoner’s conduct in the institution, including particularly whether he’has taken advantage of the opportu­nities for constructive activity afforded by the institutional program, whether he has been punished for misconduct with­in six months prior to his hearing or reconsideration for pa­role release, whether he has forfeited any reductions of term during his period of imprisonment, and whether such reduc­tions have been restored at the time of hearing or reconsid­eration.

13. The prisoner’s conduct and attitude during any pre­vious experience of probation or parole and the recency of such experience.