Criminal Law Foundations Evaluation

Introduction

The first ten amendments to the constitution of the United States of America point to the bill of rights. These bills protect the American citizens from unfair treatment by the government. The government works through the police. The bill guarantees the people certain freedom and limits the government to some extent on the power that it posses and how it implements it. These amendments were brought to the congress floor by James Madison. Their adoption took place in 1789. We will take a close examination of the fourth, fifth and sixth amendments and their impacts on adult and juvenile courts.

The Fourth Amendment is the protection from unreasonable search and seizure. This is a component of the bill of rights that gives people the freedom to secure their persons, papers, and houses. They are also secure from any unreasonable earches and seizures. The bill strongly states that this right shall never be violated as well no warrants shall be issued, unless there is a probable cause, which has approval by an oath of affirmation and the description of the place under inspection, the affected person or the possessions to be seized. In both juvenile and adult courts, the constitutional safeguard is applied (Emanuel 2009). Both children and adults get the right by the constitution to be free from any harassment, which is not subject to approval by the law. In a case when this is not in the course, the violator may face criminal charges.

The Fifth Amendment talks about due process, self incrimination, double jeopardy and eminent domain. This safeguard states that no person shall be under pressure to answer for any crime, unless he or she is under the indictment of a grand jury. There will be an exception in cases that involve naval or land forces or militia being presently in service or at war times. No person shall be put in jeopardy of limb or life twice. No one shall be put under pressure to testify against himself. No one shall face depletion of liberty, life or property, unless the same has approval by the law. No private property shall be in for public use, unless the owner gets due compensation. This is the so called Miranda bill. In adult and juvenile courts, persons have the right to stay silent and not to plead guilty of any offence. No one is free to make the suspect reveal anything, unless in front of a jury and within the protection of a counsel. The juveniles are immature and may not know their rights. Owing to this law the minors have constitutional protection from any illegal exploitation.

The sixth amendment talks about the trial by jury, rights of the accused, speedy trial, right to counsel and public trial. It states that, in any criminal prosecution, the person under accusation shall have the right to public and speedy trial by a neutral jury. In the case where a deed of crime is present, the accused shall have the right to be told his crime and a witness be brought to attest to the same. He shall have the right to bring a witness to testify in his favor. He shall also be allowed to have a presentation by a council for the sake of his or her defense.

The right to be given a fair, speedy and public trial in both juvenile and adult courts is available in the constitution. The accused also get the right to have a legal presentation in the court proceedings. This is to ensure that there is no case of mistaken statements that could land the accused into undue trouble. Speedy trial ensures that the right to let the accused go on with his normal life is there. Delay of justice may bring a lot of frustrations to the accused, thus, the speedy and public trial is a great variant (Wilkerson 1973).

Impacts of the Safeguards on day to day Operations in the Court

With the amendments, the legal practice has been under a serious transformation. The citizens have come to know their rights. This in turn, harmonizes the understanding between the public land governments; hence, smooth governance brings a better life for the people. The right to counsel ensures that there is equality and safety in cases where an accused has to argue his or her way out. Ensuring that all citizens involved in any criminal indictment get a representation brings back the trust that people have in the government. It would be frustrating for a child incriminated in any way to try and argue his or her way out, yet they do not know the legal approach. There is likely to be no convincing zeal, and, hence, an unfair ruling may take place. Getting counsel may be by private or involving state attorney for those that cannot afford to hire their own lawyers.

Miranda warnings protect the accused from selling themselves out due to any pressure. The police have, hence, been moderated in their power to get .any information from unwarranted seizure. People who did not know their rights and were likely to say any incriminating statements are now free from that. They can only speak upon approval by a jury and in the presence of a counsel. The people have since remained protected from any unfair, illegal questioning by unwarranted authority.

Speedy trial has since ensured that justice comes exceptionally fast. Frustration may crop in when justice is delayed. Delayed justice is often expensive and comes with extensive anxiety. Speedy justice ensures that pending cases are put on floor as fast as possible to give way for others. Fair treatment is highly present, and rights of citizens to be free to know their next course quickly is availed. Another important impact of this amendment comes due to the safeguards against unlawful search and seizure. It has ensured that citizens’ dignity is not taken to disregard. The private lives of members of the public get protection under this law. The police force has, hence, become friendly and accepted by the society.

The safeguards also took away excessive power from the government and shared it out to the public. Every person has the authority and freedom to be in custody of his own life and not to be interrupted by any one. The private sector has also been given some space to make their own decisions. It is indeed clear that the laws are not closely followed by the latter (Rehnquist 2000). There have been evident problems in many cases. Police brutality and government exploitation have been there. As much as this has been the actual case on the ground, the laws still apply upon reference to the same.

Conclusion

The three bills of rights are indeed there to secure the rights of the people. If followed, everyone can be right to boast of a fair country with admirable governance process. Every citizen of the United States of America should know their rights so as to prevent themselves from unfairly falling into the unfair traps of the law. The laws, the rights were projects of the people and owned by the people. Therefore, I believe that each and every of them should work in favor of the citizens.