The Criminal Law Handbook: Know Your Rights, Survive the System (Criminal Law Handbook)

650 Pages·2003·5.44 MB·English

by  Paul Bergman

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5th edition
The Criminal
Law Handbook
Know Your Rights, Survive the System
by Attorneys Paul Bergman
& Sara J. Berman-Barrett
FIFTH EDITION February 2003
EDITOR Richard Stim
COVER DESIGN Toni Ihara
BOOK DESIGN Stephanie Harolde
PRODUCTION Sarah Hinman
ILLUSTRATIONS IMSI (in San Rafael);
The Learning Company
(“©1996 The Learning Company Inc.
and its licensors.“); Terri Hearsh
INDEX Ellen Davenport
PROOFREADING Robert Wells
PRINTING Consolidated Printers, Inc.
Bergman, Paul, 1943-
The criminal law handbook : know your rights, survive the system / by Paul Bergman &
Sara J. Berman-Barrett.-- 5th ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 0-87337-928-4
1. Criminal procedure--United States--Popular works. I. Berman-Barrett, Sara J., 1964-
II. Title.
KF9619.6 .B47 2003
345.73'05--dc21 2002043207
Copyright © 1997, 2000, 2002 and 2003 Paul Bergman and Sara J. Berman-Barrett
All Rights Reserved
Printed in the U.S.A.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission
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Dedication
To Kevin and Hilary; Julia and Daniel.
—PB, SBB
Acknowledgments
Our thanks:
To Attorneys Jake Warner and Steve Elias of Nolo for first envisioning a book about the
criminal justice process.
To Janet Portman and Beth McKenna, also former public defenders, for all the hard work and
dedication to the text.
To Dean Laurie Levenson, a former prosecutor and legal commentator; Michael Roman, an
experienced criminal defense attorney; and Ron Schlesman, a longtime probation officer,
each of whom was kind enough to read through the entire text; and Law Professors David
Sklansky, Peter Arenella and David Dolinko of the UCLA School of Law and Michael
Graham of the Miami School of Law for their many insights, critiques and immensely helpful
suggestions.
To Nolo layout and design specialist Stephanie Harolde for her editing contributions and her
unflagging, cheerful and most excellent work on formatting the manuscript into its present
form.
To attorney Steve Harvey for his insightful comments about the nature of the U.S. criminal
justice system, and,
To the many resourceful employees of Nolo who put their heart and energy into producing
such warm and helpful books and making sure the public knows about them.
To another former public defender, David Barrett, for answers to legal questions, for lock-up
to courtroom reality checks, and for setting an example as one who truly pursued justice;
and
Much appreciation to Dr. LaVera Otoyo for sharing wisdom and stories gathered from her
many years of service to America’s juvenile justice system.
To the Martinez family, whose loving care enabled the long hours of research and writing.
To UCLA School of Law students Candace Novell and Shailly Gupta for their help in
preparing the 4th edition.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Section I: How Can This Book Help You?..............................................................I/2
Section II: A Walk-Through of the Case of State v. Andrea Davidson,
a Fictional Robbery Prosecution.............................................................I/7
1: Talking to the Police
Section I: Police Questioning of People Who Haven’t Been
Taken Into Custody ...............................................................................1/3
Section II: Police Questioning of Arrestees ..........................................................1/10
2: Search and Seizure: When the Police Can Search
for and Seize Evidence
Section I: The Constitutional Background.............................................................2/5
Section II: Search Warrants..................................................................................2/10
Section III: Warrantless and Consent Searches......................................................2/14
Section IV: Warrantless Searches and the Plain View Doctrine..............................2/18
Section V: Warrantless Searches That Are Incident to Arrest .................................2/20
Section VI: “Stop and Frisk” Searches....................................................................2/22
Section VII: Searches of Car and Occupants...........................................................2/24
Section VIII: Warrantless Searches Under Emergency (Exigent) Circumstances ........2/28
Section IX: Miscellaneous Warrantless Searches ...................................................2/29
3: Arrest: When It Happens, What It Means
Section I: General Arrest Principles ......................................................................3/3
Section II: Arrest Warrants .....................................................................................3/8
Section III: Warrantless Arrests................................................................................3/9
Section IV: Use of Force When Making Arrests .................................................... 3/11
Section V: Citizens’ Arrests ..................................................................................3/14
4: Police Procedures to Help Eyewitnesses Identify Suspects
Section I: An Overview of Eyewitness Identification Procedures...........................4/3
Section II: Lineups.................................................................................................4/7
Section III: Showups.............................................................................................4/18
Section IV: Photo IDs............................................................................................4/19
Section V: Motions to Suppress Identifications.....................................................4/21
5: Booking and Bail: Checking In and Checking Out of Jail
Section I: The Booking Process.............................................................................5/3
Section II: Arranging for Bail..................................................................................5/6
Section III: Own Recognizance Release (Release O.R.).........................................5/15
6: From Suspect to Defendant: How Crimes Get Charged
Section I: Crime and Criminal Cases.....................................................................6/3
Section II: To Charge or Not to Charge, That Is the Question..................................6/5
Section III: The Mechanics of Charging.................................................................6/13
Section IV: Grand Juries........................................................................................6/16
Section V: Diversion............................................................................................6/18
7: Criminal Defense Lawyers: Who They Are,
What They Do, How to Find One
Section I: Do I Need a Lawyer? ............................................................................7/3
Section II: Court-Appointed Attorneys ...................................................................7/6
Section III: Private Defense Attorneys...................................................................7/13
Section IV: Self-Representation.............................................................................7/22
8: Understanding the Attorney-Client Relationship
in a Criminal Case
Section I: Confidentiality......................................................................................8/3
Section II: Client-Centered Decision-Making.........................................................8/7
Section III: Lawyer-Client Communication............................................................8/13
Section IV: Representing Guilty Defendants..........................................................8/14
Section V: Competent Clients ..............................................................................8/16