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VI Amendment
The VI Amendment says that In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for defense -
IX Amendment
The IX Amendment says that there are other rights that may exist aside from the ones explicitly mentioned, and even though they are not listed, it does not mean they can be violated. -
First Prison
In 1829, the Eastern State Penitentiary, the first modern prison
opens in Philadelphia. The pioneers used it of solitary
confinement, to give incarcerated people time for reflection
and penitence. -
XIV Amendment
The 14th Amendment includes clauses: The Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause. The Due Process Clause says that no state can deprive anyone of Life, Liberty or Property without Due Process. The Equal Protection Clause says that no state can apply states or federal laws differently because of race. -
Strauder v. West Virginia
After Strauder challenged the law saying that blacks could not serve on a jury, a court case ensued in which the XIV Amendment was used for his argument. The XIV amendment said that anyone born in the US cannot be denied US citizenship "due to race, color or previous slavery", it didn't talk about the appliance of the law which West Virginia used to argue that the laws didn't apply. The Supreme court ruled in favor of Strauder but didn't declare Virginia's racist laws unconstitutional. -
Tumey v. Ohio
The mayor of the town of North College Hill, Ohio received $12 for every defendant convicted before him. Ed Tumey was convicted before the mayor of unlawfully possessing intoxicating liquor. Tumey challenged and the court ruled that Tumey's conviction violated the Fourteenth Amendment reasoning that it “deprives a defendant in a criminal case of due process of law to subject his liberty or property to the judgment of a court”. -
First prison for women
The year of 1927 is an important turn in the American Criminal Justice System because it is the year we opened the first prison for women. After that year, the number of women prison that was opened in incalculable. The prison was located in West Virginia. -
Hernandez v. Texas
In 1954 Pete Hernandez, a Mexican American was tried and convicted for the murder of Joe Espinoza by an all white jury. Pete Hernandez and his lawyer argued that the trial was unfair because a Mexican American had not served on a Jackson County jury in over 25 years. The case went all the way to the Supreme court where they ruled that the XIV Amendment's equal protection clause entitled Jackson County to give Hernandez a fair jury. -
The number of prisoners increases
In 1955, sates started closing mental hospitals and reduction in overall state care for people with serious mental illness. Jails and prisons eventually take up the slack. This is one of the first event who led now to jail overpopulation. -
The Crime in the US and modern countries has more than doubled in the 60's
US and most western countries experience dramatic
increase in crime. From 1962-1972, the annual number of
homicides has more than doubled. The homicide rate among
blacks had been several times higher than whites since at least
the 1930’s. -
Gideon v. Wainright
Mr. Gideon was a well-known lawbreaker. He was arrested for a crime and sent to trial without an attorney to plead his cause. While in prison, he wrote a letter to the Supreme Court arguing that his rights had been violated. His case was heard and it was decided that every criminal had the right to an attorney both for state and federal cases. -
Civil Rights Act
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a crucial civil rights act and labor law in the U.S that prohibited discrimination based on race, color, religion. sex or national origin. It also prohibited racial segregation in schools -
The Office of Law Enforcement Assistance is created
In 1965, President Johnson created the Office of Law Enforcement Assistance with support from the left and the right. It provided
funding and programs to expand and improve state and local
criminal justice systems. -
The Supreme Court says that people cannot be incarcerated because they don't pay their debts
In 1983, the Supreme Court said that people cannot be put in prison because they cannot pay their debts. This was an attempt made by the federal government to reduce the number of people in prison. -
Bail Reform Act
The Bail Reform Act was passed in 1984 and required courts to detain concrete proofs prior to trial arrestees. -
Anti Drug Abuse Act
In 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed into law the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986. The law allocated funds to new prisons, drug education, and treatment. But its main result was to create mandatory minimum sentences. The harsh sentences on crack cocaine use disproportionately affect African-Americans. -
US v. Salerno
Salerno was suspected of a crime but the Judicial System didn't have any proof of his crimes. That court case went all the way to the Supreme Court. They ruled in favor of the US. That court case was crucial to the US Judicial System because it determined that the Bail Reform Act of 1984, which permitted the federal courts to detain an arrestee prior to trial if the government could prove that the individual was potentially dangerous to other people in the community, was constitutional. -
Holland v. Illinois
In 1989, Holland was charged for multiple crimes. Jury members were selected, two of whom were black. Holland challenged that the VI amendment that having the two black members of the jury excluded him of having a fair trial. Holland claimed that the holding was an error and it was then reviewed in the Supreme Court. The Supreme court reviewed it and ruled in favor of Illinois under the VI Amendment. -
Edmonson v. Leesville Concrete Co.
Edmonson a black construction worker, was injured during work on federal property. He sued Leesville for failing to take care of his injury. During the Jury Selection, Leesville used two peremptory challenges on black jurors. Edmonson requested that the trial court require Leesville to give a race-neutral reason for the peremptory challenges to black jurors. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Edmonson stating that racial discrimination should not happen in a jury selection. -
Survey
A survey was given to young Americans to know what they thought about prison. The result was clear, more Americans think the primary purpose of prison is to punish, not rehabilitate. -
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act
In 1994, President Clinton signed the Violent Crime Control and Law
Enforcement Act, the “largest crime bill in the history of the
country,” which is sponsored by then-Senator Joe Biden. Among
its provisions are $9.7 billion for prisons, funding for 100,000 new
police officers, and the system of Byrne grants. -
Welfare Reform
In 1996, President Bill Clinton signs welfare reform, increasing obstacles for people convicted of drug felonies to access the social safety net, and immigration reform, which increases deportation for non citizens convicted of past and current crimes. -
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement
In 2002, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is formed. Their goal is to reduce the increasing number of immigrants illegally entering the country. -
Second Chance Act as a bill
During his annual message to Congress, also called State of the Union, President Bush proposes a prisoner rehabilitation initiative that will eventually become the Second Chance Act. Bush said, "Tonight I propose a four-year, $300 million Prisoner Re-Entry Initiative to expand job training and placement services, to provide transitional housing and to help newly released prisoners get mentoring, including from faith-based groups." -
Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act
In 2006, President George W. Bush signed the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act into law, this act severely increased penalties and restrictions on sex offenders. This act main goal was to reduce the number of people sent in jail. -
Second Chance Act as a law
The Second Change Act is finally passed as a law in 2008. President Bush is the one to sign it. He is also the one who had the idea of the Second Change Act. This Act helped allocated $362 million to help recently released prisoners re-enter society. -
California reduces the number of people held in solitary confinement
In 2015, a settlement is reached in the court case Ashker v. Governor of California, dramatically reducing the number of people held in solitary confinement in California and setting limits on how and for how long people may be held. This settlement main goal was to reduce the number of years that prisoners spend in prison. -
Foster v. Charman
In 1986, Timothy Tyrone Foster, an 18-year-old black man, was charged with murdering an elderly white woman. At the trial, the prosecution used peremptory strikes against all four of the qualified black jurors. Pursuant to the Supreme Court’s decision in Batson v. Kentucky, which prohibits the use of peremptory strikes on the basis of race. The Supreme Court finally ruled in favor of Foster on a clear 7-1 majority. -
Jury Non-Discrimination Act/
The Jury Non Discrimination Act is a bill who started in the House of Representatives. The bill's goal is to reduce Jury Discrimination in both federal and state courts. The bill is also a result of multiple complaints made by attorneys who argues that they cannot defend someone if he lost the case before it didn't even begun. -
Jury Access Act
The Jury Access Act is similar to the Jury Non- Discrimination Act because it also talks about Jury discrimination. Those bills premier goal is to amend the Jury Selection and Services Act to provide explicit protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity in the process of jury selection in federal courts. Those bills would afford individuals serving as jurors protection from discrimination based on prejudice.
