Author Description

The Workings Of The American Criminal Justice System Are Familiar To Virtually The Entire Citizenry. Through Films, Television, And Popular Print Media, Its Hallmark Principles Of Fairness And Protection Of The Rights Of The Accused Are Widely Understood. The Popular Culture Has Absorbed Relatively Sophisticated Doctrines Of The Criminal Law, Such As The Right To Confront Accusers Face-to-face And To Remain Silent When Charged With A Crime. The Average Individual Knows That These And Other Principles Of Criminal Justice Are Rooted In The Bill Of Rights Of The American Constitution. This Perception Is True To The Extent That Trial By Jury, The Most Cherished Feature Of The American Criminal Justice System, Comes To Us Directly From Early Thirteenth-century England And Is Obliquely Referenced In Magna Carta. But It Fails To Take Into Account The Diverse Origins Of Specific Rights Which Make The Jury System The Byword For Fair Trial Procedure. The Rights To Remain Silent And To Confront Opposing Witnesses; The Presumption Of Innocence; The Protection Against Double Jeopardy; The Requirement That Conviction Demands A High Standard Of Proof; The Rule That Confessions Be Voluntary; The Guarantee Of A Trial Conducted In Accordance With Standard Rules Of Evidence-none Of These Integral Parts Of Due Process Originate In The Common Law Of England. This Book Joins An Emerging Body Of Work That Seeks To Place The American Legal Experience Within A Larger Western Tradition-- Provided By Publisher.