In our August 25 post we outlined the differences and similarities among the various law enforcement agencies citizens might encounter, chiefly the police, sheriff, and CHP. In today's post, we'll review the jurisdiction and structure of the state and federal court systems.
Because of our federal system of government, we have two distinct though related judicial systems in our country. The national, or federal, system, deals with issues and controversies that pertain to the laws enacted under the U.S. Constitution by Congress and the President. For example, since the U.S. Constitution gives the federal government the authority to set up a post office, people who steal mail find themselves in federal court.
Each state also has its own set of laws enacted under its own constitution. Thus, the California state Senate and Assembly and the Governor create laws that fulfill the mandates of the Constitution of the State of California. These laws, though they take many forms, overwhelmingly deal with issues of public health, safety, and order within our communities. For example, laws relating to robbery, theft, assault, drug possession and sale, drunk driving, and murder are determined by each state. To add another layer to this, counties and cities also enact laws particular to their own communities. An example of this is local zoning laws that determine whether land can be used for a residence, business, church, or school.
So when someone breaks a law, the court system he/she ends up in is dependent on the law that's been broken. If it's a state or local law, he/she will enter the state system; if it's a national law, then it's the federal court system.
Each of California's 58 counties - including Sacramento, Placer, Yolo, and El Dorado locally - has its own superior court, which is where people are charged with violation of state and local laws, and trials are held. This is where we find deputy district attorneys, defense lawyers, judges, and juries. Above the superior court system are state appellate courts that, as the name suggests, hear appeals from people who believe they have been wrongly convicted of a crime. This level has only panels of judges who look over court documents, hear arguments from lawyers, and then issue a ruling. Finally, above the state appellate courts is the California Supreme Court, which is the final arbiter, or decider, of appeals within the California judicial system.
As a side note, some of you might remember when California had municipal courts to deal with low-level crimes like traffic violations and other misdemeanors. With the passage of Proposition 220 in 1998, municipal courts were folded into superior courts to simplify the process and save money.
There is a parallel federal court system with a trial court level, appellate court level, and finally a U.S. Supreme Court. This system, as mentioned before, deals with cases that pertain to national laws and the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court can also hear appeals from the 50 state supreme courts.
In our next post, we'll go over the differences between criminal and civil law cases.
