Court Stucture in United States Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Court Stucture in United States - Essay Example Usually a complaint is filed in the district court which is also known as the trial court. When the case is heard and a decision is rendered one can appeal that decision within thirty days of receiving the final order of the trial court. The decision is also known as a judgment. The purpose of the appeal is to get the decision of the lower court reversed. Here, some sort of legal error must be demonstrated. Because there is no higher jurisdiction, once the court of appeals has heard the case, there is no more appellate relief to be had. This piece is strictly the court system. The rules governing the court system are set forth in the procedural codes which are creatures of statute. Every criminal case has two components. They are the actus reus and the mens rea. This assignment asks me to define only the mens rea. Mens rea is the "intent level" of a crime which must be proven to sustain a conviction of the crime. It must be met, or the prosecution has utterly failed to meet its' burden and the case must be dismissed against a defendant. These terms relate to policing and the courts. They relate to policing because it is really the police officer who initially determines what the arresting charge will be. Ultimately, the court will decide if the evidence presented will withstand a motion to dismiss the charge.