How Prosecutor shape justice - 1650 Words

How Prosecutor shape justice (Term Paper Sample) Content: The parties involved and the criminal justice pre-trial procedure Name: Institution: Date: Introduction Any criminal justice system comprises of a series of processes before it's subjected to a full trial. This include investigations and arrest by the police, the charging and plea bargaining procedure by the prosecutor and the indictment by the grand juries (Worrall, 2007). In this respect the prosecutor is the only player who is entrusted by the government to ensure that law is enforced and justice is administered (Siege, 2012). The prosecutor has at his/her disposal heightened authority to determine whether the charged criminal face a full trial or not. To add to this, he/she is also mandated to carry out a plea bargaining process which determines the path a case follows. He/she does this through the immense uncontrolled powers bestowed upon him/her especially the power of discretion which he/she exercises to his/her will (Davis, (2001). These raise the question of credibility for a criminal case. Can justice really prevail if the prosecutor is influenced by other factors like political, personal or otherwise when deciding whether to charge or not? The responsibilities of the prosecutor in the criminal justice process The core role of a prosecutor is to decide whether or not to prosecute the criminal and also to file charges. The prosecutorial discretion allows him/her to decide solely based on the evidence presented to him by the police. Indeed he is the anchor of the entire criminal à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"ship'. To start with, the prosecutor has two special responsibilities bestowed by the state which include the charging decision power and the plea bargaining powers (Worrall, 2007). As a result of these responsibilities he relies on evidence and information given by the police to decide whether to prosecute the accused or not as long as long as he/she feels that there is substantial evidence to prove that the defendant committed a crime (Siegel, 2007). Subsequently upon filing charges, the prosecutor uses at his/her disposal the plea bargaining powers to reduce or drop some charges, lessen some sentences of the charges in the exchange of pleading guilty offer of not contesting on the side of the defendant, in addition the prosecutor determines which charges to file, whether to drop the case or not and the punishment for those charges according to the law (Siegel, 2012). It is at this stage that the prosecutor again solely decides to engage a defense attorney with the hope of reaching the above charge agreements that prevents a full trial of the case to occur. This means that the prosecutor along with the defense lawyer can easily dispose a case if they reach a workable agreement, a move which can be detrimental to administration of justice (Vollenberg, 1981). In this respect, justice rest on the hands of the prosecutor who decides without limitation of powers the direction a case takes (Worrall, 2007). However, if a felony has been committed and the prosecutor has enough evidence, he/she proceed to engage a grand jury who determined whether or not to indict the defendant. In his jurisdiction the prosecutor present the evidence before the grand jury either in writing or by engaging the subpoenas to present their testimonies (Worrall, J. 2007). The role of the grand jury A grand jury is comprised of 23 jurors who determine whether the case presented by the prosecutor in line with the evidence deserves an indictment. However this move may only serve to formalize the prosecutor's recommendations as the grand jury relies so much on the information presented by the prosecutor. Instead of merely accepting the prosecutors evidence a grand jury is mandated to carry out further investigations to substantiate the credibility of indictment. It does this through asking the witness to testify before the jurors and also fathers more evidence which guides their decision. (Worrall, J. 2007). This investigative process by the grand jury is very paramount especially when the case is of public interest and careful decisions must be made. Unfortunately, the prosecutor is the legal advisor of most grand juries, a move that deter any amendments to be made in to the criminal cases (Worrall, 2007). There are also strict regulations during grand juries proceedings, prohibits the defense attorney and the defendant to participate, further they are not informed when it is taking place and they can't therefore justify themselves and only accepts the decision of the grand jury, whether fair or not . This move only reinforces the prosecutors view in charging the criminal case; the only key player allowed is only the witnesses of the case. Grand juries are usually private and very discreet affairs sand out of bound by the public (Siegel, 2012). The secretive nature is engineered to safeguard the whole process ...

How to Handle Your Feelings Anger as an Antagonist in the Ramayana - Literature Essay Samples

Negative emotions such as despair, disappointment, fury, bitterness are very impactful on one’s life and actions; at times, such sentiments can drive one away from the right path. The complexity of feelings is accountable for the depth and dimension of a being. One of the reasons why the Indian epic the Ramayana has such profound layers is the emotional development of its characters. The flow of the story paints the perspectives of each character, good or bad, through multiple lenses. The demons, Rakshasas, may appear to be the main antagonists of Rama in the Ramayana, but negative emotions are the true fatal enemies within each characters, no matter whether men or animals. In this epic, anger is a negative emotion that can destroy a person’s life with its immediate, horrifying consequences. When the evil Manthara fuels the Ayodhya queen Kaikeyi with hatred, and when she shows her rage; â€Å"Kaikeyi ran to the palace anger-room, slammed the door and locked it behind her. She broke off her strands of pearls. [] I want to die!† (Buck, 68). This moment of fury leads her to the inescapable hole of misery and misfortune. Shortly after, her beloved husband Dasaratha passes away due to tremendous grief, caused directly by her decision to exile Rama. However, the most painful results that Kaikeyi has to suffer is the denial of her son Bharata and the death of her husband Dasaratha. The queen does everything in her power to make Bharata king, but he does not accept the throne. Contrary to her imagination, Bharata disagrees with his mother’s actions, calling them â€Å"hateful† and telling her that she is â€Å"like a deer lured into a snare by a sweet song† (114, 115). He does not appreciate what Kaikeyi considers â€Å"efforts† and â€Å"good intentions† to him. One who causes destruction to another must receive the same result. She is deeply wounded by her son’s words, just as how Dasaratha suffers immense depression because of hers. Similar to Kaikeyi, Surpanakha’s rage leads to a terrible result. When Ravana’s sister fails to seduce Rama, her anger leads to an outburst, in which â€Å"she rushed at Sita, and held out before her her claws curved like elephant hooks† (157). Her intentions to harm Sita ultimately result in Lakshmana’s anger and cause him to cut off her ears. Her will to hurt Sita, in a moment of burning fury, causes her own wounds. Her brother, the demon king Ravana, also makes the same mistake. When Ravana and Time hold a conversation, the Rakshasa lord lets fury take over him and insults Time: â€Å"You little liar! [] And whatever you give you steal back, by fraud, from hiding, when you’re not watched† (337). Time and Death are the most powerful entities known, but Ravana, in his moment of anger, dares to humiliate Time. When Kala goes on, Ravana loses his patience and â€Å"made ready to seize Time and crush him with his steely strength† (339). Similar to Kaikeyi and Surpanakha, his anger catches him and his insult backfires. Not long after, he faces his doom, in his own ignorance and isolation. Thus, fury is a catastrophic negative emotion that has the ability to cause devastation within a very short amount of time. Anger is not the only negative feeling that exists in Ramayana. Lust plays an important role in the epic as well. Its consequences are shown most clearly through Ravana’s actions and his life. Ravana is a role model for a lecherous lifestyle. He is so lustful that he steals women who are happily married, ultimately leading to Nalakubara’s curse after he rapes his wife: â€Å"Ravana, when you next attack a woman who won’t have you, your ten heads will burst!† (180). This curse stops the king from conducting wrongdoings towards women and preventing him from stepping into his own doom. But lust is a lethal foe of all beings and even the mighty Ravana cannot escape his fate. The feeling that Ravana has towards Sita, which he calls â€Å"love†, is in fact another appearance of lust. It covers his eyes, lures him from his path to Dharma and ultimate happiness and pushes him to the edge of doom. Because of lust, the Rakshasa king abducts Sita and indirectl y causes his loved ones, even his brother and his own son, to die. Lust is the basis of the stubbornness in Ravana’s actions when he neglects the truthful advice from others. Regardless of Kumbhakarna’s warning â€Å"A King is the roof his people’s happiness, and if he is wrong their lives are in danger and their nation will die† (301) or Indrajit’s wisdom â€Å"You took Death on your lap the day you stole Sita, and Death have you courted all this time† (318), he insists on killing Rama and seizing Sita. He ignores the well-being of his people and even himself, just because lust deceives him. He has to undergo the sorrow of loss, exactly as Rama feels when he took Sita away. Even though the consequences that desire brings are not as swift as rage, their impact is much worse. In the end, the demon king dies at the hand of Rama, the man whose wife he steals. While the appearance of lust seems to be beautiful, as what Ravana calls â€Å"loveâ € , it is a deadly enemy that slowly crushes one to death. While anger and lust lead to actions that are controllable, grief — another destructive negative emotion, is a reaction and the greatest suffering that is unstoppable and inevitable. Dasaratha, once the mighty king of Ayodhya, suffers an agonizing depression due to his son’s departure. When Rama goes to visit his father before his great journey of fourteen years, he finds Dasaratha who â€Å"shut the wine-vault doors and locked them closed and barred them; [] he sat not in a palace but in a death-waiting house; he was a pilgrim come to die at some holy place in one of the little stone-built rooms† (77). His actions show how destructive grief can be. He abandons his status and hope, just waiting for death to claim him. Grief transforms him from a wise king to a hopeless man and takes away all his hopes and joy. The heartbreak ends Dasaratha’s time on Earth and death approaches him, shortly after Rama is exiled. However, grief is not identical to anger or lu st. While rage and lust are the roots of sin and often expressed by an action of one on another, grief is a reaction that usually only has impact on oneself rather than others. This difference makes the emotion unique and reveals a hidden aspect: if one can get over the agony of grief and let go of vengeance and bitterness, they can achieve happiness and peacefulness, according to their definitions. Sita is one character who is a victim of grief, but later successfully overcomes it. When Indrajit, the master of illusions, creates a false death of Rama, it causes Sita such sorrow that she decides to die: â€Å"She quietly opened her hand, and let life slip and fall away through her fingers† (286). Grief is so devastating that it can take away her life if Rama no longer exists. Her patience and willingness to continue is barely clinging onto her hope in her reunion with Rama. However, at the end of the epic, Sita finally lets go of her sorrow and becomes independent from grief. Even though Rama is still alive, she decides to return to her mother’s arms, indicating that she no longer relies on her husband. Rama is also a role model in his ability to prevent himself from falling into the hands of grief. Sita’s departure from his life at the end of the Ramayana certainly affects him, but he does not let it take over him:†[] I will never meet Sita again as a man.† Rama sighed, and still he was smiling† (417). His smile shows his acceptance of the event. Indeed, he cannot eliminate grief completely, but he does not fight it either. He makes peace with grief and stays calm. In the end, Rama receives his long, deserving rest from life and reunites with Lakshmi in Heaven, after transforming back into Narayana. Therefore, even though grief is devastating, if one can overcome sorrow without harming others, he or she will be able to find joy and wishes fulfilled. Negative feelings are the main factors that lead to the ruin of Ramayana characters. While anger and lust cause the immediate destruction of one when they do harm to others, grief acts as a challenge that test if one has the ability to seize happiness. Emotions are the biggest obstacles to stop a person from obtaining their goal, thus it is important to stay aware and conscious of our own actions. If one survive the impact of feelings, he or she can achieve the â€Å"everlasting Dharma wheel and truly set it turning†, an achievement tantamount to ultimate joy and happiness, as well as freedom from desires and needs. Works Cited Buck, William, translator. Ramayana. University of California Press, 1976.