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Contents

Introduction. 2

Summary of the case. 2

Prosecutor’s Argument on the Case. 2

Career Prospects for Defense Attorneys/Prosecutors. 4

References. 5

Criminal Justice

Introduction

Summary of the case

On the morning of December 10, 2010, Janet Williams was found lying on the floor of the Pretty Dolls clothes store. She worked there as the accountant and it was her responsibility to open the store at 6 am every morning. Although Williams arrived at the store about this time, that is all she did. The first of Williams’s coworkers to arrive at the store was Brendan Moore, who noticed that all was not well because its door was open but the lights were off. He immediately rushed into the store to check the happenings. He was shocked to find Williams lying on the floor seemingly lifeless. He immediately contacted the police and his colleagues who arrived immediately. The former undertook their investigations. The victim had numerous bruises on her face and shoulders. The bruises on her right arm were consistent with a strong grab whereas the bruises on her hands and hips were consistent with a fight or a struggle with the attacker. During the trial, the medical examiner stated that Williams might have died from a strong blow to the head or strangulation. There were no broken bones but it seemed a heavy object was used to hit her on the head because her skull was fractured and the brain and the brainstem were injured (Harris, 2016).

ORDER CRIMINAL JUSTICE PAPER NOW

Prosecutor’s Argument on the Case

My Lord and the gentlemen of the jury, this is an accusation for murder. This accusation explains that on the 10th December 2010, Griffins Martin in the pretty Dolls clothes store murdered Janet Williams by hitting her hard on the head with a fire extinguisher. This hard hit caused a fracture in her skull and left her dead on the floor. Janet Williams has had an affair with Mr. Griffins Martin for close to two years now. Recently, Janet Williams had started seeing someone else and they were to marry the following year. Griffins Martin is extremely possessive and a short-tempered man and the news of William’s engagement made him furious. Therefore, he decided to kill Janet because he could not stand seeing her being married to someone else. In this prosecution, I will call one witness who will testify to having seen Mr. Griffins Martin leave the store hurriedly at the time when the murder is alleged to have happened. At the conclusion of this case, I would humbly ask you to make a conviction of the defendant of this crime as charged. Thank you.

Argument for the Defendant

Good morning ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my name is Willis Anderson and it is my pleasure to represent Mr. Griffins Martin in this case that has been brought to you today. You have already heard the prosecutor make an explanation of what she is hoping will be proven today in this courtroom, but the truth is that the prosecutor did not tell you all the facts in this case. She has explained that Mr. Griffins Martin was identified as the murderer of Janet Williams, but the eyewitness who supposedly gave this account was a man who has had a grudge with my client for a very long time. This supposed eyewitness has made many inconsistent claims which are irrelevant before this court. The prosecutor has claimed that there was blood on the victim’s body that belonged to a third party, but I can assure this court that based on the DNA test results, the blood found on the victim’s body do not match those of my client. Consequently, the prosecutor’s claims have no basis. Furthermore, the prosecutor claims that my client was seen in the store the night before the murder and he apparently bought nothing from the store. On the contrary, my client went to the store to buy a gift for his wife, but unfortunately, he did not find the right one, so he left the store. Therefore,I would take this opportunity to ask you, the jury, to listen carefully to the evidence being presented, keep an open mind, and return a verdict of “not guilty” to my client. Thank you.

Career Prospects for Defense Attorneys/Prosecutors

Prosecutors are often employed by the government and the serve the section of the state that employs them. In contrast, defense lawyers may be employed by the government or they can start their own firms where they practice. The summary of the defense attorney’s job functions includes conducting independent investigations in a case and engaging independent scientists in evaluating physical evidence(Jobs.com,2016). The role of a prosecutor is to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty by presenting evidence through a thorough questioning of the witnesses. Both Prosecutors and defense attorneys attain the same level of education; they complete the undergraduate program and enroll in law school, which takes three years to complete. They must pass the examination in order to be admitted to the state bar and commence law practice. According to the National Association for Law Placement (NALP), the median entry-level salary for a prosecutor in the United States is$50,000 while that of a defense attorney is$ 50,500 per year (NALP, 2010). 

References

Jobs.com. (2016).Defense litigation associate attorney. Retrieved from http://jobinfo.jobs.com/242a6e17-8760-4d65-b4cf-97aff8843074# on 11 August 2016.

Harris, C. (2016). Does a murder case crumble who killed Chandra Levy? People, 86(7), 56-57.

NALP.(2010). Survey: Associate salaries not so bad. (Cover story). Compensation & Benefits for Law Offices,10(11), 1-12.