Federal vs. State Courts
Natalie D.
CJ230:
Criminal Law for Criminal Justice

How a society punishes their criminals can say a lot about the way the citizens live their lives. Here in the United States we would rather take better care of someone in prison for life than a person on the street who has never committed a crime in their life. The U.S. Constitution creates a dual federal court system in which the power is shared between the state and the federal governments. Each of these courts systems are composed of their own courts. State courts have the highest power in general. Within the courts there are trial and appellate courts. These two are considered to work together when there are issues within cases. When a case has any issues in the trial courts it will go to the appellate court for review. The United States court system help serve justice as well as the Federal court systems.

Moreover, State courts are courts of "general jurisdiction". They hear all the cases not specifically selected for federal courts. Just as the federal courts interpret federal laws, state courts interpret state laws. Each state gets to make and interpret its own laws. This helps the states retain power, and makes sure that the national government does not become too strong. Murders are handled differently depending on the circumstances of the crime as well as the jurisdiction. The federal system is a very complex because it allocates responsibility to state and federal government. Our federal system is one which powers are divided by the central government and state government. They both act directly upon the citizens and must agree with constitutional changes. The division of power among the states and federal government is called federalism. In the past there have been smart president and leader that gave the federal government more power than the states. We have view our country shift powers among the states and central government. Overall. murders in state or federal court both have different rules and regulations depending on where the murder took place.

Although there are differences in criminal procedure among the states and between the states and the federal government, when it comes to murders. United States criminal law and practice apply equally to all state and federal investigations and prosecutions. First, it is true throughout the United States that the investigation and prosecution of crime is the responsibility of the executive branch of government. Prosecutors, investigating agents, and police officers are members of the executive branch, not the judicial branch. In the United States, once the murder is brought to trial, the final evidences will be determined to charge either on state or federal grounds. When one of the federal investigative agencies believes