Instructor Biography s5

INSTRUCTOR BIOGRAPHY

My name isTerry Cramer andI'm the instructorfor this course. Likemany people, I'm fascinated by everything related to the Criminal Justice System. I earned my Associate’s degree in Administration of Justice from Portland Community College (Oregon), my BA in Criminology from Southern Oregon State College in 1978 and my MA in Conflict Resolution & Organizational Consulting from Antioch University Seattle in 1988. I worked in the criminal justice field for 7 years in Oregon and Alaska. I have taught courses in Conflict Resolution at Antioch University Seattle and was a law enforcement instructor for Central Texas College from 1991 to 1998. I taught for the University of Maryland European Division from 1998 to 2003 and have again been teaching for Central Texas College since 2003.

I.  INTRODUCTION

A.  This course provides an examination of the role of the judiciary in the criminal justice system. It includes the structure of the American court system, prosecution, right to counsel, pre-trial release, grand juries, adjudication process, types and rules of evidence, and sentencing.

B.  This course is a required course for the Associate in Applied Science degree.

C.  This course is occupationally related and serves in preparation for career(s) in Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement, and Corrections.

D.  Prerequisite(s): (None)

E.  Alphanumeric coding used throughout the syllabus denotes the integration of SCANS occupational competencies (C) and Foundation skills (F).

II.  LEARNING OUTCOMES

Upon successful completion of this course, Court Systems and Practices, the student will:

A.  Discuss the nature and extent of individual rights guaranteed by the Constitution and discuss in depth those rights in the 4th, 5th, & 6th Amendments that constitute the heart of the law of criminal procedure.

B.  Describe the American judiciary system and its structure.

C.  Identify the roles of judicial officers and the trial processes from pretrial to sentencing and interpret the role of evidence.

D.  Apply the law of arrest, search and seizure, confessions, and pretrial identification, to particular fact situations, in each case.

III.  INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

A.  The instructional materials identified for this course are viewable through http://www.ctcd.edu/academics/booksinstructional-materials/.

Student Textbook:

Ferdico, John N.Criminal Procedure for the Criminal Justice Professional, 11th Edition, Thomson

Go tohttp://www.ctcd.edu/im/im_main.aspfor complete information on course materials for this course. Order from MBS Direct athttp://bookstore.mbsdirect.net/ctc.htmor the CTC Bookstore athttp://www.ctcbookstore.com/.
If you do not have your textbook or other required materials by the first day of class, contact your instructor immediately. Failure to do so within the first five (5) days of class may limit the options you have and may increase your financial burden for this course.

B.  References:

1.  Neubauer, David, America's Courts and The Criminal Justice System, 10th Ed, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing, 2008.

2.  Scheb, John M., John M. Scheb II, An Introduction to the American Legal System, 3rd Ed. Albany, NY: Aspen Publishing, 2012.

3.  Smith, Christopher E, Courts, Politics, and the Judicial Process, 2nd Ed,

Chicago, Il: Nelson-Hall Inc., 2002.

4.  Zalman, Marvin, Criminal Procedure: Constitution and Society, 4th Ed, Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2005.

5.  Carmen, Rolando V. Del., Criminal Procedure: Law and Practice, 4th Ed,

Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing, 2001.

6.  Samaha, Joel, Criminal Procedure, 7th Ed, Belmont, Ca: Wadsworth Publishing, 2007.

IV. COURSE REQUIREMENTS

A.  Your first responsibility is scholarship. The grade you receive for this course will not be the grade of the instructor, but rather the grade you and you alone make.

B.  You should attend all online Central Texas College (CTC) Blackboard sessions each week, along with any instructor-required live sessions on Skype, Blackboard Collaborate, Google+, FaceTime, etc. Be prepared to also take any unannounced quizzes relating to text assignments and lecture material presented from the beginning of the course. Please refer to ‘Class Attendance and Course Progress’ under the Academic Policies section in our current CTC Course Catalog.

C.  You are encouraged to give your best effort throughout the semester. From the beginning, you should plan for a steady, organized, and continuous effort, which in the long run will prove more effective for your final grade than a last minute crash-cram policy. Your course grade is not determined solely by exam grade. Such factors as class participation, initiative, attendance, and individual research papers will be considered in grade computation.

D.  From time to time, special library and/or outside assignments will be made to members of the class individually and/or in groups. You are expected to read all assignments and fulfill your responsibilities to any group assignment.

E.  You are expected to read all assigned material and bring your textbook to class. Keep informed on all assignments, especially after an absence.

F.  Good class notes are indispensable for earning a good grade, since both the material assigned and that discussed in class will be the basis for examination material.

G. Scholastic Honesty: All students are required and expected to maintain the highest standards of scholastic honesty in the preparation of all coursework and during examinations. The following are considered examples of scholastic dishonesty:

Plagiarism: The taking of passages from the writing of others without giving proper credit to the sources.

Collusion: Using another’s work as one’s own, or working together with another person in the preparation of work, unless such joint preparation is specifically approved in advance by the instructor.

Cheating: Giving or receiving information on examinations.

Students guilty of scholastic dishonesty will be administratively dropped from the course with a grade of “F” and be subject to disciplinary action, which may include suspension and expulsion.

H.  Special Work: A term paper or other project, per requirements of the instructor, will be required. The subject must be appropriate for the course material. Check with the instructor when you have made a selection. The value is indicated in the semester grade computation and has considerable weight on your final average.

V. COURSE FORMAT – WeBB Learning on BLACKBOARD

This course has been developed on Blackboard. It is the student’s responsibility to make sure that they have access to CTC Blackboard and that they are familiar with the contents and assignments. It is also the student’s responsibility to log into CTC Blackboard at least once a week to ‘attend’ the online class portion and to participate in the online Blackboard streaming sessions, discussions, and assignments. Failure to do so will violate the attendance policy and will have a negative impact on the course grade.

This is NOT a self-paced course. Your instructor has assigned deadlines for specific assignments as shown in the course schedule. This is a 6-week course, so it will go by very quickly. Assignments must be done on schedule.

The class begins on Monday,4 Septand ends on Sunday,15 Oct.I prefer that you use the message option in Blackboard,but if you need to email me,please put in the subject line"CJSA1313-your last name"with all email correspondence regarding this course.

Instructional strategies will include weekly CTC Blackboard assignments, discussion boards, and streaming sessions to accomplish the lecture hours per week. Weekly interactions will be available via various communication tools to include Skype or Blackboard Collaborate, and conventional use of emails and Blackboard Message Board. Students may be assigned to participate in Groups, Journals, Blogs, or Wikis. Students will also have an access to required Discussion Board threads; course Announcements; critiques and feedback on Assignments and drafts of papers. Specific weekly interaction will be communicated via Announcements on Blackboard and arranged with the course instructors.

VI.  EXAMINATIONS

You will have 4 Tests in this course. All exams must be completed in order to pass the course.

How should I prepare? For hints on preparing to take tests as well as study tips and other useful information, visit the Student Success Room (see Need Help? section of Start Here! for instructions on enrolling) or read the Orientation at the CTC DL website athttp://online.ctcd.edu/orientation.cfm

Term Project (3 Case Briefs) due on 15 October.

B.A student must complete all scheduled examinations. Students who know in advance that they will be unavailable for an examination due to valid reasons must arrange to take an early examination. Unexpected absences due to illness or extenuating circumstances will require the student to see the instructor about individual make-up work.

C.Students without excused absences will be given a zero for the missed proctored examinations.

D. Examinations will consist of both objective (true/false, multiple choice, fill in-the-blank, and matching) and subjective (short answer and essay) questions. Students must be able to communicate both orally and in written form, thus some questions requiring the composition and writing of an essay answer will be required.

E. Exams will be administered via BioSig application. See Blackboard class for registration information.

VII. SEMESTER GRADE COMPUTATIONS

This is what you are graded on:

This is how your course grade will be determined:

Monitor your progress

You can check your grades throughout the course by selecting theTools > My Gradeslink in the menu. After the course ends and your instructor has submitted grades, you can view your course grade atWebAdvisor.

POINTS GRADES

900-1000 A=4 pts/sem hr

800-899 B=3 pts/sem hr

700-799 C=2 pts/sem hr

600-699 D=1 pt/sem hr

0-599 F=0 pts/sem hr

A term paper or term project is expected from all students. Students may vary in their competency levels on these abilities, so the instructor may need to revisit the term paper concept during the course.

VIII. NOTES AND ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FROM COURSE INSTRUCTOR

A.  Tuition refunds are made only in the case of class cancellation or official and timely withdrawal from CTC or from a course. Please refer to the current course catalog for more details.

B.  GoArmyEd students should contact their education counselor before withdrawing and are required to withdraw through the GoArmyEd portal.

Please note: a military withdrawal does not override CTC’s grading policy.

For self-pay students, refunds are computed from the date the Application for

Withdrawal or Refund is filed with the CTC Field Representative or designated student Services Officer. Special conditions apply to students who receive federal, state, and/or institutional financial aid.

Tuition and fees paid directly to the Institution by the Veterans Administration, Title IV (Financial Aid Programs, a sponsor, donor, or scholarship shall be refunded to the source rather than directly to the students.

C.  Course Withdrawals, Student Responsibilities: It is the student’s responsibility to officially withdraw from a course. The instructor cannot initiate a withdrawal based upon a student’s request. Rather, students must initiate the withdrawal with the designated Education Center Representative, through the CTC Field Representative or the Student Services Officer for that region.

Applications for Withdrawal will be accepted at any time before the completion of 75% of the course, after which time the student will be assigned an “FN”- “Failure for Non-attendance.”

D.  Faculty/Administrative Initiated Withdrawals

Faculty are authorized to withdraw students who are not making satisfactory course progress as outlined in the section of the Catalog entitled "Satisfactory Progress Standards.

A student may be administratively withdrawn by a designated member of the administrative staff of the College under the following conditions:

·  The student has been placed on Academic Suspension or Disciplinary Suspension;

·  The student has an outstanding financial obligation owed to the college;

·  The student registered for a course without the required prerequisite or departmental permission;

·  Students who do not participate or complete graded activities during the first week will be administratively withdrawn.

The college is under no obligation to refund tuition and fees, or other costs associated with a student who is administratively withdrawn.

E.  Incomplete / Course in Progress Grade Policy: An “IP” or “Incomplete” grade may be assigned by an instructor if a student has made satisfactory progress in a course with the exception of a major quiz, final exam, or other project. The “IP” grade may also be assigned based on circumstances beyond a student’s control, such as personal illness, death in the immediate family, or military orders. Notice of absences, with supporting documentation, may be required by the instructor. The instructor makes the final decision concerning the granting of the incomplete grade. With an “Incomplete” grade, students are required to complete a set amount of work before the instructor will submit an official letter grade.

F. Cellular phones, beepers, and other electronic devices will be turned off while the student is in the classroom or laboratory unless the student is using the device for class purposes. No texting or social networking is allowed during class.

G.  Instructor Discretion: The instructor reserves the right of final decision in course requirements.

H.  Civility: Individuals are expected to be cognizant of what a constructive educational experience is and respectful of those participating in a learning environment. Failure to do so can result in disciplinary action up to and including expulsion.