The Shelby County in Memphis, Tennessee uses grand jury hearings for misdemeanors and preliminary hearings when a felony is committed (Shelby County, 2007). There are several differences between the two. A preliminary hearing is carried out in front of a magistrate or a lower court judge, and it is open to the public, unless the defendant does not agree to this (Siegel, 2009, p.431). A grand jury hearing is not open to the public. Also, in a grand jury hearing, the defense attorney and the defendant are not allowed to be present, but in a preliminary hearing, they are present. In preliminary hearings, the judge decides whether the defendant should or should not be accused, as opposed to a grand jury hearing, in which the people of the jury vote whether or not the defendant should be accused. The two methods are different, but they both accomplish the same task.
In the ongoing trial in Roane County, Tennessee of Leon Huston say that he and his younger brother, Rocky Joe Houston, gunned down Deputy Bill Jones, 53, and his friend Mike Brown, 44, when Jones showed up at the Houston family farmhouse south of the Tennessee River to serve a warrant charging Rocky Houston with failure to appear in court. Witnesses confirmed that it was not self defense and later found that the deputy and his partner did not have a warrant. The first trail of the case ended in July 2008 with a hung jury. Then the trial in December with the same charges ended with a divided jury and a split verdict leaving in conclusion a new trial ordered was placed. Houston is pleading a non guilty verdict on a charger and double jeopardy. He and his brother are held in custody until the court of appeals rules on the issue. The jurors get their nights and weekends off now until this happens as well. The prosecuted would hope to have jurors would agree that he was being charged twice for the same crime and that the double jeopardy rule is effective. The defended would want a jury to see their point of view and disagree with the double jeopardy law because a sentencing has not been placed yet.
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“On the sixth day of Lemaricus Davidson trial, witness tells new story. Woman says couple was begging for gas money... A two-time prosecution witness changed sides Saturday in the trial of torture slaying alleged ringleader Lemaricus Davidson and offered a never-before-heard claim.” (Satterfield, 2009)
Direct evidence presented in court is that: “Ethel Lynn Freeman contends she saw slaying victims Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom outside an Exxon station in East Knoxville begging for gas money on the night of their alleged abduction.” (Satterfield, 2009)
Circumstantial evidence presented in the trial would be that: “Christian had a debit card in her possession the night of her death and had made recent deposits of paychecks totaling more than $600. Both Christian and Newsom held jobs.” (Satterfield, 2009)
These pieces of evidence probably would support the prosecution's case as that it shows the two people murdered were dishonest and may have done something to provoke their murder.
http://www.ncvc.org/ncvc/AGP.
“Tennessee gives its citizens the right to a speedy trial using either the constitution or the statutes. The statute requires that all of the criminal proceedings shall be concluded within 180 days of the date of the defendant’s indictment. However, should the case not be tried or dealt within the timeframe given, the court is required to give a certificate explaining the reasons the trial has not been brought before the court.”
http://law.findlaw.com/state-
“Statute of limitations was a law designed to prohibit prosecutors for going after someone for a crime that was committed more than “X” number of years. They put this limitation in place to prevent deterioration of evidence, however if the time limit has been exceeded, the criminal may not be prosecuted in the near future. This is a general procedure for all states to follow. As for the length of the statute, it’s dependent on how serious the criminal act is. The whole idea behind the statute of limitations is mainly one of general practicability and fairness.”
News Sentinel Staff. "Roane jury selection continues." knoxnews.com [Knoxville] 3 Nov. 2009: 1. knoxnews.com. Web. 8 Nov. 2009.
Shelby County District Attorney General. (2007). What happens when someone is arrested? Retrieved online from http://www.scdag.com/Help/Whathappenswhensomeoneisarrested/tabid/66/Default.aspx.
Siegel, L.J. (2009). Introduction to criminal justice (12th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning.
Satterfield, J. (2009, October 25). On the sixth day of lemaricus davidson trial, witness tells new story . Tennessean
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