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The steps of processing an offender
The offender undergoes a rigorous process before arriving at justice. The process is divided into
stages that are followed to prevent chaos in the processing of offenders. This paper describes the
steps followed when processing an offender.
First, after a crime has occurred the sheriff investigates once notified by the victim or a
witness. Then after finding out that the crime occurred the suspects are arrested and kept in
custody. The offender is then prosecuted within 24 hours to make sure that there is a case worth
of a trial. For any capital offense, the offender is indicted by a jury. Then there is an arraignment
where the offender states that he or she is guilty or not. From here an offender can be given a bail
and released to come for hearing, or he or she is kept on remand until the day of the trial
(Yim 344).
The defense attorney can decide to request for a reduction of sentence to the prosecutor if
his or her client wants to plead guilty. Then there is a trial where the offender stands before the
judge or the jury. If found guilty the offender receives equal punishment for his or her crime. It
may range from fines to capital punishment. However, some cases especially one under the
mandatory minimum act is automatically meted as stipulated by the legislature. When the
offender is not happy, he or she files an appeal through his or her attorney to the appellate. If the
appellate grant the defense wish then the previous judgment is nullified. After the appeal, the
offender is tried again and acquitted if not found to be guilty. Finally, the offender found guilty is
