Criminal Justice Advanced Topics 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under the 'inevitable discovery' exception, illegally obtained evidence is admissible if the prosecution shows what?
- The evidence would have been found lawfully anyway (Correct answer)
- The evidence was later destroyed
- The defendant consented after the fact
- The officer acted with malice
Correct answer: The evidence would have been found lawfully anyway
Nix v. Williams (1984) allows admission of tainted evidence if it inevitably would have been discovered through lawful means.
Question 2: Which specialized court model combines judicial supervision, drug treatment, and graduated sanctions for substance-involved offenders?
- Small claims court
- Probate court
- Court of appeals
- Drug court (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Drug court
Drug courts use ongoing judicial monitoring, mandatory treatment, and incentives or sanctions to reduce recidivism among drug offenders.
Question 3: In Kansas v. Hendricks, the Supreme Court upheld the civil commitment of which category of offenders after their prison terms?
- Juvenile status offenders
- First-time drug offenders
- Sexually violent predators (Correct answer)
- White-collar offenders
Correct answer: Sexually violent predators
Kansas v. Hendricks (1997) upheld post-sentence civil commitment of sexually violent predators with a mental abnormality making reoffending likely.
Question 4: The 'thin blue line' subculture concept in policing most directly contributes to which problem?
- Higher police recruitment standards
- The code of silence protecting officer misconduct (Correct answer)
- Slower emergency response times
- Reduced overtime spending
Correct answer: The code of silence protecting officer misconduct
Police subculture solidarity can foster a code of silence in which officers refuse to report colleagues' misconduct.
Question 5: Which element distinguishes robbery from larceny?
- The value of the property taken
- Whether the property is later recovered
- The use or threat of force against a person (Correct answer)
- The time of day the crime occurs
Correct answer: The use or threat of force against a person
Robbery is larceny accomplished by force or threat of force from a person's presence, making it a violent crime.
Question 6: Evidence-based corrections programs following the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) model target intensive interventions at whom?
- Offenders who volunteer for programs
- Only first-time misdemeanor offenders
- All offenders equally regardless of risk
- High-risk offenders with criminogenic needs (Correct answer)
Correct answer: High-risk offenders with criminogenic needs
The RNR model matches intervention intensity to offender risk level and targets criminogenic needs, since over-treating low-risk offenders can increase recidivism.
Question 7: Under the dual sovereignty doctrine, successive prosecutions by a state and the federal government for the same conduct do not violate what?
- The Ex Post Facto Clause
- The Commerce Clause
- The Double Jeopardy Clause (Correct answer)
- The Supremacy Clause
Correct answer: The Double Jeopardy Clause
Because states and the federal government are separate sovereigns, each may prosecute the same act without violating double jeopardy.
Criminal Justice Advanced Topics 5
Under the 'inevitable discovery' exception, illegally obtained evidence is admissible if the prosecution shows what?