What is the role of the United States Supreme Court in criminal cases?
The United States Supreme Court is the highest court in the country and is responsible for making decisions about all federal laws, including those related to criminal cases. In criminal cases, the role of the Supreme Court is to review decisions from lower courts and decide if they were made correctly. If they find that the lower court did not make the correct decision or if the law was interpreted incorrectly, then they may reverse the decision. This means that the defendant may go free or receive a different punishment. The Supreme Court also sets the law for the entire country on certain criminal matters. For example, capital punishment, the death penalty, has been ruled unconstitutional in certain cases. It is up to the Supreme Court to determine if this ruling applies in other cases. In Maryland, the Supreme Court must be consulted in criminal cases if the lower court’s decision is appealed. This means that the Supreme Court must review the case and make a final ruling. The Supreme Court does not have to agree with the lower court’s decision and can either keep the original ruling or reverse it. Overall, the United States Supreme Court plays an important role in criminal cases throughout the country by setting national standards, reviewing and reversing lower court decisions, and making final rulings.
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