Question Description
Please make sure to answer the questions before the essay
Ch 10: The Judicial Branch
1) Explain the difference between Criminal and Civil Court
2) What is an appelate court and what is its function?
3) Explain the difference between Criminal and Civil Procedures
Ch 11: Finance and Fiscal Policy
1) Explain the following policies: Taxing, Budget, and Spending
2) What are the different sources of revenue?
3) Explain the Budgeting Process
4) Explain the different demands that Texas must face in the future including Public Education, Public Higher Education, Public Assistance, and Infrastructure
Ch 12: Public Policy and Administration
1) How is Public Policy made?
2) Explain Public Policy as it relates to Education, Health and Human Services, Economic and Environmental Policies, and Immigration.
Your current event must contain 3 components: a summary of your news article, a clear tie to your textbook, and a prediction of what you think is going to happen as an effect of your chosen event. Your summaries must be at least 100 words in length. They will be put through a word counter and a plagiarism checker, so do not just copy and paste parts of the article. You then must clearly analyze the event s tie to your text in at least 100 words (again it will be put through a word counter and plagiarism checker). Anytime you include material from the textbook, you must cite in MLA. If this means that you are citing every time for 3 sentences in a row, this is ok. You must cite everytime!!! The last part of the assignment is to predict the effects of your chosen event. Your prediction should be at least 50 words, and is a subjective analysis in which you will use prior and newly acquired knowledge of different cause and effect relationships within the structure of Texas government policy to predict an outcome of their chosen event.
For resources on MLA citation style please see the resource librarian at TWU or you may use the Owl at Purdue web source.
The biggest mistake students make with this assignment is length and not citing properly in the second paragraph.
Some credible news sources you may wish to consult include:
While these are recommended sources, you may choose from others if you like. Again, You may not use opinion pages or blogs to draw from or you will not receive credit. Your news source must be credible. If you have questions about a news source before posting, please ask. Make sure to tie the essay to the summary:
The role of courts is to settle disputes by interpreting and applying the law. Texas state law includes both civil law and criminal law. The sources of law include the state s constitution, its statutes, regulations, and the com-mon law (judge-made law). In an attempt to organize its laws, the legislature has instructed the Texas Legislative Council to place laws that cover specific topics into codes. Both constitutional and statutory laws have been used to create the state s court system. Courts may have original or appellate jurisdiction, or both. Texas has local, county, trial, and appel-late courts. Some trial courts are now specialty courts that provide more direct oversight of particular types of cases or involving specific populations. The state s emphasis on parties resolving their disputes outside the courtroom has resulted in fewer trials. Almost all Texas judges are elected through popular, partisan elections, a system followed in only two other states. Once in office, a judge, as well as the lawyers who appear before him or her, are subject to regulation and discipline. There are two types of juries both of which are chosen from a panel of randomly selected veniremen: grand juries (which determine if adequate cause exists to bring a defendant to trial in a criminal case) and petit juries (which determine the facts in civil cases, whether a defendant is guilty or not guilty in a criminal case, and may determine punishment in criminal cases).The civil justice system includes contract cases, tort cases, family law matters, and juvenile justice cases. The Texas legislature has limited the amount of punitive and noneconomic damages in some tort cases. In jury trials for civil cases, the jury determines the facts of the case by answering special issues, and the judge applies the law. In Texas s bifurcated court system, the highest appellate court for civil cases is the Texas Supreme Court.Crimi-nal law regulates many types of behavior. Protections that are built into the law, for accused felons in particular, include a defendant s being advised of his or her constitutional rights, the right to appointed counsel if someone is indigent, and the right to trial by jury. Felony defendants have the right to a grand jury indictment. Except in capital murder cases, a defendant can waive the right to a jury trial. Jury verdicts in criminal cases must be unani-mous. In Texas s bifurcated court system, the highest appellate court for criminal cases is the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.