How do arrests made by the police impact the criminal court process?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Collectively, all of the crimes cleared by police each year result in approximately 12.2 million arrests for nontraffic offenses, about 2.17 million of which are for UCR index crimes. Other than a handful of criminal prosecutions which are instituted as a result of a grand jury investigation which results in an indictment, these arrests are the overwhelming source of work for the criminal courts. The police have a lot to do with what happens in court after arrest. The strength of the evidence police provide to prosecutors is one the most important factors influencing whether prosecutors file criminal charges (Holleran, Beichner, & Spohn, 2009). Thus, when police are able to secure tangible evidence and cooperative witnesses for the prosecution (while honoring suspects' constitutional rights), the prosecutor is not only more likely to file charges, but also more likely to win a conviction (Albonetti 1987; Forst, Lucianovic, & Cox 1977; Worrall, Ross, & McCord 2006). Conversely, when police conduct incomplete investigations, or improperly seize, mark, or store the items they do gather, prosecutors find themselves without sufficient evidence to prosecute a case successfully, a situation that often puts stress on the relationship between police and prosecutors (Dantzker, 2005).
Of course, the quality of law enforcement investigations varies greatly. Not only do individual police officers differ in particular investigatory skills, but also, some police departments, as units, function better than others when conducting investigations because of differences in management, training, resources, procedures, and analytical processes (Keel, Jarvis, & Muirhead, 2009).