Criminal Procedure: A Comparative Approach, First Edition

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Criminal Procedure: A Comparative Approach, First Edition is designed with the premise that in order to understand one’s own system of law, including its positive and negative aspects, one must compare it with how other systems approach the same issues in democratic countries. The book compares the seminal jurisprudence of the U.S. Supreme Court and cases from state and lower federal courts with the approaches taken in democratic countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America, the European and Inter-American Courts of Human Rights, and the International Criminal Courts. This comparison is contextualized in relation to the burning issues of criminal procedure in a world where the democratic rule-of-law state is no longer something which can be taken for granted. Professors abroad, or those who teach specialized comparative classes, can decide how much U.S. law to include, and can augment the non-U.S. case selection by drawing from a large selection of other cases and statutory texts included in an online appendix.

The book will prompt discussions of reforms that aim to: (1) ensure that all segments of the population are treated equally; (2) prevent the conviction of the innocent based on insufficient or fabricated evidence; and (3) ensure that more cases are subjected to adversarial testing, proof beyond a reasonable doubt, and proportionate sentencing worthy of a democratic society.

Benefits for instructors and students:

• Cases and other excerpted materials: A wealth of interesting and well-edited cases, both U.S. and international, providing material for comparative analysis and stimulation for classroom discussion.
• U.S. Law Notes: Supplements to the excerpted seminal cases, revealing nuances in the prevailing approach and divergences among states which accord more protection than the U.S. Supreme Court.
• Discussion: Provocative questions and information, designed to encourage students and instructors to identify the similarities and differences between U.S. and foreign law, and to discuss which approaches may be the preferred ones.
• Online Appendix: A wealth of high court opinions and statutory law, all in English or English translation, for those students or instructors who wish to delve deeper into a particular area, who are enrolled in classes that are not heavily focused on U.S. law, or who need additional resources for writing papers.
• Glossary of Terms and Concepts Translated from French, German, Italian, Russian and Spanish: Important information (especially helpful for non-U.S. students) to help clear up potential terminological confusion.
• Further Reading (U.S. and Comparative): Chapter-end suggestions for books and articles (each list focusing exclusively on U.S. or comparative law), related to the issues discussed in the chapter.