‘Journey to Justice’: An Inside Look at Federal Criminal Trials

Of all the events that occur in a federal court, few are more central, or more dramatic, than a criminal trial. A panel discussion featuring two federal judges, and a federal prosecutor and defender, aided by a video of a crime in progress, provide a probing inside look at how federal criminal trials unfold.

“Criminal Trials: Journey to Justice” features the expertise of Senior Judge Henry Hudson, of the Eastern District of Virginia, who previously served as a U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and as director of the U.S. Marshals Service; James Orenstein, a magistrate judge for the Eastern District of New York; Zia Faruqui, assistant U.S. attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia; and Kyana Givens, an assistant federal defender for the Western District of Washington.

The program, recorded before a live audience, uses a fictionalized scenario of a bank robbery whose suspects are traced through cellphone activity.

Each panelist describes the criminal trial from their personal and professional experiences. The program examines pre-trial maneuvering and the question of whether to plead guilty or go to trial; how the lawyers plan their cases and speak to the jury; and the human emotions that trial participants experience.

The Knowledge Seminar series educates the public about the many issues the Judiciary must address in delivering justice. View videos from other Knowledge Seminars.