Answer to Question 1
The federal court structure, for the purposes of criminal procedure, consists of three specific types of courts. Federal courts try cases involving federal law. The lowest courts at the federal level are the district courts. There are 94 federal district courts in the United States (as of this writing), including 89 district courts in the 50 states and 1 each in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.
At the next level are the U.S. courts of appeals. There are 13 circuit courts of appeals: 12 regional courts and 1 for the federal circuit. Each is charged with hearing appeals from several of the district courts that fall within its circuit. Finally, the U.S. Supreme Court is the highest court in the federal system. As will be discussed, however, the Supreme Court does not only hear federal appeals.
Answer to Question 2
There are several essential steps to tracing the progress of a criminal case. First, it is necessary to have a basic understanding of the nation's court structure. This requires knowing where the criminal trial in question took place. Second, to adequately follow the progress of a criminal case, it is also necessary to understand the legal jargon. The parties to the case are the people involved who will be bound by the Court's decision. At the trial level, the parties of interest are the defendant, or the person charged with the crime in question and the government (the state in state court cases, or the United States in federal court cases). The prosecutor is the official representing the government in the case.
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