Describe some of the key differences between the law on the books and the law in action. What ...

The law on the books describes what the law should be based on the articulated rules of American law found in constitutions, cases, judicial opinions, and administrative rules and regulations. The law on the books differs significantly from the law in action in many respects.

The law in action reveals what actually happens in criminal courts. Examples may include the realities that while there are about 12 million arrests each year, about half actually result in filing of charges. Grand juries are groups of citizens who are given the responsibility for charging in felony cases, but they almost always indict the defendants prosecutors want charged. Felony defendants have a right to file a motion to suppress unconstitutionally seized evidence, but those motions are rarely granted.