This course provides an understanding of the constitutional and statutory rules that govern the United States’ criminal justice system. The US constitutional system attempts to balance many complicated and often conflicting concerns. The Constitution has several amendments specifically designed to protect the constitutional rights of the criminally accused. Prosecutors, as representatives of the government, are present to enforce the laws and to protect the general citizenry. At the same time, they pledge to protect and uphold the Constitution. This raises a fundamental question: how does a government defend and protect its citizens from illegal activity and uphold its constitutional principles protecting the accused? This course examines the rights of the accused provided in the Constitution and how those rights have been treated by the government and interpreted by the United States Supreme Court. The political nature of courts creates a fluid and changing definition of these rights. We will examine the historical development of the rights of the accused, relying upon Supreme Court decisions. The goal of the course is to provide students with a solid understanding of the constitutional rights of the accused and the US criminal justice system.