The trial court of general jurisdiction in Arkansas, organized by circuit and county, whose judges preside over jury trials in matters of law in both civil and criminal cases. The circuit courts trace to the state judicial department created by the Constitution of Arkansas of 1836. Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley Jr., known as the West Memphis Three, were tried and convicted of the 1993 murders of three children in Arkansas circuit court proceedings (Craighead County, on change of venue from Crittenden County), presided over by Circuit Judge David Burnett; the three entered Alford pleas and were released in 2011 after Circuit Judge David Laser accepted the pleas.
Facts
Founding YearSourced to the subject's own accountThe year of the Arkansas Constitution that first vested judicial power in circuit courts alongside the Supreme Court; the number and boundaries of individual circuits changed repeatedly afterward (seven circuits in 1840, for example). Jurisdiction ScopeSourced to the subject's own accountArkansas (organized by circuit and county; general civil and criminal trial jurisdiction) 1 Sources
1. Wikipedia: Judiciary of Arkansas
WikipediaHistory sectionQuote, History section
Circuit court judges were selected by the Arkansas General Assembly and presided over trial by jury in matters of law (in both civil and criminal cases) and sat as trier of fact in matters of equity.
Wikipedia: West Memphis Three (court reference)
WikipediaLegal proceedings sectionQuote, Legal proceedings section
Echols's attorneys filed a Motion for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief in the Circuit Court of Crittenden County, First Division, and requested an expedited hearing.
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