Policy Making—The Appellate Process

The  appellate  process  is  fundamentally  different  from  the  trial  process  because trials and appeals have different functions. The function of trials is  to determine whether a criminal defendant is guilty or innocent and whether  a civil defendant is liable to the plaintiff, based on the consideration of questions of fact. It was a question of fact whether the substance that Stan Johnson sold to a state trooper was cocaine; it was also a question of fact whether  Shannon Peterson fell while skiing because of ice or because of blowing snow  from a snowmaking “gun.”