In a criminal case, the state, through a prosecutor, initiates the suit, while in a civil case the victim brings the suit. Persons convicted of a crime may be incarcerated, fined, or both. Criminal defense attorneys represent clients who have been accused of committing a crime, and defend their rights at each stage of a misdemeanor or felony case -- from an arrest to an appeal after conviction. Criminal defense attorneys may be hired privately or provided by the government (called "public defenders").
Lansing is a city situated along the Missouri River in the eastern part of Leavenworth County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. The population was 9,199 at the 2000 census, and it was estimated to be 10,705 in the year 2006. It is the second most populous city of Leavenworth County and is a part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. The Lansing Correctional Facility, which includes the state's main maximum-security prison, is located in Lansing. Perry Edward Smith and Richard Eugene Hickock, the subjects of In Cold Blood, were hanged at the prison on April 14, 1965. Most recently, Lansing was ranked 88 in the top 100 of Money Magazine's 2007 list of best places to live.