California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from Tracy v. Municipal Court of Glendale Judicial Dist. of Los Angeles County, 144 Cal.Rptr. 263, 78 Cal.App.3d 391 (Cal. App. 1978):
"Under the federal Constitution, the right to trial by jury is guaranteed only for 'non-petty' offenses, involving a potential punishment of more than six months' imprisonment. (See Baldwin v. New York (1970) 399 U.S. 66, 69, 90 S.Ct. 1886, 26 L.Ed.2d 437, (440).) Thus, a defendant's federal constitutional 'jury trial' right does not extend to all misdemeanors, but only to those involving a potential of more than six months' incarceration. . . . "
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