Our Criminal LawsChapter 5

1. What arguments can you make for trying Emily?

2. What arguments can you make against trying her?

Hot Debate

1. The fact that respect for the evenhanded-ness of the law would be lost if she was not tried.

2. The fact that she had actually accomplished what the law could not do.

Hot Debate Answers

Has she committed a crime despite the repayment?

What’s Your Verdict?

Davis owed a duty, defined by state statute, to not take the credit union’s money.

What’s Your Verdict? Answer

A crime is a punishable offense against society.

What are crimes?

Before anyone can be convicted of a crime, three elements must be proven at the trial:

1. The duty2. The breach of the duty

3. Criminal intent

Elements of a Crime

State statutes prohibiting certain conduct usually describes duty.

The existence of a duty in criminal law is usually proven in court by the prosecutor citing a statute to the judge.

Duty

The breach of duty-the specific conduct that violates the statute is the criminal act.

Example: If someone intentionally hit someone in the face, causing them harm(battery), the breach of the duty could be proven in court by the testimony of a witness who saw the defendant punch the victim.

Violation of the Duty

Criminal Intent generally means that the defendant:

1. Intended to commit the act2. Intended to do evil

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Criminal Intent

Can a corporation, which is an organization, form criminal intent the way humans can?

Criminal Intent

Yes, if an employee has criminal intent, their employer may be judged to have criminal intent.

Vicarious criminal liability refers to corporations.

Under common law, children under age 7 were considered to be below the age of reason. Therefore, they were considered incapable of forming criminal intent.

Criminal Intent

State statutes provide that minors as young as 7 may be tried and punished as adults if they are accused of serious crimes, such as murder.

There are exceptions to criminal intent. Example: If you’re driving down the road going

80 mph through a neighborhood while drunk and killed a pedestrian, you may have not intended to speed or intended to do evil, but your conduct was careless that some courts treat it the same as criminal intent. You may be convicted of vehicular homicide.

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Criminal Intent

1. Crimes against a person-assault and battery, kidnapping, rape, murder

2. Crimes against property-theft, robbery, embezzlement3. Crimes against the government and administration

of justice-treason, tax evasion, perjury4. Crimes against public peace and order-rioting,

disorderly conduct, illegal speeding5. Crimes against realty-burglary, arson, criminal trespass6. Crimes against consumers-fraudulent sale of securities,

violation of pure food and drug laws7. Crimes against decency-bigamy, obscenity, prostitution

Criminal Conduct Classifications

If this could be proven, could he be punished for a crime?

What’s Your Verdict?

Murdock committed perjury. He may be imprisoned for two or three years.

What’s Your Verdict? Answer

Crimes are classified as felonies and misdemeanors.

Classifications of Crimes

Classifications of CrimesFelony

A crime punishable by confinement for more than a year in state prison or by a fine of more than $1,000 or both—even death.

Examples: murder, kidnapping, arson, rape, robbery, burglary, embezzlement, forgery, theft of large sums, and perjury

Misdemeanor Less serious and usually

punishable by confinement in a county or city jail for less than a year, by fine, or both.

Examples: speeding, parking violations, and littering

Were the officers and their companies guilty of any crime?

What’s Your Verdict?

The six officers were guilty of violating criminal portions of antitrust laws.

Antitrust laws-state that competing companies may not cooperate in fixing prices or in dividing sales regions.

Antitrust laws require that business firms compete with one another.

What’s Your Verdict? Answer

White collar crimes are offenses committed in the business world.

White collar crimes do not involve force or violence, do not cause injury to people, and do not cause physical damage to property.

Business-Related Crimes

Commonly known as theft The wrongful taking of money or personal

property belonging to someone else, with intent to deprive the owner of possessions.

Robbery and burglary are variations of larceny Larceny can either be a felony or a

misdemeanor Robbery and burglary are felonies Other Examples: pick pocketing, shoplifting,

purse snatching

Larceny

Robbery vs. BurglaryRobbery

The taking of property from another’s person or immediate presence, against the victim’s will, by force or causing fear.

Burglary

Entering a building without permission when intending to commit a crime.

It is a crime to buy property that you know has been stolen.

Receiving Stolen Property

One who obtains money or other property by lying about a past or existing fact is guilty of false pretenses.

Different from larceny because the victim parts with the property voluntarily.

False Pretenses

Falsely making or materially altering a writing to defraud another.

Usually a felony

Most common type of forgery is on a check

Forgery

Unlawfully offering or giving anything of value to influence performance of an official.

Example: Paying a football player to throw the game, bribing nongovernmental parties

Bribery

Commonly known as blackmail

Sometimes the extortionist threatens to expose a secret crime or embarrassing fact if payment is not made.

Extortion

Newest crime

The law can NOW prosecute

Computer Crime

An agreement between two or more people to commit a crime.

Usually it is a secret

Can be a misdemeanor or a felony

Conspiracy

The willful or illegal burning of a building.

Arson

Is he correct?

What’s Your Verdict?

Barlow’s right against self-incrimination was not violated by the law that requires one to remain at the scene of the accident and identify oneself.

What’s Your Verdict? Answer

The Constitution believed it was better for our society to give individuals too much liberty than to allow the government too much power.

Rights and Responsibilities

The constitutional right to due process requires fundamental fairness in governmental actions.

Example: criminal defendants may not be compelled to testify against themselves, the right to cross-examine witnesses, be represented by a lawyer.

To convict a person of a crime, the evidence must establish guilt with proof beyond a reasonable doubt (90%).

Rights when Arrested

A person who aids another in the commission of a crime is also guilty of criminal wrongdoing.

Example: Someone who acts as the lookout for police during a robbery.

Responsibility for the Criminal Conduct of Others

If true, are those good defenses?What’s Your Verdict?

Will and Zack should have been advised of their rights when arrested.

If they were not advised, their procedural rights of the Constitution were violated.

This is a valid defense.

What’s Your Verdict? Answer

The state must prove that the defendant is guilty beyond reasonable doubt.

But even when it appears that this has been done, the defendant may escape criminal liability by establishing a defense.

Defense-often allows the defendant to escape liability.

The defendant must produce the evidence to support any defense.

Defenses to Criminal Charges

2 Types of Defenses:

Procedural Defense Substantive Defense

Based on problems with the way evidence is obtained or the way the accused person is arrested, questioned, tried, or punished.

Example: a defendant who confessed to a crime may assert the defense that she signed the confession only because she felt threatened by the police.

The legal system assumes that everyone knows the law.

Disapprove, justify, or excuse the alleged crime.

Most substantive defenses discredit the facts that the state has sought to establish.

Example: Self-defense, criminal insanity, and immunity

Self-defense- the use of the force that appears to be reasonably necessary to the victim to prevent death, serious bodily harm, rape, or kidnapping.

You may not use deadly force if non-deadly force appears reasonably sufficient.

Only non-deadly force may be used to protect or recover property.

You may not set deadly traps, or shoot a thief who is escaping with stolen property.

Substantive Defense-Self-Defense

Criminal insanity-generally exists when the accused does not know the difference between right and wrong.

If the accused is criminally insane, there is no criminal intent and therefore no crime.

At the trial, the defendant must prove criminal insanity.

Substantive Defense-Criminal Insanity

Immunity-freedom from prosecution even when one has committed the crime charged.

Sometimes a criminal may be granted immunity in exchange for an agreement to testify about the criminal conduct of several other criminals.

Substantive Defense-Immunity

What is an appropriate penalty for an offense of this nature?

What’s Your Verdict?

Gill was guilty of an infraction, which did not require criminal intent.

His conduct was illegal so he would probably be fined.

What’s Your Verdict? Answer

The purpose is not to remedy the wrong but rather discipline the wrongdoer.

An accused person may agree to plead guilty to a less serious crime in exchange for having a more serious charge dropped, this is known as plea bargaining.

Punishments for Crimes