criminal law

Question 1

what is a crime?

Answer 1

• any act that is prohibited (considered illegal) by the federal criminal code

1. actions or behaviour was imoral by Canadians
2. actions cause harm to society
3. actions must be serious
4. punished by the criminal justice system

Question 2

legal/illegal/criminal

Answer 2

legal: not against the law and does not harm others
illegal: against the law but is not a criminal act
criminal: can be imprisoned and goes against criminal offences in criminal code

Question 3

summary convictions

Answer 3

minor criminal offence with less severe punishments which is usually tried after the charge without a preliminary hearing or judge

Question 4

indictable offences

Answer 4

serious crimes that carry severe penalties
- the maximum penalty for offence with no limitations

Question 5

hybrid offences

Answer 5

most offences
- middle of summary and indicatble
- crown makes decision
- 2-10 years

Question 6

actus reus vs mens rea

Answer 6

in order to be proven guilty the crown must prove that u have:
actus: guilty act/omission or state of being that constitutes of a crime

men’s: a guilty mind
- mental element of ones criminal actions

Question 7

proving guilty mind/mens rea

Answer 7

1. wilful blindness: the act of deliberately choosing to ignore certain facts or information
2. recklessness: a person is carless in the possible result of their action
3. criminal negligence: not realize consequence but a reasonable person would
4. knowledge: knowing certain facts that can provide the necessary men’s rea for conviction

Question 8

proving guilty act/actus reus

Answer 8

1. attemp: an act done with the intent to commit a criminal offence but without success
2. conspiracy: an agreement between 2 or more people to commit a crime

Question 9

commission vs omission

Answer 9

commission: doing something wrong
omission: failing to do something wrong

Question 10

aiding

Answer 10

assisting someone to commit the crime
eg: drive them back after robbing a bank

Question 11

abetting

Answer 11

encouraging or urging a person to commit the crime
eg: sending text messages to encourage to kill

Question 12

accessory after the fact

Answer 12

someone who knows that a crime has been committed and who helps that person hide from the police
eg: making food and clothes

Question 13

When can arrests occur

Answer 13

1. immediatly when the crime is commited
2. after enough evidence is found

Question 14

what are the accused legal rights

Answer 14

highlighted in sec 7-14 of charter or rights –> ensures the life, liberty and personal safety of all canadians
- the accused must be protected and
kept away from any possible mistreatment
- cant arrest someone who has acted reasonably and has not done anything illegal that offends the principle of fundamental justice

Question 15

limits on police behaviour and how they are maintained

Answer 15

To arrest
- must have a search warrant
- must have concrete evidence from the crime
- must be reasonable and on proper grounds (facts that would convince a normal person to be sus)
- cant be out of the blue

if any evidence is proven to be obtained unlawfully it will be removed from evidence in court.

Question 16

issuing an appearance notice

Answer 16

• a legal document stating the criminal charge and court date
• mailed in
• used when the case is not of extremely serious matter
• when they believe the accused is not a threat to others and will show up to the hearing

Question 17

arresting the suspect

Answer 17

if there are reasonable grounds that someone has committed an offence or is about to (can be done without warrant)
- can arrest if it is a serious indictable offence
- they can use as much force as nessacary
–> when they pose harm or death to others
–> suspect flees to escape arrest
–> no alternate means to escape

Question 18

warrant for arrest

Answer 18

if there is difficulty to find the suspect
- the police can go to the judge or justice to order a summons
summons: an immediate order to appear in the criminal court

• if the suspect does not come voluntarily then the court will issue an arrest warrant

Question 19

steps to a lawful arrest

Answer 19

1. identify yourself “police name”
2. state what they are being arrested for (charges)
3. right to a counsel (lawyer)
4. right to remain silent
5. physical touch to signify custody (handcuffs)

Question 20

what are the steps of jury selection

Answer 20

1. A list of jurors is created from a list of people living in an area near where the court is located
2. A selection committee randomly chooses 100-75 names from the list
3. Those people are added to a jury panel
4. they are called in to court and asked a couple questions to check if they are suitable for the position (if biased or not)
5. after that 6-12 jury members are selected based on how serious the case is

Question 21

what are the qualifications of a juror who is exempt?

Answer 21

• healthcare workers
• members of government
• mental and physical unfit
• lawyers
• ppl who have more knowledge than the ordinary person

Question 22

challenges of jury

Answer 22

1. challenge of jury list
   - there was misconduct is choosing the jury (one race only)
2. challenge of cause
   - jury is suspected to be biased or do not meet the requirements
3. peremptory challenge
   - allows both the defence and crown to eliminate any jurors that they don’t like without giving reason

Question 23

types of witnesses

Answer 23

eye witness: called to talk about what they saw during the crime

character witness: talking about the accused and making their character generate sympathy

expert witness: called to give expert opinion about something a normal person would not have knowledge about