Criminal Law and Procedure Flashcards
What is a Crime and how does it differ from a Tort?
Crime = act which violates a public law put in place by local, state, and/or federal governments
Tort = civil wrong, action against an individual that requires compensation or restitution
What is Criminal Law and the two Primary Crime Classifications?
Criminal Law:
- Prosecution by government of individual accused of committing a crime
- Suit is brought by prosecutor working for state in which the crime was committed
- Accused person may be incarcerated, fined, or both
- Proof for each element of each charged offense beyond a reasonable doubt
- Defines crimes, sets procedures for arrest, searches & seizures, and interrogations, establishes the rules for trials, specifies the punishments for offenders
- Based on common law (precedent and stare decisis)
Two Primary Crime Classifications:
- Felony
- Misdemeanor
What are Felonies?
Serious offenses such as rape and murder
What are Misdemeanors?
Less serious offenses such as petty theft
What is Criminal Law Jurisdiction?
Determines which court has the right and power to govern a particular type of crime and/or where it was committed
When does Federal Criminal Jurisdiction commonly arise?
When crime occurred on:
- Land owned/controlled by federal government (national parks, military bases)
- Ship flying the American flag, even in foreign waters
- Power granted by Constitution (taxation, interstate commerce, crime crossed state lines)
- Some crimes in foreign countries if intended to affect U.S. (cybercrimes, terrorist attacks)
- Offenses on Native American reservations
When does state criminal jurisdiction commonly arise?
Crimes occurring within state’s borders or within 3 miles of coastline
When does Concurrent Criminal Jurisdiction commonly arise?
More than one court has power to decide case (more than one state, both state & federal) - the 1st court to exercise jurisdiction over the defendant usually keeps the case
What is Regulatory Law?
- Branch of public law
- U.S. governmental agencies and commissions (FTC, IRS, EPA), make rules that are semi-legislative or semi-judicial
- Decision making is governed by administrative rules related to a variety of crimes
- Investigate violations and impose sanctions
What is Case Law?
- Holding in an appellate court case has the force of law
- When appellate court decides a legal issue, the doctrine of precedence (stare decisis) mandates that future cases must follow that decision
What is Ex Post Facto Law (criminal law)?
Law passed after the occurrence of a fact or commission of an act which retrospectively changes the legal consequences or relations of such fact or deed
Seek to punish the commission of a crime that occurred before the law took effect
What is the Void for Vagueness Doctrine (criminal law)?
Requires criminal statute to define crime with sufficient definiteness so that ordinary people can understand what conduct is prohibited
Must not encourage arbitrary & discriminatory enforcement
What is a Bill of Attainder (criminal law)?
Legislative act, directed against designated person, pronouncing that person guilty of an alleged crime (usually treason) without trial or conviction
Prohibited by the U.S. Constitution
What is the Plain Meaning Rule (criminal law)?
When statute language is plain and clear, court must interpret it as written, even if the court does not agree with the interpretation
Statute is to be interpreted according to ordinary meaning of the language unless result would be cruel or absurd
Keeps courts from taking sides in legislative/political issues
What is Strict Construction, Rule of Lenity, and Ambiguous Statute (criminal law)?
Strict Construction = Based on a literal or technical understanding of the words used
Rule of Lenity = ambiguity in a criminal statute should be resolved in favor of the Defendant
Ambiguous Statute = capable of two or more equally reasonable interpretations
What is the Effect of Statute Repeal and a Saving Clause (criminal law)?
Effect of Statute Repeal = prevents prosecution of earlier violations if prosecution hasn’t yet commenced at the time of the repeal; repeal can’t be used to free person who’s already been prosecuted & convicted under the repealed statute
Saving Clause = restriction in repealing act intended to save rights, pending proceedings, penalties, etc. from eradication which would result from an unrestricted repeal (carve-outs)
What is the Fourth Amendment and the rights it provides (criminal law)?
Fourth Amendment = Protects personal privacy and freedom from unreasonable government intrusion into their persons, homes, businesses, and property.
Search and Seizure Provision = protection from stop/arrest, reasonable expectation of privacy, requires valid search/ arrest warrant and probable cause
Probable Cause Provision = requirement that police have facts & evidence to arrest someone, conduct a search, or seize property related to an alleged crime, warrant granted by judge
What is the Fifth Amendment and the rights it provides (criminal law)?
Fifth Amendment = provides that individual can’t be prosecuted or punished without due process
Due Process = right to be served with notice, to be heard, and to defend oneself
Right to Remain Silent = right to avoid self-incrimination
Double Jeopardy = prohibits courts from trying person again for the same crime after they have been tried and found innocent
What is the Sixth Amendment and the rights it provides (criminal law)?
Provides that a defendant has the right to: (trial rights)
- trial judged by jury of their peers in state & district where crime committed
- know the nature of the charges
- have legal representation
- face witnesses
- represent themselves if mentally competent
- public and speedy trial
What is the Eighth Amendment and the rights it provides (criminal law)?
Rights mostly apply to punishment phase of criminal justice system, but also if individual’s injured at the hands of government officials: (cruel & unusual punishment-physical & economic)
- right to seek damages and other remedies by filing civil rights cases for physical harm or deliberate indifference which can constitute cruel and unusual punishment
- protection from excessive bail & fines which may be considered cruel & unusual punishment
- protection from certain types of death penalties (electric chair/gas chamber) or excessive prison sentences which may be considered cruel and unusual punishment
What is the 14th Amendment and the rights it provides (criminal law)?
Provides civil rights:
- anyone born in the U.S. is legal citizen, including former slaves
- illegal to deny a person equal protection under the law
- constitutional right to life, liberty, and property that cannot be denied by the government
- right to due process, person’s legal rights must be respected when accused of a crime
What are the essential elements of a crime (four basic elements that must be proven before someone can be charged)?
Actus Reus (physical action)
Mens Rea (intent)
Causation
Social Harm
What is Actus Reus, Legal Duty to Act, and Act?
Physical or guilty act or unlawful omission
Government must prove that accused performed a physical act that caused social harm with the intent to cause that harm or defendant failed to act and had duty to act
Legal Duty to Act - by statute, contact, relationship, volunteering, creation
Act - voluntary, bodily movement
What is Mens Rea and Specific, General, or Transferred Intent and Strict Liability?
Mental or guilty state - the intent of the Defendant at the time of the crime
Specific Intent = crimes defined to require specific intent to accompany actual crime such as first-degree murder (premeditation), assault (intent to commit), attempt (intent to complete a crime), and larceny (intent to permanently deprave a person of their property
General Intent = inferred when accused knowingly commits crime and is aware of its prohibited result - all crimes are general intent crimes unless they are specific or strict liability crimes
Transferred Intent = occurs when there’s “collateral damage” in a crime (ex. innocent bystanders killed in shootout and bystander wasn’t the defendant’s target)
Strict Liability = acts which produce outcomes that are punishable regardless of the state of mind (ex. statutory rape, selling alcohol to a minor)
What is Causation?
Defendant’s act must be a proximate cause of the resulting harm; the act committed caused the end harm
What is Social Harm?
A harmful result caused, both factually and proximately, by the defendant’s act
Harm is generally the result of the act was committed, such as hitting someone or stealing
What are the four states of mind (and their definitions) for which criminal liability may be imposed according to the Model Penal Code (MPC)?
- Purposefully = consciously desires conduct to cause a particular result
- Knowingly = aware that conduct is almost certain to cause a particular result
- Recklessly = aware that conduct poses a risk that might cause a particular result
- Negligently = should be aware that conduct poses a risk that might cause a particular result
MPC also assigns specific state of mind to each element of a crime
Intoxication is a defense if it negates mens rea (state of mind-intent) unless crime of recklessness then unawareness of the risk due to voluntary intoxication will not negate mens rea
What is the Concurrence Theory of Actus Reus and Mens Rea?
Retroactive or retrospective application of one of the criminal elements cannot be used to prove guilt - the act and state of mind must occur in unison
What are the Classification of Crimes and their definitions?
- Malum in se (wrong in itself) = crime that’s inherently evil such as rape, murder, and larceny or other crimes of moral turpitude (departure from social standards that would shock community)
- Malum prohibitum = crime that’s wrong because the legislature says so, like traffic violations
- Treason = attempt to overthrow the government or betray the government in favor of a foreign power - person can be convicted of treason only by the testimony of two witnesses or by confession in open court
- Capital Crime = crime for which the penalty may be death, often classified as felonies
- Felony = crime for which the maximum penalty may be death and minimum may be imprisonment for one or more years including murder, rape, manslaughter, robbery, sodomy, larceny, arson, mayhem, and burglary (MR. & MRS. LAMB)
- Misdemeanor = crime for which maximum penalty may be imprisonment for less than one year or statutory violations for which the punishment may be a fine
What is Common Law Murder and Malice Aforethought?
Common Law Murder = Unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought
Malice Aforethought = if person possesses one of the four states of mind:
- Intent to kill
- Intent to inflict great bodily harm
- Extreme recklessness and disregard for human life (also known as “depraved heart”)
- Intent to commit an inherently dangerous felony
What is Common Law Voluntary Manslaughter?
Unlawful killing of a person without malice during a sudden heat of passion due to reasonable provocation, aka “passion killing”
What is Common Law Involuntary Manslaughter, Misdemeanor Manslaughter Rule, and Year and a Day Rule?
Common Law Involuntary Manslaughter = Death caused by criminal negligence (driving under influence of alcohol) or death caused by unlawful act (waving around a gun and someone dies of a heart attack because of the stress)
Misdemeanor Manslaughter Rule = treats unintended killing during misdemeanor as a manslaughter
Year and a Day Rule = old common law requirement that death of the victim must occur within one year and one day from the infliction of the injury
What is a First-Degree Felony Murder?
Death/killing that occurs during the commission or attempted commission of certain felonies (arson, kidnapping, robbery, burglary, rape) - defendant must be found guilty of underlying felony
What is a Second-Degree Felony Murder?
Involuntary manslaughter, intentional killing without premeditation and deliberation - passion killings or killings that occur while committing a felony other than those in first-degree felony murder
What is Common Law Rape, Statutory Rape, Incest, and Obscenity?
Common Law Rape = Forced sexual intercourse by a male on a female who is not his wife
Statutory Rape = Intercourse with an underage victim - neither mistake nor consent is a defense
Incest = marriage or a sexual act occurs between people who are closely related, usually a felony
Obscenity = sale, publication, or display of materials that appeals to a salacious sexual audience and involves patently offensive sexual conduct - lacks literacy, artistic, political, or scientific value
What is Statutory Rape?
What is Assault?
Aka “attempted battery”, intentional attempt, using force or violence, to injure or harm another person, there must be a reasonable fear in the victim’s mind of imminent bodily harm
Simple Assault = misdemeanor
Aggregated Assault = intent to create more serious crimes, such as assault with intent to commit murder or rape
What is Battery?
Unlawful (without consent) touching, which may involve an application of force or result in bodily injury but can be an offensive touching and doesn’t have to be direct touching - it can be applied by means of another force or by a substance put in motion by defendant (ex. causing victim to ingest poison or causing dog to attack victim)
What is Theft?
Crimes involving depravation of another’s property, including larceny, embezzlement, bad checks, extortion (blackmail)
What is Arson?
Purposeful burning of a structure, or land, that endangers other people or property
What is Burglary?
Entering any structure with the intent to commit a felony or theft offense inside
What is Larceny?
Trespassing and taking away personal property of another with intent to permanently deprive the individual of that property which can include written documents, gas, and electric
Larceny by Trick = defendant obtains possession of property by intentionally making a false statement to the victim
What is Embezzlement?
Defendant fraudulently or unlawfully converts an owner’s entrusted property for the defendant’s own use, covertly misappropriates the assets for personal gain, requires intentional conversion with the intent to defraud
What are False Pretenses?
Obtaining title by fraud (sale or trade transaction) - victim must’ve been deceived by, or acted in reliance upon, a misrepresentation
Obtaining title to property of another, by an intentional (or knowing) false statement of past or present fact, with intent to defraud the other
What is Robbery?
Taking personal property of another by force or intimidation with intent to permanently deprive other person of the property (aggravated form of larceny), felony
What is Forgery?
Creating false document or altering existing document with intent to defraud
What are Cybercrimes Against Property and Cybercrimes Against Government?
Cybercrimes Against Property = online crimes which occur against property, such as hacking, virus transmission, computer vandalism, and copyright infringement
Cybercrimes Against Government = online crimes which occur against government, such as hacking, accessing confidential information, cyber warfare, cyber terrorism & pirated software
What is Conspiracy, Wharton’s Rule, Husband & Wife Rule, and Two or More Rules?
Conspiracy = Agreement b/w two or more persons to commit a crime at some time in the future
Wharton’s Rule = Need one more person than required to commit conspiracy of crime (ex. adultery required two people; conspiracy to commit adultery requires three people)
Husband & Wife Rule = Under common law, husband & wife were considered one person so they couldn’t conspire to commit a crime; nowadays, they may legally act independently of each other so they may commit conspiracy
Two or More Rules = For conspiracy to exist, two or more persons must b e involved
What is the Mann Act?
Felony to engage in interstate or foreign commerce transport of any woman or girl for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral purpose - intent was to address prostitution, immorality and human trafficking
