criminal law+justice in canada (lec 2)

Question 1

What is Substantive Criminal Law? Source? What benefit does it have for institutions? Static or not?

Answer 1

-Legally defines crime

-Source: agreed upon values of right/wrong

-legitimacy for institutions

-NOT static

Question 2

What is procedural criminal law? What does it give to agencies?
Constrains agencies, whats this called?

Answer 2

-procedures necessary for processing cases

-legality to actions of agencies (ex power to arrest)

-constrains agencies- procedural safeguards

Question 3

Criminal Liability~ what are the two approaches to what crime is in our society? What do they believe crime is?

Answer 3

General: any action that is..
1.harmful
2. prohibited by the criminal law
3. can be prosecuted by the state
4. In formal court environment
5. For which a punishment can be imposed

Legal: -Mental and physical elements
-“attendant circumstances” ~ link between act and harm

Question 4

What is Corpus delecti, and what are the seven principles of it?

Answer 4

Corpus delecti – “body of the crime”

1. Legality
2. Mens rea
3. Actus Reus
4. union of mens rea and actus reus
5. Harm
6. Causation
7. Punishment

Question 5

What are the focuses of each of the corpus delecti principles?

Answer 5

1. Legality: only crime if law forbids action
2. Mens rea: guilty mind/intent
3. Actus Reus: guilty act
4. Concurrence of mens rea and actus reus: union of guilty
   mind+act
5. Harm: criminal only if harm done
6. Causation: relationship between persons action and end result
   (crime)
7. Punishment: sanctions stated for crime

Question 6

What are the two types of legal defenses? What do they mean?

Answer 6

Excuses: admits, argues there was no intent

justifications: admits, argues it was justified

Question 7

What are the 5 types of justifications?

Answer 7

1. Duress
2. Necessity
3. Self-Defense
4. Provocation
5. Entrapment

Question 8

What do the justifications mean? Which one is only applicable for murder?

Answer 8

1. Duress: -wrongful threat from person makes another person commit a crime
   -threat of death or bodily harm+ no realistic
   alternative action
2. Necessity – urgent situations
   -forces of nature or human conduct
   -related to duress
3. Self-Defense: -as much as reasonably necessary
4. Provocation: -wrongful act which deprives
   person the power of self-control
   -Only for murder
5. Entrapment: - deceived into committing act

Question 9

Where does criminal law historically originate from?

Answer 9

-derived from british common law

-intro of precedent

• body of knowledge that replaced customs

-judges originally made sure ‘kings law’ was followed
-began trading info about decisions

Question 10

What are the 4 main written sources of law?

Answer 10

-Constitution
-Statute Law
-Case Law
-Administrative Law

Question 11

What does constitution cover? Who uses it? What does it mean if something is uncostutional?

Answer 11

Constitution: -enactment of laws + application by courts

-federal

-uncostitution= violation of charter

Question 12

What does statute law do? What type of law must be changed thru statutes?
What are statutes seen as?

Answer 12

Statutes: -prohibit or mandate certain acts

-criminal law changed thru statutes

-seen as most important source of law

Question 13

What is case/common law?

Answer 13

Case Law (common law): judicial application + interpretation of
laws as they apply in a case

Question 14

What is administrative law? Who is it written by? What powers does it have?

Answer 14

Administrative Law: -Administrative Regulations

                                 -Written by regulatory agencies

                                 -Power of criminal law

                                -Power to develop + enforce rules in
                                  specific jurisdictions

Question 15

What is notable about charter of rights and freedoms? (What rights does it protect, what does it inform)

Answer 15

-protection of legal rights to suspects + convicted

-informs about powers of agencies + trial procedure

Question 16

Section 7 of the charter introduced required procedural rights, what rights were affected? (4 main ones)

Answer 16

-Right to silence

-Right to disclosure

-Right to make full answer + defense

-detention of those found not guilty by reason of insanity

Question 17

What are the two major systems in classification of criminal offenses, what do they include?

Answer 17

Legal classifications: summary conviction offenses, indictable
offenses and hybrid offenses

General classifications: used by police/other agencies

Question 18

What are Summary Conviction Offenses? Where is incarceration served?

Answer 18

-Punishment: no more than 6 months of incarceration + fine of up to $2000

-If sentenced to incarceration, served in provincial facility

Question 19

What are the 3 main types of Indictable Offenses?

Answer 19

1. Absolute Jurisdiction Indictable Offense
2. Supreme Court Exclusive Indictable Offenses
3. Election Indictable Offenses

Question 20

What do each of the types of Indictable Offense deal with?

Answer 20

1. Absolute Jurisdiction Indictable Offense – less serious
2. Supreme Court Exclusive Indictable Offenses - most serious
3. Election Indictable Offenses- all other indictable offenses

-Variety of sentances

Question 21

What are Hybrid Offenses? What is the decision of the case’s outcome based on?

Answer 21

Hybrid Offenses: -Summary or indictable

                           -Decision based on previous record and other 
                            factors
                           -Prosecutor discretion

Question 22

Additional way of classifying that is older than criminal law? What does it overlap with?

Answer 22

-Mala en se: inherently bad
-Mala prohibita: crimes only because law states

-Overlaps: summary, hybrid and indictable offenses