Definitions Flashcards
Arrest
The taking of a person into custody in a case and in the manner authorized by law.
Assault
The unlawful attempt, coupled with the present ability, to commit a violent injury on
the person of another, intentionally placing another person in reasonable
apprehension of immediate bodily harm.
Battery
Any willful and unlawful use of force or violence upon the person of another.
Burglary
Every person who, either by day or night, enters any structure with intent to
commit grand or petit larceny, any felony, assault, or battery, is guilty of burglary.
Felony
Punishable by death or imprisonment in the state penitentiary.
Gross misdemeanor
Punishable by fine of not more than $2,000.00 or imprisonment in the county jail for
not more than 1 year or by both fine and imprisonment.
Misdemeanor
Punishable by fine of not more than $1,000.00 or imprisonment in the city or county jail
for not more than 6 months, or by both fine and imprisonment.
Corpus Delicti
The substantial and fundamental facts necessary to prove the commission of a
specific crime or offense.
Crime
A crime is an act or omission forbidden by law, punishable upon conviction by
death, imprisonment, fine or other penal discipline.
Elements of a Crime
In every crime or public offense, there must exist a union or joint operation of act
and intention or criminal negligence.
Evidence
All the means by which any alleged matter of fact, the truthfulness of which is
submitted for investigation, is established or disproved.
Home Invasion
Every person who, by day or night, forcibly enters an inhabited dwelling without
permission of the owner, resident or lawful occupant, which involves any act of
physical force resulting in damage to the structure, whether or not a person is
present at the time of the entry, is guilty of invasion of the home.
Homicide
The killing of one human being by another.
Intent
Intention is manifested by the circumstances connected to the perpetration of the
offense and the sound mind and discretion of the person accused.
Larceny from Person
The unlawful taking, from the person of another, without his consent, any money,
property or thing of value, under circumstances not amounting to robbery.
Manslaughter
The unlawful killing of a human being without malice, either expressed or implied,
and without any mixture of deliberation.
Mayhem
Unlawfully depriving a human being of a member of his body or disfiguring or
rendering it useless.
Principals
Every person who aids or abets in the commission of a crime, either during or prior
Close Relationship
Husband, wife, brother, sister, parent, grand-parent, child or grandchild to the
offender.
Accessories
All those persons not standing in close relationship to the offender who give aid
after the crime, with knowledge of its commission.
Prima facie Case
Legally sufficient to establish a fact or a case unless disproved.
Probable Cause
Probable cause exists when the facts and circumstances known to the officer
would warrant a prudent man in believing that a crime had been committed and
that the accused had committed it.
Robbery
The unlawful taking of personal property from the person of another, or in his
presence, against his will, by means of force or violence or fear of injury
immediate or future.
Sexual Assault
A person who subjects another person to sexual penetration, or who forces
another person to make a sexual penetration on himself or another, against the
victim’s will is guilty of sexual assault.
Sound Mind
A person shall be considered of sound mind who is not an idiot and who has
reached the age of 14 years or, before that age, if such person knew the
distinction between good and evil.
Statutory Sexual Seduction
Statutory sexual seduction means ordinary sexual intercourse, anal intercourse,
cunnilingus or fellatio committed by a person 18 years of age or older with a
consenting person under the age of 16 years.
