Exam 1

Question 1

Common Law

Answer 1

unwritten historical precedents created from everyday social customs, rules and practices

Question 2

Stare decisis

Answer 2

“standing by decided matters”

legal principle that requires that in subsequent cases om similar issues of laws and fact, courts are bound by their own earlier decisions and by those of higher courts having jurisdiction over them

Question 3

Procedural Law

Answer 3

body of rules that determines the proceedings by which legal rights are enforced (ex;search and seizure, procedures to be followed by arrest, etc.)

Question 4

substantive criminal law

Answer 4

law that describes what constitutes particular crimes and specifies the appropriate punishment for the offense

Question 5

criminal law

Answer 5

aka Penal law
body of rules & regulations that define and specify the nature of and punishments for offenses of a public nature or for wrongs committed against the state or society (murder, rape, robbery, and assault)

Question 6

rule of law

Answer 6

aka Supremacy Law
belief that an orderly society must be governed by establishment principles and known codes that are applied uniformly and fairly to all of its members

Question 7

jurisprudence

Answer 7

philosophy of law or the science and study of the law

Question 8

consensus model

Answer 8

criminal justice perspective that assumes that the systems components work together harmoniously to achieve the social product we call justice

Question 9

due process model

Answer 9

criminal justice perspective that emphasizes individual rights at all stages of justice-system processing

Question 10

conflict model

Answer 10

a cj perspective that assumes that the systems components function primarily to serve their own interests. Justice is more a product of conflicts among agencies within the system that it is the result of cooperation among component agencies

Question 11

crime control model

Answer 11

a cj perspective that emphasizes the efficient arrest and conviction of criminal offenders

Question 12

warrants

Answer 12

criminal proceedings, a writ issued by a judicial officer directing a law enforcement officer to perform a specified act and affording the officer protection from damages if he or she performs it.

Question 13

social justice

Answer 13

ideal that embraces all aspects of civilized life and that is linked to fundamental notions of fairness and to cultural beliefs about right and wrong

Question 14

crime index

Answer 14

now-defunct but once inclusive measure of the UCR programs violent and property crime categories or what are Part 1 offenses

Question 15

Part 1 crimes

Answer 15

UCR/NIBRS offense group used to report murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, arson

Question 16

clearance rates

Answer 16

traditional measure of investigative effectiveness that compares the number of crimes reported or discovered to the number of crimes solved through arrest or other means (such as the death of the suspect)

Question 17

NIBRS

Answer 17

National Incident Based Reporting System

system that collects detailed data on every single crime occurrence.

Question 18

National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)

Answer 18

annual survey of selected american households conducted by the bureau of justice statistics to determine the extent of criminal victimization–especially unreported victimization

Question 19

Uniform Crime Report (UCR)

Answer 19

statistical reporting program run by the FBIs cj information services division. provides an annual summation of the incidence and rate of reported crimes throughout the united states

Question 20

actus reus

Answer 20

an act of violation of the law, also a guilty act

Question 21

Mens Rea

Answer 21

the state of mind that accompanies a criminal act, also a guilty mind

Question 22

Hate crime

Answer 22

criminal offense committed against a person, property or society that is motivated in whole or in part by the offenders bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or ethnicity/national origin

Question 23

M’Naghten rule

Answer 23

rule determining insanity that asks whether the defendant knew what he or she was doing or whether the defendant knew that what he or she was doing was wrong

Question 24

Guilty but mentally ill (GBMI)

Answer 24

verdict equivalent to a finding of “guilty”, that establishes that the defendant, although mentally ill was in sufficient possession of his or her faculties to be morally blameworthy for his or her acts

Question 25

larceny-theft

Answer 25

unlawful taking or attempted taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession of another.

Question 26

burglary

Answer 26

unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft.

Question 27

arson

Answer 27

any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft

Question 28

assualt

Answer 28

unlawful attack by one person upon another

Question 29

statutory rape

Answer 29

no force is involved but the victim is younger than the age of consent

Question 30

miranda triggers

Answer 30

dual principles of custody and interrogation both of which are necessary before an advertisement of rights is required

Question 31

compelling interest

Answer 31

legal concept that provides a basis for suspicion less searches when public safety is at issue

Question 32

police discretion

Answer 32

the opportunity of law enforcement officers to exercise choice in their daily activities

Question 33

probable cause

Answer 33

set of facts and circumstances that would induce a reasonably intelligent and prudent person to believe that a particular other person has committed a specific crime

Question 34

reasonable suspicion

Answer 34

level of suspicion that would justify an officer in making further inquiry or in conducting further investigation

Question 35

good faith exception

Answer 35

exception to the exclusionary rule . law enforcement officers who conduct a search or who seize evidence on the basis of good faith and who later discover that a mistake was made mat still use the seized evidence in court

Question 36

plain view doctrine

Answer 36

ready visibility of objects that might be seized as evidence during a search by police in the absence of a search warrant

Question 37

landmark case

Answer 37

precedent setting court decision that produces substantial changes both in the understanding of the requirements of due process and in the practical day to day operations of the justice system

Question 38

emergency search

Answer 38

searched conducted without a warrant which is justified on the basis of some immediate and overriding need, such as public safety

Question 39

exclusionary rule

Answer 39

incriminating information must be seized according to constitutional specifications of due process or it will not be allowed as evidence in criminal trial

Question 40

fruit of poisonous tree doctrine

Answer 40

legal principle that excludes from introduction at trial any evidence later developed as a result of an illegal search

Question 41

Fourth Amendment

Answer 41

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no more it’s not issue, but upon probable cause , supported by oath or affirmation and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized

Question 42

Fifth Amendment

Answer 42

No person shall be able to answer for a capital or otherwise infamous crime unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury except in cases arising in the land or naval forces or in the militia when the actual services in time of war or public danger, nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb nor shall be compelled in any criminal cases to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law nor shall private property be taken for public use without compensation

Question 43

Sixth amendment

Answer 43

The accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district where the crime should have been committed , which district shall have been previously ascertained by law to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation, to be confronted with the witness against him, to have compulsory process for obtaining witness in his favor, and have assistance of counsel for his defense

Question 44

Eighth amendment

Answer 44

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel an unusual punishment inflicted

Question 45

14th amendment

Answer 45

Make due process binding on the states; that is, it requires individual states to respect the due process rights of US citizens who come under their jurisdiction

Question 46

Kansas City experiment

Answer 46

The first large-scale scientific study of law-enforcement practicing. Sponsored by the police foundation, it focused on the practices of preventive control.

Question 47

Ex post facto

Answer 47

Latin for “after-the-fact”. The constitution ex post facto laws which make acts committed before the laws in question were passed punishable as crimes

Question 48

Police community relations (PCR)

Answer 48

In the area police activity that recognize the need for the community and the police to work together effectively and is based on the notion that the police derive their legitimacy from the community they serve.

Question 49

Level of law-enforcement

Answer 49

Enforce the laws, apprehend offenders, prevent crime, preserve the peace and tranquility, provide the community and with needed enforcement-related services

Question 50

Durham rule

Answer 50

states a person is not criminally responsible for his or her behavior if a person’s legal actions were the result of some mental disease or defect

Question 51

Elements of a crime

Answer 51

The parts of a crime that the prosectuion must establish to obtain a conviction. If any one element of a crime cannot be established by the prosection, then a finding of not guilty must be entered as to that crime.