unit 3: crimnal law Flashcards by rss hel tu

What is criminology?

scientific study of crime

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What are the 4 areas of criminology?

nature + extent (how much, what types)
causes of crime (why some commit, why in some areas there is crime)
consequences of crime (injures, physiological, communities affected)
reactions to crime (respocne from police, court sentences, types)
prevention (research of punishment)

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here are four conditions that must exist for an act or omission to be considered a crime:

the act is considered wrong by society
the act causes harm to society
the harm must be serious
the remedy is handed by the criminal justice system

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The Criminal Code of Canada is considered a

federal state

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To convict someone in Canada of a crime the Crown must prove

actus reus & mens rea

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actus reus

“the guilty act” demonstrates a voluntary action, omission, or state of being that is prohibited by law

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mens rea

“the guilty mind” demonstrate that the act was intentional, knowing negligent reckless or willfully blind

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motive

is the reason a person commits a crime and it is not one of the necessary elements for the Crown to prove in order to convict the accused.

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knowledge

is the reason a person commits a crime and it is not one of the necessary elements for the Crown to prove in order to convict the accused.

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negligence

is when the accused failed to take precaution that a reasonable person would avoid harming another. The Crown can also show mens rea existed by proving the accused showed negligence.

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criminal negligence

want or reckless disregard for the life or safety of others

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Mens rea can also be proved by demonstrating a person’s which means taking an unjustifiable risk that a reasonable person would not take. An example would be driving a car without your prescription glasses.

recklessness

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Strict liability offences are less serious and do not require the Crown to show mens rea BUT the accused can offer the defence of

due diligence

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Absolute liability offences have no defence; just the fact that the Crown proved they took place means the accused was guilty.

yeahh

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perpetrator

Crimes are usually not the work of a single person. The person who actually commits the offence

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co-perptrator

When more than one person is directly involved in a crime.
In each case the person has to be actually present at the scene of the crime

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party to an offence

Persons who are not directly involved but can be considered partly responsible. .
They are linked because they somehow aided the perpetrator.

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aider

helps the perpetrator but does not have to be present when the offence is committed.

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abettor

encourages the perpetrator without actually providing physical assistance.

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conselour

involves advising, recommending or persuading another person to commit a crime.

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accessory after the fact

they received, comforted, or assisted someone in escaping from the police.

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party to common intention

If several people set out to commit a crime and end up committing additional crimes they can be found guilty of

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attempt

the person intended to carry out a crime but failed to do so for some reason

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conspiracy

is an agreement between 2 or more people to perform an illegal act. It doesn’t matter whether the act is actually carried out.

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A person accused of an absolute liability offence can use the defence of due diligence.

false

A quasi-criminal offence is usually punishable by a lengthy prison sentence.

false, punishable by fine

Actus reus is defined as a guilty act.

true

Recklessness is a legal term that refers only to motor vehicle offences.

False

With respect to mens rea, motive is the same as intent.

False

The perpetrator is the person who actually commits a particular crime.

True

Aiding and abetting are basically the same.

False

To prove a person guilty of conspiracy, the Crown must show that the person agreed to commit a particular crime.

True

To find someone guilty of counselling to commit a crime, that person must be present when the crime is committed.

False

General intent means someone commits one wrongful act for the sake of accomplishing another.

False

A regulatory law is usually one that has been passed to protect the public welfare.

true

what are the courts divived into

federal and provincial governments.

In Ontario, the Provincial Court is divided into 4 divisions:

criminal, youth, family and small claims.

Summary offences

that are appealed in the provincial courts will be heard by a single judge

in**dic**table offences

that are appealed will be heard by a panel of 3 or 5 judges.

The highest level of provincial courts is the

Superior Court of the Province

The Supreme Court of Canada is the

highest court of appeal

The Federal government may also ask the Supreme Court to rule on

constitutional issues.

The two fundamental principles of the criminal justice system are:

- Innocent until proven guilty - Guilt proven beyond a reasonable doubt

judge

makes decisions on admissibility of evidence, controls the events in the courtroom, and interprets law.

justice of peace

has less authority than a judge but performs many functions in the preliminary stages of a case.

jury

is the trier of the facts of the case.

accused

is the person charged with a crime.

Duty Counsel

is a lawyer hired by the legal aid system to provide free legal advice.

Defence counsel

is the lawyer who represents the interest of the accused and who tries to show that reasonable doubt of the defendant’s guilt exists.

Crown

attorney is the lawyer who represents the government’s interest.

court clerk

assists the judge by keeping a record of exhibits and by administering oaths.

court reporter

records verbatim everything that is said during a trial. A typed copy of this is called a transcript.

court security officer

handles the accused in custody and maintains security in the courtroom.

sheriff

is responsible for jury management

bailiff

assists the sheriff.

Witnesses

give evidence under oath concerning their knowledge of the crime.

jury

is a group of 12 people chosen from a voter’s list of ordinary citizens in the community. The jury deliberates to consider all the evidence before reaching a decision which must be unanimous, meaning they all must agree on the guilt or innocence of the accused.

Challenge for Cause

which means that a reason for being excused must be given, and

Peremptory Challenge

where no reason needs to be provided.

burden of proof

is an obligation that rests squarely on the Crown.

forperson

The first thing the judge will ask the jury is to select a foreperson who will be the jury’s spokesperson.

dirctet examination

the first examination of a witness is called

probative value

meaning it makes certain facts about the probable guilt or innocence of the accused.

direct evidence

and the most common is an eyewitness account of the crime.

Circumstantial evidence

Circumstantial evidence is **indirect evidence** that may lead to a reasonable inference of the defendant’s guilt. Circumstantial evidence is not always allowed; there must be a strong connection between the evidence and the inference of guilt for it to be allowed.

Character evidence

Character evidence is about the type of person that would or would not commit the crime. Defence counsel will usually introduce evidence to show the good character of the accused to counter this evidence from the Crown.

Electronic surveillance

Electronic surveillance is using devices to overhear or record communication between people

Wiretapping

Wiretapping is the interception of communication between people at some distance from the targets.

Bugging

Bugging is the recording of oral communication between people. All this evidence is only admissible in court if it was authorized by a judge beforehand.

A polygraph

A polygraph is commonly called a lie detector machine. It measures changes in pulse, respiration and blood pressure which can be interpreted by a skillful examiner as to whether the person being tested is telling the truth.

voire dire

A mini trial to determine the admissibility of evidence is called a voire dire. A common reason for this mini trial is to determine whether the confession of the accused was given voluntarily.

right to appeal

the right to appeal is an important safeguard in an adversarial system of justice.

Legal authority for administering the criminal justice system is the responsibility of the ____________________ government and the ____________________ government.

fed and pro

The punishment for a quasi-criminal offence is usually a ____________________.

fine

The two essential elements of a crime are ____________________ and ____________________.

mens and actus rea

Failure to do something that in law is your duty to do is called an act of ____________________.

omisson

Being in possession of stolen property is an offence for which the wrongful act is ____________________.

a state of being

The reason a person commits a crime is referred to as the _________________

motive

In some cases, the Crown can establish mens rea by showing that the accused had ____________________ of certain facts.

knowledge

A defence available to an accused charged with a strict liability offence is ____________________.

due dillacege

Criminal attempt and conspiracy are two types of ____________________ crimes

incomplete

Before Confederation in 1867, provinces were responsible for creating their own criminal laws.

True

Section 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867 granted the federal government the power to exercise the legal authority to make criminal laws for Canada.

fasle

The Criminal Code of Canada has been amended almost every year.

TRUE

There has never been a complete revision of the Criminal Code of Canada since its passage in 1892.

TRUE

The Crown must always prove both actus reus and mens rea in order to secure a conviction.

FALSE

For strict liability offences, there is no possible defence.

FALSE

Counselling someone to commit a crime occurs when someone stops short of providing physical assistance, but encourages the perpetrator to do it.

FALSE

Two or more people can be charged with conspiring to commit a crime even if they later change their minds and do not actually carry through with their plans.

TRUE

The federal level of government enacts quasi-criminal legislation

FALSE

The provincial court system handles the bulk of criminal prosecutions in each province.

TRUE

Voluntary action is an essential component of actus reus.

TRUE

under federal jurisdiction:

* Supreme Court of Canada (the country’s highest court) * the Federal Court of Canada * Tax Court of Canada

under provincial jurisdiction (and divided into criminal, civil, and family courts):

* provincial courts * superior courts of the province

The ____________________ level of government is responsible for formulating criminal law and procedure.

FED

Provincial courts are constituted under provincial statutes with judges appointed by the ____________________ government.

PROVINCAL

In provincial court, trials are conducted by a judge alone, without a(n) ____________________

JURY

A(n) ____________________ is an application to a higher court to review the decision of a lower court.

APPEAL

First Nations judicial proceedings that are equivalent to sentencing hearings are referred to as ____________________.

aboriginal sentencing circles

In a jury trial, the Judge is the trier of ____________________, and the jury is the trier of ____________________.

law, fact

The person charged with a crime is called the ____________________ or the ____________________, and may initially be represented by a lawyer called a ____________________, who can give free legal advice to a person just arrested.

accused, defeant, duty counsel

The lawyer representing the interests of someone charged with an offence is called ____________________, and the lawyer representing the government and the interests of society is referred to as the ____________________.

defence counsel, crown counsel or prosecutor

A witness can be compelled to appear in court and give evidence under a court order known as a ____________________.

subpoena

45. The right of the Crown or the defence to exclude someone from jury duty without giving a reason is called a ____________________.

peremptory challange

The framework of the Canadian court system is derived from English common law.

true

In provincial court, cases are tried by judge and jury.

The Supreme Court of Canada is strictly an appeal court—it has no trial division.

In Canada's criminal justice system, if there is any doubt about the defendant's guilt, the accused must be acquitted.

The jury decides the verdict based on the Judge's instructions, and on evidence and facts presented throughout the trial. This information guides them in deciding the appropriate sentence.

A jury decision is based on a majority of the jurors’ agreeing on guilt or innocence.

Any person selected for jury duty must perform this responsibility as a civic duty.

Under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which protects society and the individual, a defendant can be ordered to testify at his own trial.

A lawyer may ask a witness only about what the witness saw or experienced first-hand.

Evidence obtained by wiretapping and bugging is inadmissible because it invades a person's privacy, which is protected under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

stages in a crimatal trail

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