Week #1 (test 1) Flashcards
Define Deviance (primary and secondary)?
Deviance = non-conformity to a given set of norms that are accepted by a significant number of people in a society
> not necessarily criminal (ex. innovators are often defiant)
primary = a deviant act that remains marginal to identity (ex. stealing a slurpee)
secondary = when a label is applied, becoming identity (ex. becoming a thief)
What are sanctions?
Any reaction that promotes conformity and discourages non-conformity to a norm
- includes positive rewards and negative punishment
- can be informal and formal
Outline the differences between law and justice
law: refers to sets of formal rules enforced by a government agency
- order and regulate behaviour
- subject to enactment, repeal, modification
- concrete, situated
*laws answer to the principle of justice and try to express something that is just
Justice: a concept based on ideals of fairness and morality
- equitable outcomes
- universal, normic, ordinate
- abstract, transcendent
*ensuring justice might require deviating from strict legal procedures
How do we define a crime?
What are the four conditions to be considered culpable?
It is an act or omission prohibited by criminal law, which is punishable
- requires and act and intent
- omissions include a failure to give assistance, to report, or take reasonable precautions (ex. criminal negligence) (intent is harder to demonstrate with an omission)
Culpable:
- legally responsible
- acting with intent
- acting without legal justification
- acting in violation of criminal law
What is meant by the Social Construction of Crime
What is mala prohibita and mala in se
- crimes are not inherently criminal, they are criminal because of society’s response to the behaviour
- behaviours can be deemed criminal in one society but revered in another or at a different time
- speaks to the difference between mala prohibita (wrong because it is prohibited) vs. mala in se (wrong in itself)
- basically, we make our reality and build systems of law *not ALL random and relative though - some laws point to a higher idea of justice like protection of life and property
What are moral entrepreneurs?
Individuals or groups who lobby for action against behaviours, advocate for legislative amendments, police mobilization, etc.
What years were the Cannabis Act (what was part of the reasons for the Cannabis Act), the Canada Temperance Act, and the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act?
Cannabis Act = 2018
> majority of the population was consuming it, so how can we say this is a deviant criminal act with laws against it when the behaviour was actually becoming the norm
Canada Temperance Act = 1918-1920
Prostitution of Communities and Exploited Persons Act = 2013
When was MAID legislation passed in Canada?
What is it?
2015-2016 and eligibility was expanded in 2021
MAID = allowing physicians to assist in the consensual death of another person
- MAID deaths have shot up considerably since 2016
- highest MAID usage in Quebec and BC
- lower rates in the prairies and Maritime provinces
What forces potentially affect MAID usage?
- variable application of policies
- awareness
- integration
- autonomy (self-determination)
- religious alignment or opposition
- socio economic status
Define substantive and procedural canadian law
substantive: defines rights and obligations (ex. civil and criminal code)
procedural: legal processes that enforce the rights defined in substantive law (ex. constitutional, administrative, criminal)
The Canadian legal system is a ________ _____ system
common law
(except Quebec)
- it was imported to Canada in the 17th and 18th centuries
What does stare decisis mean? What kind of law is this?
What does Quebec use?
It is the principle whereby higher courts set precedents that lower courts follow - “to stand by what was decided”
Statute law:
- exists in both civil and criminal domains, appearing in the statutes themselves and in judicial precedent
- courts are organized as a hierarchy, with the SCC at the top
- judges are guided by past decisions - rules of precedent through case law
- precedent manages the imprecision in law by clarifying and guiding application
Quebec uses civil (Napoleonic) codes or statements of rules, followed by court decisions
What is the criminal law and civil law
Criminal law (aka public law) = body of rules and statutes that define prohibited conduct because it threatens/harm public safety and welfare
> establishes punishment and available penalties
> establishes rules that police and judges must follow
> contains substantive and procedural aspects (canada)
Civil law (aka private law) = regulates relationships among individuals
What is the Criminal Code (when was it made and how did it come into being)
What did the first criminal code include?
It is federal legislation that defines criminal law and procedures for the administration of justice
> first complete criminal code produced in 1892 under Sir John Thompson (minister of justice and later Canada’s fourth prime minister)
> Laws were previously defined at the provincial level
Confederation in 1867 resulted in a single criminal code : Prime Minister John A. Macdonald insisted on a single criminal law for the whole country
Included:
–> state responsible for proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt
–> abolished death penalty for most offences
–> early release mechanisms (like probation)
Why was the criminal code needed / what was the intended purpose?
- need for accessible laws in plain language
- standardize definitions - resolve inconsistencies across provinces
- provide clear grounds for prosecution
- incorporated the values and principles of British common law
- shaping Canadian identity - unification and nationalism
- address pressing social issues like poverty
- reduce the risk of personal retaliation and controlling vengeance
- impose order, social control, and deterrence
- protect group interests
- a ‘living document’ - subject to revision and growth
*conflict perspective might say the purpose is to economically benefit certain groups
Explain the Rule of Law
- what was it based on
Means that no one is above the law, which has power in itself - all are bound and protected by law, equally enforced and standardized
- based on the English Magna Carta (1215) - set the principle that the king and his government weren’t above the law –> landowners and the king opposed the magna carta
- Separation of powers - Legislative (Senate, HOC), Executive (PM, Cabinet), Judicial (SCC and lower courts)
*key part of the foundation of the CJS
What is the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- guarantees freedoms and rights (legal and equality) for citizens, including those accused, unless demonstrably justified
> conscience, religion, thought, belief, expression, peaceful assembly, association, etc. - primary law of the land (influenced by the rule of law and Magna Carta)
*key part of the foundation of the CJS
What are the key principles of the Rule of Law?
- presumption of innocence
- action and intention as necessary ingredients
- ignorance of the law is no excuse > law is known and accessible
- no one is compelled to incriminate themselves - silence is an option in an adversarial system
- can’t be tried twice for the same offence unless the crown successfully appeals
- in criminal matters, the state (prosecutor) must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt
- in civil matters, liability is established on the balance of probabilities (reasonable belief)
- open, independent, and impartial judiciary
- no retrospective laws should be made
- laws are made in an open and transparent way by the people
- government agencies to behave as model litigants
- fair and prompt trials
- separation of powers between legislature, executive, and judiciary
- people can only be punished in accordance with the law
- the law and its administration are subject to open and free criticism
- young persons (12-17) are subject to the criminal code, which is administered through a separate youth justice system
What are some conflicting questions we can address/ask about the CJS?
Process and performance > do actors follow and administer documented procedures faithfully?
Reactive or Proactive? > can the system apply prevention and problem-solving
- are we asking the system to do too much?
Does the CJS address the causes of crime? > can private partnerships or other service providers help?
Failure and Success? > is the CJS always failing
What is the problem with the JS being an evidence-based system
Evidence takes time to accumulate and things change
What are examples of positive sanctions in the justice system?
- getting pulled over for good driving
- merits on driving licence
- good behaviour in correction = serve less time
What are some symbolisms from the Lady justice?
- blindfolded = impartial/subjectivity
- doubled edged-sword = truth
- scale = trying to find balance and the fairest outcome
Why are there differences in MAID across provinces? (class examples)
- population and demographic differences
- provincial medical culture - how MAID is communicated
- religion (but Quebec ranks highest in religiosity?)
- poverty / mental health
- accessibility
- birth rate declining - less children to take care of elderly
- interpersonal connection and relationships (high density = low belonging?)
> goffman –> in urban centres you have to show the right amount of inattention to the people around you (civil inattention)
critical thinking also called _______ thinking
thorough
