Download chapter3

Chapter 3
Inside Criminal Law
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Learning Outcomes
LO1: List the four written sources of
American criminal law.
LO2: Explain the differences between
crimes mala in se and mala
prohibita.
LO3: List and briefly define the most
important excuse defenses for
crimes.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Learning Outcomes
LO4: Describe the four most important
justification criminal defenses.
LO5: Distinguish between substantive
and procedural criminal law.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
LO1
List the four written sources of
American criminal law.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Written Sources of Criminal Law
• Constitutional Law The U.S. Constitution
and the various state
constitutions.
• Administrative Law –
Rules, orders, and
decisions of
regulatory agencies.
• Statutory Law - Laws
and ordinances
passed by Congress
and state
legislatures.
• Case Law – Rules of
law announced in
court decisions
(precedents).
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Written Sources of Criminal Law
© Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Written Sources of Criminal Law
• Supremacy Clause:
– Federal law is the supreme law of the land
and shall prevail in conflict with state
constitutions or statutes.
• Ballot initiative:
– Citizens of a state, by collecting enough
signatures, can force a public vote to change
state law.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Written Sources of Criminal Law
© Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Categories of Crime
• Capital offenses, maximum penalty
death
• 1st degree felony, maximum penalty
life imprisonment
• 2nd degree felonies, maximum of 10
years imprisonment
• 3rd degree felony, maximum of 5
years imprisonment
© 2015 Cengage Learning
LO2
Explain the differences
between crimes mala in se
and mala prohibita.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Elements of a Crime
• Mala in se:
– Criminal act if it is considered wrong even if
there were no law prohibiting it.
• Mala prohibita:
– Acts considered crimes only because they
have been codified as a statute, it is
prohibited and therefore wrong.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Elements of a Crime
• What are the Elements of a Crime?
– Corpus delicti
• Criminal Act - Actus reus
– A legal duty
– A plan or attempt
• Mental State - Mens rea
–
–
–
–
Negligence
Recklessness
Purpose
Knowledge
AP Photo/Brennan Linsley
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Elements of a Crime
• What are the Elements of a Crime?
– Corpus delicti
• Criminal Liability
– Strict Liability
– Accomplice Liability
– Felony-Murder
– Concurrence
– Causation
– Attendant Circumstances
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Elements of a Crime
© Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Elements of a Crime
• Hate Crime Laws
– Make the suspect’s motive an important attendant
circumstance.
• Harm
– Some crimes are categorized by the harm done
to the victim regardless of intent.
– Inchoate offense–acts that are deemed criminal if
they could do harm that laws try to prevent.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
CAREERPREP
Criminal Court Judge
Job Description:
• Preside over trials and hearings in federal, state, and local courts. Ensure that
all proceedings are fair and protect the legal rights of everyone involved.
• Rule on admissibility of evidence, monitor the testimony of witnesses, and
settle disputes between prosecutors and defense attorneys.
What kind of training is required?
• A law degree and several years of legal experience.
• Depending on the jurisdiction, judges are either appointed or elected.
Annual salary range?
$93,000–$162,000
© 2015 Cengage Learning
LO3
List and briefly define the
most important excuse
defenses for crimes.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Excuse Defenses
• Which Defenses are Available Under the
Law?
– Criminal responsibility and the law
•
•
•
•
Infancy
Insanity
Intoxication
Mistake
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Excuse Defenses
• The M’Naghten Rule:
– A person is legally insane and not criminally
responsible if at the time of the offense he/she
could not distinguish between right and
wrong.
• The ASI/MPC test:
– The defendant must lack substantial capacity
to appreciate the wrongfulness of their
conduct.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Excuse Defenses
• Irresistible-impulse test:
– Person may not be found insane if he/she
was aware that a criminal act was wrong
provided that some irresistible impulse
resulting from a mental deficiency drove
him/her to commit a crime.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
© Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.
Figure 3.4 Insanity Defense
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Excuse Defenses
• Which Defenses are Available Under the
Law?
– Criminal responsibility and the law
• Intoxication
–
–
Voluntary
Involuntary
– Mistake
•
•
Mistake of Law
Mistake of Fact
© 2015 Cengage Learning
LO4
Describe the four most
important justification
defenses.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Defenses
• Justification Criminal Defenses and the
Law
• Four conditions
– Duress
– Self-Defense
– Necessity
– Entrapment
Stephen M. Dowell-Pool/Getty Images
© 2015 Cengage Learning
LO5
Distinguish between substantive
and procedural criminal law.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Criminal Law
Substantive Criminal Law:
Procedural Criminal Law:
Laws that define the acts
that the government will
punish.
Procedures, drawn from
the Bill of Rights, that are
designed to protect the
constitutional rights of
individuals.
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Criminal Law
• How Do Criminal Procedures Protect
Our Constitutional Rights?
– The Bill of Rights
• Amending the Constitution
• Expanding the Constitution
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Criminal Law
• How Do Criminal Procedures Protect
Our Constitutional Rights?
– Fourth Amendment
– Fifth Amendment
– Sixth Amendment
– Eighth Amendment
– Fourteenth Amendment
© 2015 Cengage Learning
Criminal Law
• How Do Criminal Procedures Protect
Our Constitutional Rights?
– Due process clause
• Procedural due process
• Substantive due process
John Moore/Getty Images
© 2015 Cengage Learning