Criminal Law: Key Terms (Chapter 3) – Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and concepts from The Nature and Purpose of Law, Crime, and Defenses in Chapter 3.

Law

A rule of conduct, typically enacted as a statute, that proscribes or mandates certain behavior.

Statutory law

Law on the books; written or codified law resulting from legislative action.

Penal code

The written form of the criminal law.

Case law

Law resulting from judicial decisions.

Common law

Traditional body of law originating from usage and custom rather than written statutes.

Substantive criminal law

The part of the law that defines crimes and specifies punishments.

Procedural law

The part of the law that outlines methods to enforce substantive law and protects suspects' rights.

Criminal law (penal law)

Rules defining offenses against the public and punishment for those offenses; includes statutory and case law.

Civil law

Governs relationships between private parties; typically seeks remedies like damages rather than punishment.

Tort

A civil wrong causing harm or injury for which the law provides a remedy.

Administrative law

Regulations that control activities of industries, businesses, and individuals; may overlap with criminal law.

Case law (precedent)

Legal principles derived from judicial decisions that guide future cases.

Stare decisis

Principle that courts should follow earlier decisions and higher court rulings in similar cases.

Felonies

Criminal offenses punishable by death or at least one year in prison; e.g., murder, rape, burglary.

Misdemeanors

Crimes punishable by up to about one year in a local confinement facility.

Infractions

Minor violations usually fined and not resulting in imprisonment.

Treason

Wrongdoing that harms the United States or aids foreign governments.

Espionage

Gathering or transmitting national defense information that benefits enemies; may be committed by non-citizens.

Inchoate offenses

Incomplete offenses, acts toward the commission of a crime, such as conspiracies or attempts.

Actus reus

The ‘guilty act’; a voluntary physical act or omission that breaches the law.

Mens rea

The ‘guilty mind’; the defendant’s state of mind at the time of the crime.

Concurrence

The requirement that actus reus and mens rea occur together for a crime to have occurred.

Purposeful (intentional)

A state of mind where the actor aims to achieve a goal.

Knowing

Action done with awareness of its criminal nature or certain consequences.

Reckless

Conduct that creates a substantial risk of harm and shows indifference to harm.

Negligent

Failure to reasonably perceive substantial risks that could cause harm.

Motive

Reason for committing a crime; not an essential element of crime.

Strict liability

Crimes that do not require mens rea; liability without fault, often for regulatory offenses.

Corpus delicti

The body of the crime; the facts proving a crime occurred, including a result and a responsible actor.

Elements of a crime

The essential features defined by law that must be proven for a conviction (e.g., unlawful killing, intentionality, planning in first-degree murder).

First-degree murder elements

Unlawful killing of a human being, intentionally, with planning (malice aforethought).

Alibi

A defense asserting the defendant was elsewhere when the crime occurred.

Justification defenses

Defenses claiming the act was necessary or reasonable under the circumstances (e.g., self-defense, defense of others, defense of home, necessity, consent).

Excuses defenses

Defenses arguing the defendant was not morally or legally responsible (e.g., duress, age, mistake, involuntary intoxication, unconsciousness, provocation, insanity, diminished capacity, mental incompetence).

Procedural defenses

Challenges based on procedural aspects of the justice process (e.g., entrapment, double jeopardy, collateral estoppel, selective prosecution, speedy trial, prosecutorial misconduct, police fraud).

Self-defense

Justification that force was necessary to prevent imminent harm; force must be reasonable and proportionate.

Defense of others

Extends the right of self-defense to protecting another person under similar conditions.

Defense of home and property

Right to use reasonable force to protect one’s home and property; castle doctrine allows no duty to retreat in the home.

Necessity (necessity defense)

Action that would be unlawful under normal circumstances but is justified to prevent greater harm.

Consent defense

Harm caused with the injured party’s permission may excuse liability in some cases.

Resisting unlawful arrest

Justification or defense in some jurisdictions when force is used against unlawful arrest or excessive force by police.

Duress (excuse)

Being compelled to commit a crime due to unlawful threat or coercion.

Mistake of law/fact

Mistake of fact can be a defense; mistake of law is generally not a defense.

Involuntary intoxication

Being involuntarily under the influence can be a defense; voluntary intoxication is usually not.

Insanity defenses

Trial defenses claiming mental illness or incapacity; includes several tests (M’Naghten, Irresistible Impulse, Durham, Substantial-Capacity).

M’Naghten Rule

Defendant did not know what they were doing or that it was wrong.

Irresistible Impulse

Defendant could not control their actions despite knowing right from wrong.

Durham Rule

Criminality ruled out if actions resulted from mental disease or defect.

Substantial-Cacity Test

Defendant lacked the mental capacity to understand wrongfulness or conform conduct to law.

GBMI (Guilty but mentally ill)

Verdict indicating guilt with a finding of mental illness; often leads to prison plus psychiatric treatment.

Temporary insanity

Insanity claimed only at the time of the crime.

Insanity Defense Reform Act (1984)

Federal standard placing the burden of proving insanity on the defendant and adopting a strict definition of insanity.

Mental incompetence

Inability to understand the proceedings or assist in defense before trial.

Entrapment

Procedural defense where law enforcement induced the defendant to commit a crime that would not have occurred otherwise.

Double jeopardy

Cannot be tried twice for the same offense; exceptions exist (trial errors, civil vs. criminal).

Collateral estoppel

Facts decided by a valid judgment cannot be relitigated.

Selective prosecution

Defense based on unequal application of laws; potential Fourth Amendment 14th Amendment concerns.

Speedy trial right

6th Amendment guarantee; delays must be justified and timely; defense can be released if violated.

Prosecutorial misconduct

Government actions that give an unfair advantage or prejudice the defendant.

Police fraud defenses

Defenses alleging planted evidence or false arrests by police.