cj exam 1

procedural law

rights that one has during the legal process (from the time one is suspected through punishment)

civil law

disputes between 2 or more parties (state vs individuals or corporations, vise versa) that caused damage to the people/property of the state

ex.) family law, contract law (adoption, divorce) class action lawsuits

-burden of proof is preponderance of the evidence(more than 50%)

crimnal law

harms caused to the state, charges brought by the state against a person, group, or organization

-burden of proof is beyond reasonable doubt

(harmed party is always the state)

felonies

most serious crimes punishable by fines, imprisonment, and even death sentence

Mala in se

inhertely wrong

misdemeanors

less serious crimes, punishable by short jail term(less than 1 year), fine, community service

Mala prohibitum

an act that is wrong because it is prohibited by law

violations

violations of local ordinances, like traffic violation, health code, noise.. punishable by fines, warnings, citations

Legality

must be a written law prior to the act

actus reus (guilty act)

acts of commission-doing something illegal(commit a crime)

acts of omission-not doing something your obligated to do(not feeding dog/child)

mens rea (guilty mind)

intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, negligently (reckless driving, speeding, dealing drugs)

concurrence of the mind and body

must be an act and intent at the same time, accident is not with intent

harm

damage to a person, property, the state, or public morality (peeing, flashing)

causation

a traceable relationship between act and the harm (knew about it and still did)

criminal defenses

-ignorance or mistake (fake ID)

-intoxication (drugged, hazed)

-duress (force)

-necessity

-entrapment

-insanity

strict liability crimes

Illegal acts whose elements do not contain the need for intent, or mens rea; usually, an act that endangers the public welfare, such as illegal dumping of toxic wastes.

stare decisis

courts must follow past rulings when deciding similar criminal cases