Intro to Criminal Justice

factual guilt

whether a defendant has committed a crime

legal guilt

whether guilt has been established through procedure/trial

civil law

regulates relationships/conflicts between people; private law

administrative law

type of public law everywhere

criminal law

public law designed to prevent/enforce certain types of behaviors/punish offenders

what parties are involved in civil law

private individuals

civil law: direction

horizontal

showing of state of mind in civil law

not required

showing of state of mind in criminal law

required

what parties are involved in criminal law

state/individual

criminal law: direction

vertical

what does a civil law case usually result in?

trial/settlement

what does a criminal law case usually result in?

trial/plea bargain

standard of proof in civil law

preponderance of evidence (more likely than not)

standard of proof in criminal law

beyond a reasonable doubt

result in civil law

liability to pay damages etc.

result in criminal law

guilt that results in a sentence

double jeopardy

prohibition of prosecuting someone for the same crime 2x in the same jurisdiction; applies only to criminal trials

federalism

a system of government in which power is divided between a central (national) gov. and regional (state) govts

jurisdiction

who has the ability to decide a case

how does common law tradition develop?

through judicial precedent aka case law

sources of law

a) constitution

b) statutes

c) case law

statutes

written law by legislature; law enacted by legislature which becomes binding over jurisdiction

Nature of Punishment

1. incapacitation (physically can't commit crime)

2. retribution (eye 4 eye)

3. rehabilitation (lead the life of a productive member of society)

4. deterrence (punishing others so more people are deterred from committing a crime)

goals of criminal justice

1. doing justice

2. controlling crime

3. preventing crime

doing justice (characteristics of)

accountability; protection of rights; fairness, impartiality, equality

utilitarian/consequentialist approach to justice

*most good for most people

categorical/value approach

*a life is a life is a life

*can't put a value on life

*morality based on freedom/autonomy

*don't make someone a means to your ends

who supports the categorical/value approach?

Immanuel Kant

what purpose of punishment does Immanuel Kant favor?

retribution

R v Dudle & Stephens (1884)

lifeboat; necessity is not a defense to a charge of murder

reactive approach to controlling crime

we start acting as a system after something bad happens: impact--> there's no good evidence that deterrence works

proactive approach to controlling crime

seeks to deter/avoid crime before it occurs

*begins in early childhood, being part of a community

two parts to preventing crime

proactive approach; eliminating causes of crime

legal system

operating set of interdependent institutions/actors, procedures, and laws/rules directed toward gaining criminal justice

crime control model

metaphor: assembly line

*high rate of apprehension/convicting

*screening out people early on (officers have lots of discretion)

---> focus on factual guilt

---> develop a "presumption of guilt"

---> focus on "processing the guilty and fact-finding in early stages

---> subsequent stages are (relatively) unimportant and should be truncated

*informal

*seeks finality

*validating authority: legislature

*few occasions for challenge; discourage appeals

presumption of guilt

I think that they committed the crime; working hypothesis, personal

presumption of innocence

normative/legal presumption; conviction by judge/jury

due process

metaphor: obstacle course

*value individual rights, freedom, and liberty

*assumption: power always subject to abuse

*protects due process

*procedural law

*presumption of innocence

*method: formality

what approach to the criminal justice system are miranda warnings?

due process

what approach to the criminal justice system are mandatory minimum sentences?

crime control

what approach to the criminal justice system is when the suspect pleads guilty?

crime control

what approach to the criminal justice system are three strikes laws?

crime control

what approach to the criminal justice system are mandatory appeals for death row inmates?

due process

what approach to the criminal justice system are public defense attorneys?

due process

mandatory arrest laws

you must make an arrest ex: in WI a domestic abuse call

deviance

conduct or behavior embarrassing or annoying to people in society ex: cutting in line etc...; not necessarily a crime

theft vs fraud

fraud usually has an element of deception, also usually a voluntary exchange

when does a behavior become a crime (legally)

when a person acts, fails to act, attempts to act, or agrees to act in a way that is a violation of a criminal law without defense or jurisdiction

penal code

criminal statues are combined into this

substantive criminal law

defines the behavior a law prohibits

procedural criminal law

rules governing how officials/police, courts, corrections oversee criminal law

*legal guilt is mainly a question of this

when does an act become a crime?

when it is previously defined by the legislature

delicta mala in se

acts inherently eval or bad (i.e. natural law) ex: rape, murder, theft ect.

delicate mala prohibita

acts evil or bad only because gov. has labeled them so i.e. "sociological" crimes or device

*****similarities between Lori Drew case and Michelle Lee

speech, indirect causation

*****differences between Lori Drew case and Michelle Lee

??? find them out

what defines whether something is a misdemeanor or a felony?

statues

characteristics of criminal law

1. politically (only rules made by state or federal government are crimes)

2. specificity (everybody needs to know what they must not do; law has to give "fair warning"

3. uniformity (evenhanded justice without respect to persons and their social status)

4. penal sanction (must be a threat of punishment)

smith v USA

is trading a firearm for drugs "using" the firearm during and in relation to drug trafficking?

verdict: smith's handling falls squarely within the everyday meaning of "use"

penal sanctions

law without punishment is impotent (lex imperfecta); sanctions does not always mean punishment

elements of the crime

2. act with 2. concurrence of 3. mens rea --> 4. causation 5. harm

mens rea

state of mind

actus reus

*human conduct ex: speech (attempt; failure to act; and act)

*voluntariness (on brain level)

*doing vs being ex: doing drugs is a crime but being addicted is not

four levels of mens rea (pretty subjective part of criminal justice system)

1. purposeful (intentional)---> pretty clear cut

2. Knowing (stress on knowing, less on purpose i.e. you know the harm could happen)

3. reckless (aware of risk of harm)

4. neglegent (should have known better) least severe ex: you're supposed to salt your sidewalk, you don't and someone breaks a leg

cases where mens rea does NOT need to be proven

strict liability cases

ex: statutory rape; most environmental crimes

why do we have strict liability cases?

to protect vulnerable populations

the free will dilemma

*blame worthiness (wrong question to ask)

*human behavior can not be operated by human biology

*rehab must be customized

concurrence

intent @ the time of act

esp matters in some states where they have the death penalty

causation

idea that there's a chain of causation and you can't have an intervening cause

"but for"

but for the actor's conduct, the harm would not have occurred

side note: not given when there is no scientific proof for the connection

harm

loss, disadvantage, or injury to a victim

defense

a factor that justifies or excuses the actor's responsibility; consists of evidence of an excuse or justification to show defendant can not be liable

alibi (factual)

"a different place"

affermative defences

a defendant should not be found guilty bc extenuating circumstances

*many negate mens rea

two types of affirmative defense

justification, excuse

burden of proof

when defendant offers a defense, state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that facts supporting defense do not exist

justification defense

justifies the action itself

self defense

*level of threat: imminent death or great bodily harm

*degree of force: necessary and reasonable

*retreat (stand your ground)

*provocation

crimes

actions that violate laws defining which social harmful behaviors will be subject to the government's power to impose punishments

mala in se

offenses that are wrong by their very nature

mala prohibita

offenses prohibited by law but not necessarily wrong in themselves

evidence-based practices

policies developed through guidance from research studies that demonstrate which approaches are most useful and cost-effective for advancing desired goals

exchange

a mutual transfer of resources; a balance of benefits and deficits that flow from behavior based decisions about the values and costs of alternative courses of action

plea bargain

a defendant's plea of guilty to a criminal change with reasonable expectation of receiving some consideration from the state for doing so, usually a reduction of the charge. The defendant's ultimate goal is a penalty lighter than the one formally warranted by the charged offense

filtering process

a screening operation; a process by which criminal justice officials screen out some creases while advancing others to the next level of decision making

duel court system

a system consisting of a separate judicial system for each state in addition to a national system. Each case is tried in a court of the same jurisdiction as that of the law or laws broken

adjudication

the process of determining whether the defendant is guilty

information

a document charging an individual with a specific crime. It is prepared by a prosecuting attorney and presented to a court at a preliminary hearing

indictment

a document returned by a grand jury as a "true bill" charging an individual with a specific crime on the basis of a determination of probable cause as presented by a prosecuting attorney

disparity

a difference between groups that may be explained either by legitimate factors or by discrimination

biological theory of criminality

genetic, biochemical, or neurological defects case some people to commit crime

physiological theory of criminality

personality and learning factors cause some people to commit crime

social structure theory of criminality

crime is the result of underlying social condition such as poverty, inequality, and unemployment

social process theory of criminality

crime is normal learned behavior an dis subject to heir social control or labeling effects

critical theory of criminality

criminal definitions and punishments are used by some groups to control other groups

life course theory of criminality

offenders have criminal careers that often begin with pathways into youth crime but can change and end though turning points in life

substantive criminal law

law that defines acts that are subject to punishment and specifies the punishments to such offenses

felonies

serious crimes usually carrying a penalty of death or of incarceration for more than one year in prison

misdemeanors

offenses less serious than felonies an usually punishable by incarceration of no more than one year in jail, or by probation or intermediate sanctions