Ch.3 criminal justice

Rule of law

all individuals, institutions, and governments are subject to and must obey the law.

• Laws are clear, public, and stable, allowing people to understand and anticipate legal consequences.

• Laws are applied equally, preventing arbitrary or discriminatory enforcement.

• Legal processes protect fundamental rights and provide mechanisms for accountability and redress.

Early legal codes

Ancient Babylon: the code of Hammurabi is the oldest set of unwritten laws discovered.

Principle: eye for an eye

Magna carta

established written limits on royal power

core principles: the rule of law, due process, and limits on sovereign power

Stare decisis

courts follow previous judicial decisions when ruling on similar issues/ often called judiciary law or precedent

Statute

a formal, written law enacted by a legislative body

penal codes

comprehensive statutes that define criminal offenses and prescribe the corresponding punishments within a jurisdiction

tort law

covers personal wrongs and damages and includes libel, slander, assault, trespasses, and negligence

double jeopardy

a person cannot be tried twice for the same crime after a conviction

substantive law

defines what conduct is criminal

determines guilty or innocent

procedural law

sets rules for how the criminal processes conducted

a procedural error can dismiss a case regardless of guilt

inchoate offenses

minor infractions, usually result in tickets

inchoate crimes

attempt: takes substantial steps toward completing a crime, even if the crime wasn’t finished

conspiracy: two or more people agree to commit a crime and take an overt act toward it

solicitation: encouraging another person to commit a crime

actus reus (guilty act)

the physical conduct

mens rea (guilty mind)

the intent or knowledge that the act is wrong

concurrence

the act and the mental stae must occur together

statutory crimes

the law defines the prohibited conduct regardless of intent