quiz cj

Criminal Law:

Applies to Criminal matters such as robbery or homicide.

Civil Law:

Applies to Civil matters, such as money owed, property disputes, custody arrangements.

In Criminal matters, the prosecutor acts on?

the behalf of the people. (U.S. vs. John Doe)

In Civil matters there is?

a plaintiff and a defendant.

The plaintiff

is the party suing.

The defendant

is defending against the suit.(Jones et al. vs. City of Hammond).

In criminal matters

the burden of proof must be beyond reasonable doubt.

In civil cases, the burden of proof is?

its less than criminal matters. Instead, its preponderance of evidence.

In civil matters, the burden is referred to as

“50% plus a feather”. If the civil matter juror feels that a defendant is “probably guilty” then that’s likely enough to reward damages.

Penalty for Criminal Matters:

May result in incarceration. Community supervision, or a fine.

Penalty for Civil Matters:

The defendant has to pay. It may be monetary or a change in practices. (If they don’t pay, they could be held in contempt, which would be a criminal matter)

Intent:

what the person is seeking to do and is connected to a purpose of goal.

Motive:

reason why someone did something.

Mens Rea:

Literally means “guilty mind” in Latin.

Examples: Willfully, maliciously, intentionally.

Less serious: Negligently, recklessly, without due causation.

Actus Rea:

Means “the act itself”

Sometimes failing to act can be criminal (failing to take care of family, pay taxes), but not all the time.

Concurrence:

When both Mens and Actus Rea exist and have been proven, this is what the prosecutor aims for when attempting to prove a defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Legal Causation:

This concept means that an outcome must be tied to an action (or lack thereof for negligence). It sounds simple but is quite complex. Casaution or Cause in Fact

Crime against persons are what most people consider

“violent crime” or “street crime”, such as certain homicides, sexual assault, robberies, and aggravated assaults.

Homicide:

The taking of a human life—is the most serious act one can perpetrate against another person.

Justifiable Homicide:

self-defense, legal state or federal accusations, acts of war, or when police officer uses lawful lethal force.

Excusable Homicide:

killings that are wholly accidental, such as when a person who’s driving the speed limit and paying full attention hits a small child who runs into the street from behind a large car, where no reasonable person could have known that such risk was possible or preventable.

First degree murder:

Premeditated, with malice aforethought.

Second degree murder:

Intentional but not premeditated.

Voluntary Manslaughter:

Committed in the “heat of passion”, being adequately provoked and not having time to “cool off” before the act.

Involuntary Manslaughter:

Unintentional/accidental, causing of death while breaking the law (typically a misdemeanor criminal law) or being negligent.

Felony/First Degree Murder:

Unintentionally casing a death while intentionally coming a dangerous felony; no mens rea required = strict liability.

Sexual Assault:

often referred to as “rape” or “forcible rape” under some older state laws. Historically defined as the carnal knowledge or a female forcibly and against her will, now described as sexual contact without the her or she’s consent.

Robbery:

The taking or attempt to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and or by putting the victim in fear.

Aggravated Assault:

An unlawful attack upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. Usually accompanied using a weapon or by other means likely to produce death or great bodily harm.

Crimes against Property:

offenses where no violence is involved—only the taking of property crimes such as burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. 

Burglary:

The unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or theft. To classify an offense forced entry must have not occurred and nor does anything of value has to have been stolen.

Larceny/Theft:

The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession of another, it includes attempted thefts as well as thefts of bicycles, motor vehicles parts and accessories, shoplifting, pickpocketing or the stealing of any property or articles that is not taken by force and violence or by fraud.

Motor Vehicle Theft:

The theft or attempted the of a land based, self-propelled vehicle’s that does not run on rails and is not classified as farm equipment.

Arson:

Any willful or malicious burning or attempting to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, a public building, a motor vehicle or aircraft, personal property of another, and so forth.

Public Order Crimes:

Offenses that violate general public values, or the norms shared among most members of society. Often called victimless crimes because many people argue that these crimes harm only the offenders.  

White Collar Crimes:

a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status during their occupation.

Organized Crime:

term used to describe illegal acts committed by individuals involved in illegal organizations.

In Louisiana, assault means

Someone is threatened with physical harm

In Louisiana, battery is used when someone

is physically harmed.

Second Degree Murder CAN be premeditated

In Louisiana, second degree murders are premeditated and planned. First degree murders mean that there were certain aggravating factors (victim was young or elderly, it was committed as apart of a ritual, involved an assassin, and other reasons).

Felonies can be punishable by

death or a possible sentence of more than one-year hard labor.

Hard labor is a key phrase that means

prison.

Misdemeanors means

lesser crime, punishable by fines or less than one year in jail.

How to Measure Crime Rates?

We use crime rates to get a better idea of murder in proportion to size of the community. For example, if New Orleans had only 75 murders, that would be lower than average. If the city of Hammond had 75 murders in a year, that would be extremely high. 

Crime Rate Formula:

To determine the rate of crime, you divide the number of offenses by the total population then multiply by 100,000 or (# of offenses/population of jurisdiction x 100,000)

FBI Uniform Crime Reports (UCR): Part I Offenses (Index Crimes) composed of 8 crimes:

murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny/theft, and arson.

FBI Uniform Crime Reports (UCR): Part II Offenses are less serious:

Simple assaults, forger, vandalism, drug violations.

What are some weaknesses of UCR?

Part I includes reports, while Part II only includes arrests. Part II crimes could be reduced by making less arrests. Includes Hierarchy rule—only the most serious charge is counted.

National Crime Victimization Survey:

Just 45% of violent victimizations and 36% of property victimizations are reported to police. Just 40% of rapes are reported to the police. Therefore, we use the NCVS to gain a better picture of all victim related crimes, including those that go unreported. NCVS rates tend to be higher than UCR. NCVS is broken into two categories: Person and property.

Clery Reports

Each university is required by federal law to report crimes. The law is named after Jeanne Clery, a 19-year-old Lehigh University student whom Joseph Henry raped and murdered in her campus hall of residence in 1986. Henry’s murder of Ms. Clery triggered a backlash against unreported crime on campuses across the country.

What does the consensus theory of justice suggest about people's values?

Most groups of people have the same values and beliefs.

What is the main idea of the conflict theory of justice?

People's values are not the same, and laws are based on the values of the 'Big Man'.

What are the two models of the justice process?

Crime control model and Due Process model.

How does the crime control model operate?

It functions like an assembly line focused on controlling crime efficiently, allowing police to do whatever they want, factual guilt.

What is the focus of the Due Process model?

It emphasizes protecting people's rights and requires police to follow legal rules to establish legal guilt. It is compared to an obstacle course.

List the steps in the pathway through the justice system.

Arrest, Prosecution, Initial appearance, Preliminary hearing/Grand Jury, Adjudication, Arraignment, Trial, Sentencing, Appellate Review, and Corrections.

What role does the prosecution play in the justice system?

The prosecution decides if the case goes to court.

What happens during the initial appearance in the justice process?

A judge decides if the police/prosecution's charges stand.

What is the purpose of the preliminary hearing or Grand Jury?

To determine if the case goes to trial based on the correctness of the initial hearing.

What occurs during adjudication in the justice process?

The accused is allowed to respond to charges, and the government proves its case.

What is the significance of the arraignment stage?

This is when plea deals come into play.

What does appellate review ensure in the justice process?

It ensures that the trial was conducted correctly.

Differentiate between jail and prison in terms of duration and conditions.

Jail is for sentences of one year or less; prison is for more than one year. Prison is referred to as hard labor.

What is the wedding cake model in the context of criminal cases?

It categorizes cases into misdemeanors, lesser felonies, serious felonies, and celebrated cases.

Common Law/ Napoleonic Law

Everywhere/Louisiana

What is the doctrine of stare decisis?

court sets principal based on fact must follow that principal

What are the different levels of law?

Federal, State, and City/County (local) levels.

Criminal

smith v. people- robbery
Both civil and criminal go through all levels of court

Civil

smith v. jones- divorce
Both civil and criminal go through all levels of court

Plantiff

a person who brings a case against another in a court of law.

Defendant

an individual or group being sued or charged with a crime

What is the burden of proof in criminal cases?

It must be beyond a reasonable doubt.

What is the burden of proof in civil cases?

It is based on the preponderance of evidence. The defendant can "probably be guilty"

What are the penalties for criminal offenses?

Jail, fine, prison, probation, death, or community supervision.

What is the penalty for civil offenses?

Monetary compensation for damages, with no incarceration.

Define substantive law.

It defines the crime.

Define procedural law.

It establishes the rules for dealing with the crime.

What do Actus Reus and Mens Rea refer to in criminal law?

Actus Reus refers to the act (intent), while Mens Rea refers to the guilty mind (motive).

Motive...

Causes Intent

When both Actus Rea and Mens Rea have been proven, we move onto...

concurrent

concurrence

the requirement that a criminal act (actus reus) and the requisite mental state (mens rea) must exist and coincide at the same time for a crime to be considered complete.

What is legal causation?

It ties the outcome directly to the action taken.(you killed someone by prafroming a direct action)

What distinguishes first-degree murder from second-degree murder?

First-degree murder is premeditated, while second-degree murder is intentional but not planned.

How is first degree murder classified differently in Louisiana?

First degree is not premeditated but instead considered to be aggravated factors.

How is second degree murder classified differently in Louisiana?

In Louisiana second degree murder is a case of premeditated murder

Assault is classified as

Makes a person feel unsafe

In Louisiana assault is classified as

someone is threaten with physical harm

Assault and battery is classified as

Harm by means of physical contact

Aggravated Assault is classified as

Harm with an object

In Louisiana battery is classified as

Any type of physical harm

What are public order crimes?

Crimes that disturb the general public, such as public drunkenness.

What are white-collar crimes?

Crimes committed using connections with corporate or influential individuals, usually money-related.

What is organized crime?

Illegal acts committed by individuals involved in an illegal crime organization. Mostly known for racketeering

What are the two parts of the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)?

Part #1 offenses(report) and Part #2 offenses (arrest).

Part # 1 Offenses (report)

murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglany, larceny- theft, Arson

Part #2 offenses (arrest)

Simple assaults, forgery, Vandalism, drug

The hierarchy system for URC

If an offender has commit more than one crime; report the highest crime on the list (only the most serious charges count)

What does the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) provide?

It gives more detailed crime data.

National Crime victamation survey

focuses on the victums of reported and not reported crimes

What does the Clery Act require from schools receiving federal funding?

It requires them to report all incidents of crime.