Law and Society Final

The exact Common Law Definition of Burglary is...

The breaking and entering of someone else’s dwelling at night with the intent to commit a felony therein.

Why do we have laws?

protect general safety, ensure rights as citizens against abuses from other people, the government, and organizations

Direct Democracy

citizens vote for on policies without any leader

Representative Democracy

citizens vote for leaders who then enact policies

Socialism

an economic and political system where the workers or the government own the buildings and tools that make goods and services like farms and factories

Communism

a classless society where everyone shares the same benefits

Monarchy

a king or queen as the leader

Oligarchy

a small group of people as the leader

Autocracy

system of government with one person as the leader with absolute power

Laws that are basic human rights

the right to life, the right to a fair trial, freedom from torture and other cruel and inhuman treatment, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the rights to health, education and an adequate standard of living.

Where do the government come from in principle?

the people

What is the foundation of American Law?

based from the British common law

What Enlightenment philosophers influenced the creation of the American system of Law?

John Locke, Baron de Montesquieu, and Jean Jacques Rousseau

How are American Laws created?

congress creates and passes bills → president may sign those bills into laws

What are the different types of laws that bind us?

public law and private law

Public Law

concerns government and society (ex. constitutional law, administrative law, criminal law)

Private Law

deals with legal disputes between people and organizations (ex. contracts, properties, torts, commercial law)

What are the laws of the Bill of Rights?

guarantees civil rights and liberties to the individual like: freedom of speech, press, and religion

How does the court system work?

resolve disputes by determining the facts and applying legal principles

What happens if the defendant disagrees with the verdict?

you are dismissed and can appeal for another trial, which costs more money

What is the difference between Civil and Criminal Courts?

civil cases usually involve disputes between people or organizations while criminal cases involve the violation of a criminal law

Jurisdiction

the official power to make legal decisions

Jurisdiction of State Courts

generally handle matters such as contract disputes, real estate disputes, estate cases, personal injury cases, and family law matters (divorce and child custody)

Jurisdiction of Federal Courts

only have jurisdiction when there is a diversity of citizenship or when a federal question is presented.

What are the steps of a trial?

Steps:
pre-trial proceedings
jury is selected
opening statements by plaintiff or prosecution
opening statement by defense
direct examination by plaintiff or prosecution
cross examination by defense
motions to dismiss or ask for a directed verdict
direct examination by the defense
cross examination by the plaintiff
closing statement by plaintiff/prosecution
closing statement by defense
rebuttal argument by plaintiff
jury instructions by the judge
jury deliberations and verdict

How is a jury selected?

randomly selected from the list of qualifying participants

How do appeals work?

the appellate court will review the trial court record to decide if a legal mistake was made in the trial court that changed the outcome of the case

Describe Judicial Review

the courts are vested with the authority to determine the legitimacy of the acts of the executive and the legislative branches of government (making sure everything that went on in the trial is official)

How are cases decided in the court?

review of the decisions made by other courts

How are justices nominated?

nominated by the President and confirmed by the United States Senate

How does the Legislative branch of the Federal Government function?

Makes laws (Congress, comprised of the House of Representatives and Senate)

How does the Executive branch of the Federal Government function?

Carries out laws (president, vice president, Cabinet, most federal agencies)

How does the Judicial branch of the Federal Government function?

Evaluates laws (Supreme Court and other courts)

What is the system of checks and balances?

provides each branch of government with individual powers to check the other branches and prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful

Reasonable Suspicion

enough to justify stop (what police use to pull someone over)

Probable Cause

when there is a fair probability that a search will result in evidence of a crime being discovered (what police use to arrest someone)

Warrants

a legal document that allows someone to do something and gives the police permission to arrest someone or search their house

Search and Seizure

a law enforcement agent's examination of a person's home, vehicle, or business to find evidence that a crime has been committed

Fruit of the Poisonous Tree

when an officer finds something in the property they are investigating

Reasonable Person's Standard

a hypothetical person of legal fiction crafted by the courts and communicated through case law and jury instructions

The Case of the Unclear Law

The town made a law about the park and no vehicles could drive through

The Case of the Shipwrecked Sailors

Three sailors on an oceangoing freighter were cast adrift in a life raft after their ship sank during a storm in the Atlantic Ocean

Timothy McVeigh

bombing that killed 168 people

Frank Schaefer

LGBTQ advocate

Marbury v. Madison

judicial review

McCulloch v. Maryland

the court decided that the Federal Government had the right and power to set up a Federal bank and that states did not have the power to tax the Federal Government

Gideon v. Wainwright

has to do with the sixth and fourteenth amendment

Texas v. Johnson

burning of the American flag

Plessy v. Ferguson

segregation laws that violated the fourteenth amendment

Miranda v. Arizona

The Fifth Amendment requires that law enforcement officials advise suspects of their right to remain silent and to obtain an attorney during interrogations while in police custody (why they say "you have the right to remain silent")

Brown v. Board of Education

segregation in schools is unconstitutional

Dred Scott

slave

Nixon v. U.S.

a crucial precedent limiting the power of any U.S. president to claim executive privilege

How is state law created?

citizens vote for their leaders of their state → ideas brought up by the governor or members → legislation created → creates a law

How are federal laws created?

bills → get passed by the series of obstacles (groups of government) → becomes a law

How is agency law created?

created from implication the nature of the principal’s business or actions of the position, they base it off of common law

How is municipality law created?

local cities/town councils are in charge of making a municipal law (a specific law to a county or town)

Statute

a written law passed by a legislative body (form of government)

Code

a collection of written laws gathered together, usually covering specific subject matter

Ordinance

a piece of legislation enacted by a municipal authority (usually towards a specific smaller town or county)

How does the concept of Federalism relate to law?

both of them have smaller subdivisions to them and have the power to change and make laws

What crimes are federal crimes?

piracy (distributing copyrighted material)
treason (attempt to overthrow the government)
counterfeit (making fake money)
drug trafficking (selling drugs)

What crimes are state crimes?

DUI (driving under the influence)
real estate fraud
theft crimes

What is our local Federal Court for California?

United States District Court for the Central District of California

What is a Subpoena?

a writ ordering a person to attend a court

Larceny

theft of personal property

Embezzlement

theft of personal property to permanently deprive someone of it (entrusted)

Receiving Stolen Property

buying, receiving, concealing, selling or withholding any property that you know to have been obtained through theft

Rape and Sexual Assault

battery in a sexual way

Assault

an intentional act that puts another person in reasonable apprehension of harmful contact

Battery

an unlawful application of force directly or indirectly upon another person or their personal belongings, causing bodily injury or offensive contact

Arson

the willful and malicious burning of another's property

Forgery

​​a person falsely makes or alters a writing or document with intent to defraud

Mayhem

the crime of maliciously injuring or maiming someone, originally so as to render the victim defenseless

Uttering

passing on counterfeit money

Vandalism

(malicious mischief) willful destruction of, or damage to, the property of another

Conspiracy

an agreement between two or more people to commit an illegal act

First Degree Murder

intentional murder and needs the accused to have premeditated it (planned it out before hand)

Second Degree Murder

murder with malicious intent but not premeditated (not planned out before hand)

Voluntary Manslaughter

a form of homicide (murder) that occurs without premeditation (without a prior plan to kill)

Involuntary Manslaughter

unintentional murder of another person through one’s recklessness (ex. driving under the influence and killing someone)

Extortion

(blackmail) use of threats to obtain the property of another (covers threats to do physical harm)

Prostitution

the practice or occupation of engaging in sexual activity with someone for payment

False Imprisonment

unlawfully depriving another person of their personal liberty

Felony

any offense punishable by death or more than a year in prison

Misdemeanor

a non indictable offense (generally non violent and have no resulted in serious permanent damage), less serious than a felony

Code Violation

any violation of any provision of the code (specific standards of behavior), breaking any simple laws whether it is a local ordinance (smaller local law), state law (law created by the state that applies to all within the state), or a federal law (applies to the whole country where state laws can not overturn them)

Infractions

violations, breach of statutes, or contracts (ex. being liable of someone under a contract)

Procedure of Court

1. investigation
2. charging
3. initial hearing
4. discovery
5. plea bargaining
6. preliminary hearing
7. pre-trial motions
8. official trial

Plea Bargaining

an arrangement between a prosecutor and the defendant where the defendant pleads guilty to a lesser charge

Preliminary Hearing

mini trial - prosecution will call witnesses and gather/review evidence

What happens if the participants don’t agree with the verdict?

if even one juror disagrees with the outcome they would say “the jury is hung” which would then result in a mistrial (which means the case may be retried with a new jury), or a plea bargain (to reduce the charge, or lessen the sentence)

Appellate Court

court of appeals

How do appellate courts affect lower courts’ decisions?

they review the records to make sure is enough solid evidence that reasonably supports the trial court’s decision

What is a grand jury and how does it work?

meets in secret to consider whether there is sufficient evidence to justify a formal criminal charge against someone

What types of evidence are admissible in court?

any testimonial, documentary, or tangible evidence

What is a precedent?

a decided case that furnishes a basis for determining later cases involving similar facts or issues

What is Stare Decisis?

a legal doctrine that obligates courts to follow historical cases when making a ruling on a similar case - a precedent

Burden of proof

a legal standard that requires parties to provide evidence to demonstrate that a claim is valid.

Alibi

a defense to a criminal charge alleging that the accused was somewhere other than at the scene of the crime at the time it occurred