criminal law final

Reasonable

Capable of reasoning: rational; a reasonable person, governed by or being in accordance with reason or sound thinking, common sense, not excessive or extreme.

Reasonable belief

Objective assessment based upon how a reasonable officer with comparable training & experience would react or draw inferences from facts & circumstances known by the officer at the scene.

Reasonableness

How would/should a reasonable person act in a certain situation? How would/should a reasonable police officer act in a certain situation?

Rap sheet

Record of arrests and prosecutions.

Use of force

Power given to police to 'Stop The Threat.'

Csi Effect

False perception of crime and criminal justice created by television shows and 'reality cop shows.'

Criminal Justice

Criminal- implying or involving crime; Justice- the rendering of what is due or merited, conformity to the law.

Criminal justice system

Comprises police, courts, and corrections.

Ordinances

Town law.

System

Complex whole consisting of interdependent parts whose operations are directed towards common goals.

Police

Department of government that keeps public order and safety and enforces laws.

Courts

Department of government responsible for adjudication of determining whether a defendant is guilty or not guilty.

Corrections

Programs, services, facilities, and organizations responsible for the management of people accused of or convicted of criminal offenses.

Convicted

Found or pled guilty.

Branches of government

Legislative - makes laws; Executive - executes laws; Judicial - interprets laws.

Criminal

Noun - a person who committed a crime; Adjective - relating to crime.

Law

A system of rules enforced by government to govern behavior.

Common law

Body of law developed in England primarily from judicial decisions based on custom and precedent.

Code of Hammurabi

Babylonian law code of ancient Mesopotamia, about 1754 BC; consists of 282 laws with scaled punishments.

Crime

A specific act or the commission of an act that is forbidden or the omission of a duty that is required.

Mens Rea

Latin for guilty mind (Evil Mind).

Actus Reus

Latin for guilty act (Evil Act).

Mala in se

Offenses that are wrong by their very nature.

Mala Prohibita

Offenses prohibited by law but not wrong in themselves.

Criminal procedures

Set of rules governing the series of proceedings through which the government enforces substantive criminal law.

Equal justice

Impartial treatment of innocent and guilty individuals by law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges.

Statute

A law passed by a state or federal government.

Authority

Who enforces the law.

Purpose of law

Criminal law serves to protect people and property from harm, provide clear standards of behavior, limit government power, regulate social order, and serve a symbolic function.

Civil Law

Governs relationships between individuals.

History of law

Before recorded history, human behavior was governed by unwritten social norms; Code of Hammurabi established high standards of behavior.

Mosaic law

Early influence ca. 1200 BC after Hammurabi; associated with Moses and the Ten Commandments.

U.S. Constitution

The fundamental laws and principles of the United States.

Bill of Rights

First 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

Federalist

Supported a system of government in which the states unite under a central authority.

Anti Federalist

Opposed the ratification of the constitution, wanted a bill of rights included in the original (compromise).

Preamble U.S. constitution

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessing of liberty to ourselves and our posterity do ordain and establish the constitution for the U.S.A.

4th Amendment

The right of the people to be secure in their person, houses, papers, and effects

Search

Looking for something or someone

Warrant

A written order or writ from a competent authority directing the doing of a certain act, A court doc

Probable Cause

More than mere suspicion that a crime was committed, is being committed, is about to be committed

Warrantless Exception

Consent, plain view, incident to arrest, exigent circumstances

Exclusionary Rule

A constitutional rule of law that provides that otherwise admissible evidence may not be used if it was product of illegal police conduct

Fruits of the poisonous tree

Doctrine in rule of evidence; an immediate product of illegal conduct on the part of an official

Terry vs Ohio 1968

Landmark supreme court case regarding searches and seizures; an officer may perform a search for weapons without a warrant

5th Amendment

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or natural forces, or in the military

Miranda vs Arizona

Landmark supreme court cases regarding statements to the police

Miranda

A person must be mirandized when they are in custody (or believed they are) and being interrogated

Interview

A person to person conversation for the purpose of obtaining information about a crime or its circumstances (free flow of info) (Non-accusatory in nature)

Integration

The adversarial questioning of a subject with the goal soliciting an admission or confession (no free flow of information) (accusatory in nature)

6th Amendment

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed

8th Amendment

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted

Bail

Bail is the money a defendant pays as a guarantee that they will show up in court at a later date.

Bail Reform (New Jersey)

On Jan 1, 2017 the state shifted from a system that relies principally on setting monetary bail as a condition of release to a risk-based system that is more objective, and thus fairer to defendants.

14th Amendment

All persons born or naturalized in the united state, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the united states and of the state wherein they reside.

Ethics

System of moral values

Integrity

Firm adherence to a system of moral values; uprightness of character

Discretion

The power to make a decision

Morals

Principles of right or wrong

Value

Judgment of desirability, worth, or importance

The bell, the book, the candle

Ask yourself three questions before deciding on an ethical situation: Bell - does this sound right? Book - Does the decision violate any written laws, rules, or policies? Candle - how will the decision look when exposed to the 'light of day'?

Main categories of crime

Crimes against the person and Property Crimes

Elements of crime

Component parts that make up any particular crime; must be proven in court

Actor

A person who commits a crime or offense

Homicide

The killing of a human being by another human being; not necessarily criminal

Criminal Homicide

Murder- Unjustifiably causing the death of another human being

Assault and battery

Assault- intentionally causing fear by word or deed; Battery- offensive touching

Rape

Unlawful sexual intercourse with a female without her consent

Domestic Violence

A pattern of behavior that involves violence or other abuse by one person in a domestic context against another

Robbery

The felonious taking of property: Crime against a person

Burglary

Entering someone's property with the intent to commit a felony, such as larceny

Larceny/Theft

Completed/attempted taking of cash or property from a location without attacking or threatening the victim

Arson

Intentionally and maliciously setting fire to buildings, wildland areas, vehicles, or other property with the intent to cause damage.

Pretrial intervention (PTI)

PTI is a diversion program that permits an individual to avoid prosecution for a criminal offensev