common law - Law created by judicial opinion. Historically, law from America’s colonial and English past, which has set precedents that are still sometimes followed today.
statutory law - Law created through state and federal legislatures.
criminal law - Law that involves the violation of public rights and duties, creating a social harm.
civil law - Law that deals with matters considered to be private concerns between individuals.
tort - A civil violation; the civil law’s equivalent of a crime. A wrongful act that results in injury and leaves the injured party entitled to compensation.
legality - The principle that no one can be punished for an act that was not defined as criminal before the person did the act.
Model Penal Code (MPC) - A comprehensive recodification of the principles of American criminal responsibility.
jurisdiction The power or authority of a court to act with respect to any case before it.
federalism - The system of government of the United States whereby all power resides in the state governments unless specifically granted to the federal government.
probable cause - Evidence that there is a fair probability that the suspect committed a crime; required for an arrest of a suspect by a law enforcement officer.
recognizance - A promise to appear in court.
bail - A deposit of cash, other property, or a bond, guaranteeing the accused will appear in court.
bond - A written promise to pay the bail sum, posted by a financially responsible person, usually a professional bail bond agent.
preliminary hearing - A post-arrest, pretrial judicial proceeding at which the judge decides whether there is probable cause to prosecute the accused. In some jurisdictions, the preliminary hearing is minimal; in others, it is a mini-trial.
grand jury - A panel of persons chosen through strict court procedures to review criminal investigations and, in some instances, to conduct criminal investigations. Grand juries decide whether to charge crimes in the cases presented to them or investigated by them.
indictment - The paper issued by a grand jury that charges an accused with a felony.
information - The paper issued by a prosecutor that charges an accused of a felony.
arraignment and plea - The defendant’s appearance to respond formally to the charges.
habeas corpus - Literally, “you have the body.” A legal action separate from the criminal case, it can be brought only by a prisoner who has exhausted all the usual appellate remedies
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