Test #1 Review Sheet - Criminal Justice In America PDF

lOMoARcPSD|46864098 Test #1 review sheet - Professor: Ralph Grunewald, Ph.D., LL.M. Criminal Justice In America (University of Wisconsin-Madison) Scan to open on Studocu...

lOMoARcPSD|46864098 Test #1 review sheet - Professor: Ralph Grunewald, Ph.D., LL.M. Criminal Justice In America (University of Wisconsin-Madison) Scan to open on Studocu Studocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 Test #1 2/14/19 - Lecture, Text, Articles - Text context - Key terms and definitions in margins - Types of crimes - Packer - Characteristics of criminal law - Elements of the crime (all) - Defenses - Crime victimization - Relationship between deviance and crime Lecture, Text, Articles - “The Brain on Trial” By: David Eagleman - “Characteristics of the Criminal Law” - “The Michelle Carter Case” - “I Nearly Died of a Drug Overdose” - GO OVER JUSTIFICATION JUST IN CASE! Types of Crimes 1) Classification by severity or status a) Felonies: crime punishable by death or imprisonment in excess of one year i) Legal punishment= at least 1 year b) Misdemeanor: Punishable by one year or less i) Any less than a year conviction c) Infraction (citation): Quasi- Criminal, violation of a rule or a local ordinance (no jail) i) Ticket or fine d) Status offenses: Only juveniles can commit i) (Age)-- Ex. Underage drinking, Skipping school e) Strict Liability Crimes (See: Mens Rea) i) Doesn’t have to prove mental state ii) Ex. Statutory Rape -- doesn’t matter what the offender thought the age was Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 Classification by nature (of the act) a) Visible Crime→ “Street or ordinary crime” i) Violent, property, public order crimes b) Occupational Crime: context of legal business or profession, few offenders, huge damages c) Organized Crime: Refers to framework with in crimes are committed i) Providing goods that cannot be obtained legally 1) Ex. drugs syndicates, commercial arson, illegal disposal of toxic waste, money laundering d) Crimes without (personal) victims: Willing and Private exchange of legal goods and services i) “Victim” in morality 1) Ex. prostitute e) Political Crime: Acts by or against the government for ideological purposes i) Few crimes other than treason f) Cyber Crime: Use of a computer or the internet Packer “Two Models of the Criminal Process” - Polarization: Difference between two contrasting beliefs - Two Model: Due Process Model and Crime Control Model - Uniform Arrest Act: Allowing the police to detain a person for question even if they do not have the grounds to make an arrest - Easier for the police to investigate Crime Control Model - Method: Informal (hunches and feelings that the person is guilty) - Value: Efficiency - Repression of criminal conduct - Speed and finality (done) - Claim: A lack of enforcement leads to chaos - Public safety is valued more than individual rights - Style: Assembly line or conveyor belt-- endless stream of cases - Screening: Factual Guilt (Do the facts stack up?) - Presumption of Guilt: Mood/ Attitude, Assuming the person is guilty - Outcome: Guilty Plea ** Quantity of cases over quality of treatment Due Process Model - Method: Formality (Totally based on procedure) Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 - Value: Reliability of the criminal justice system - Very detailed, super long - Individual rights are valued over public safety - Claim: Individual rights must not be abused - People can only be labeled as criminals on the basis of conclusive evidence beyond a reasonable doubt - Style: Obstacle Course - So much you have to get through to find the conclusion, super flow - Outcome: Reliability of the criminal justice system via legal guilt (in court) ** When it says APPEAL or CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS it is due process model ** Quality of treatment over quantity of cases Presumption of Innocence: Innocent until proven guilty Presumption of Guilt: Descriptive and factual ** These are not opposites - Difference is that presumption of guilt has been proven, but presumption of innocence hasn’t been yet Characteristics of Criminal Law - Criminal Behavior: Behavior in violation of criminal law - Criminal Law: Specific rules regarding human conduct, promoted by political authority, apply to all people and the punishment is enforcement by the state 4 Characteristics: 1) Politicality a) Only rules made by the state or federal government are crimes b) Common law crimes given up in early 19th century i) Offenses under the common law, developed entirely by the law courts, and therefore have no specific bases in statute ii) Everything needs to be written down or else it is not a proper law 2) Specificity a) Nullum Crimen, nulla poena sine lege certa i) No penalty without specific written law b) A penal statute must define the punishable conduct and the… c) Law has to give a “fair warning” (McBoyle vs US) i) Said motor vehicle, does that include a plane? ii) Everyone needs interpretation d) If not: Void vs Vagueness i) Void: if people “of common intelligence must necessarily guess at its meaning.” (1) Everyone needs interpretation Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 (a) Ex. Musser v. Utah 333 U.S. 95 (1948) prohibited “to commit acts prohibited by the common people”-- declare void e) Specific? i) Speed limit 20 MPH “When children are present” (1) During the school day? If the kids are in the classroom? (a) Considered specific enough because people follow it 3) Uniformity a) Even handed justice without respect to a persons and their social status b) Individualization, equity and uniformity c) Laws must be written in a way that they are applied equally i) Unequal laws= tax laws (cannot single out specific groups) d) The people who enforce the laws might now be fair, but the law itself is-- its use is NOT uniform i) Ie. Crack cocaine-- targets more of a “street group” on purpose 4) Penal Sanction a) Law without punishment has no power b) Not necessarily jail, but rehab c) Section that defines that one gets a penalty 1) Individual Rights vs. Public Safety a) Individual Rights: They can use public DNA against you in court (ex. Throwing away a cup in a public place) b) Public Safety: As soon as a police has suspicion, they have to do something 2) Public expectations vs. How systems operate 3) Role of Actors, their discretion and effect on it 4) Factual guilt vs Legal Guilt a) Factual Guilt- what is the real truth? Factually responsible, but not legally responsible-- whether or not you actually committed the crime i) Protects factual not guilty because once we have established a case, the case does not reopen unless you can show that their human rights were violated (1) Ie. Not having a fair attorney b) Legal Guilt- What will the jury believe is the truth? Needs to be proven in a legal way, protection for all of us Criminal Consequences - Criminal side: Misdemeanor, negligence, physical injury - License, DMV can revoke it - 2 Sides: State and victim Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 - Law: Administrative law→ Regulates relationship between the state and individual = Voting, Taxes, House bidding, restaurant, and liquor license - Criminal - DUI - Injury - Civil - Damages - Car, body - Lost wages - Administrative - License - Revoked and suspended Criminal Law and Civil Law → The Criminal Law is a form of private law because it governs the relationships between individuals in society - Ie. contract law, company law, tort - Consumer protection laws - Tort law: Deals entirely with damages that are caused - Standard of Proof: preponderance of evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt - Result: Liability to pay damages → The Criminal Law is a form of public law designed to prevent or enforce certain types of behavior and punish offenders - The state giving you a right - Ex. the right the bear arms - Both state and individuals - Result: Guilt that results in a sentence ** DOUBLE JEOPARDY ONLY COUNTS FOR ONE COURT, IF SOMEONE LOSES AT CRIMINAL COURT, THEY CAN STILL BE CHARGED AT CIVIL COURT → You can be charged twice on the same case if it is for different jurisdictions → You can be charged for the same case again in a different state if the case applies to the state → Prohibition against double jeopardy applies only to criminal trials → Res Judicata- one can only have one trial for claims arising on the same thing Probable cause: Reasons more likely than not that this person was involved in a crime Elements of the Crime 1) Act (Actus Reus) Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 a) With 2) Concurrence a) Of 3) Mens Rea (intent) 4) Causation 5) Harm Identify all in fraud, rape, murder ect. Ex. Acts with a gun (concurrence) to kill a person (mens rea) the hitting (causation) → causing harm (death) - The person who does it is the (causation), the person attempting to cause harm or causing harm - No mens rea (intent)= involuntary or negligent 1) Act (Actus Reus) a) Human Conduct (physical motion) i) Speech → threaten (1) Consulting, calling fire when there is none= voluntary action ii) Attempt iii) Doing vs. Being (1) Need an act ex. Can't’ punish someone for being a drug addict, need the action iv) Failure to act can be conduct (1) Not acting is equivalent to acting (2) If you don’t act on your duty (a) Ex. not buying medicine for your child or not feeding them (b) Relationships and contracts b) Voluntariness (on brain level) i) I slipped my hands into his pocket… (voluntary) with intent to take away the wallet (mens rea) because I needed the money (motive) c) Failure to act can be conduct - Ex. driving a trolley car and breaks not working, you would be charged for negligence or reckless homicide because you didn’t check the brakes before hand. - If you don’t have control of your action ie. Sleep walking, then it is not human conduct - If you sneeze and lose control of your car and get into an accident it is still considered actus reus because you can “control” a sneeze 2) Mens Rea 1) Refers to the state of mind the accompanies a certain act Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 4 Levels: a) Purposeful - intentional b) Knowing- Stress on knowing, less on purpose i) Bringing PB to a nut free class c) Reckless- Aware of risk of harm i) Ie. drunk driving→ I don’t care ii) Speeding through a school zone while the kids are being released d) Negligent- Should have known better ** If you do not know you are committing the crime at a time, then there is no mens rea - How to establish mental state? - If someone else was in that situation would they do the same thing→ reasonable person - You don’t know what people are thinking - Strict Liability= exception - Ie. statutory rape (mens rea is not a part of crime) → no referral to the state of mind - Animal abuse - If you can’t find intent then no mens rea 3) Concurrence B wants to kill C, B beats C, thinks C is dead, so puts C’s body in the lake to dispose of it, then C ended up dying from drowning and not from the beating. What does he get charged? = Mens rea and actus reus at the same time, but both of those don’t lead to death Action 1- I want to kill Action 2- Disposing, not trying to kill because B thought that C was already dead - Negligence because he thought C was dead - Jackson vs. Commonwealth - Kentucky: murder - Part of a preconceived plan, mens rea transfers - Jerome Hall, General principles of criminal law - Attempt to murder in Ohio - Mistake of fact in Kentucky - “Clearly violative of the principle of occurence” - Decapitating lead to the harm, without intent, so they charged him with the worst they could possibly do - Not with the initial intent 4) Causation (Harm) Is there a causal link between an actor’s conduct and the result? Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 - “But for” the actor’s conduct, the harm would not have occured - Usually unproblematic - Not given when - There is no scientific proof for the connection - Action was no substantive factor in causing the harm - Reckless action breaks the chain of causation Sufficient Condition - Purpose: Limit Liability - Various “Safety Valves” such as: - There is an intervening cause - A new intervening event break the chain of causation? - Foreseeability ( would they have known?) - An actor is liable for the foreseeable, but not for the unforeseeable, consequences of his or her act - Limits the “But for” standard - A substantial factor does not need to be the sole cause for death for one to be held legally accountable Crime victimization Process of being victimized - Criminalization: the action of turning an activity into a criminal offense by making it illegal Criminalization vs. Enforcement - If you are doing something illegal, you do not automatically get in trouble, you have to get caught, then the law has to be enforced Defenses Defense is a factor that justifies or excuses the actor’s responsibility - Defense consists of evidence of an excuse or justification to show defendant cannot be held liable Justifies: Justification justifies the act and takes away the blame - Not their fault Excuses: Cannot be held accountable because of things such as a state of mind, not their fault, they cannot control it - Reduces or completely takes away from them being Most Common Defenses: - Alibi (factual) → ie. I wasn’t there Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 - Affirmative Defenses: - Defendant should not be found guilty because of extenuating circumstances - Two Types: - Justification - Excuses - Diminished Responsibility - Many negate Mens Rea Burden of Proof: When defendant offers a defense, state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that facts supporting defense do not exist Justification Defenses A. Self Defense a. Level of threat: Imminent death of great bodily harm b. Degree of force: necessary and reasonable c. Retreat: Stand your ground, Zimmerman) i. You don’t have to run, but you should, law allows you protect yourself d. Provocation i. If you provoke attack, then self- defense is NOT allowed, because you started it. ** If it was for your child, can also count as self- defense because it is someone’s values (life) B. Necessity a. In most states: Natural physical force i. In a blizzard and break into a cabin to keep yourself alive is okay = harm to be avoided b. NOT: social or legislature force i. If the harm you are causing is not as bad as the harm avoided, then it is okay ii. If you kill someone for cannibalism because stranded on an island, it is murder 1. One life is not more important than the next Excuse Defenses A. Duress (Coercion) a. Certain level of threat b. Does not apply to spouse B. Entrapment a. Predisposition b. Examples i. Kiddie Porn Video Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 ii. If someone lured into a certain position and not doing it with want (can be no prior want or intention) C. Mistake of Fact D. Mistake of Law? a. No excuse b. Exception: Mistake of non- governing law (Long vs. State p.3) i. Mistaken of fact of the law 1. Ex. Thought the hard lemonade was just lemonade and not alcohol E. Intoxication or Drugged Condition Relationship between Deviance and Crime What is Crime? - “Ultima Ratio” (The last possible resort of formal social control when nothing else helps, need social change) - The “Go to” solution for anything that disturbs a subgroup of people - U.S. has over 300,000 federal crimes that could lead to imprisonment - Suffer from criminalization - Puts well meaning citizens in danger Deviance A conduct that contradicts the norms of conduct or social expectations of the group; it is considered so dangerous, embarrassing or irritating that the group brings special sanctions against persons who exhibit it. - Sociological crimes→ Informal effect or repercussion - Ex. Picking one’s nose, skipping lines, belching loudly, being late, eating loudly ect. **UNEXCEPTABLE BEHAVIOR WITHIN A SOCIETY Cultural Foundations - Deviance and Crime are naturally embedded - Ex. in germany swearing/ insults are illegal, but here it is just deviant Legal Foundation - Behavior becomes a crime only when so defined through a passage of law - A crime occurs when a person either acts, fails to act, attempts to act, or agrees to act in a way that is a violation of a criminal law, without defense or justification - Viewed as acts against the state - These laws are called a “statute” (adj. statutory) - Criminal statutes are combined in a “Penal Code”= code of crimes or punishments 2 Parts: - Substantive Criminal Law: detention of the behavior a law prohibits Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|46864098 - Ex. Theft, murder, rape, fraud… - Procedural Criminal Law: Rules governing how officials (police, courts, corrections) oversee criminal law - Regulates how we enforce substantive criminal law - Ex. Warrant, evidence, how a trial functions Crime Classification - Delicta mala in se: Acts inherently evil or bad (Homicide) - Delicata mala prohibita: Crimes because the legislature said so, acts evil or bad because at the time, the government labeled them as so. - A law must exist at the time of a crime or else it is a retroactive act= not valid, an act can only be a crime if it is defined as a crime at the time - “Sociological” crimes or deviance: Need to criminalize if it becomes so not okay - Ex. cyber bullying → molly drew case - Couldn't get charged even though the girl committed suicide Downloaded by Bob Love ([email protected])