Criminal Law and Procedure

1. Criminal Law and Procedure Chapter 4

2. Elements of a Criminal Act • Whether you were aware of your duty to do or not do a certain thing • Whether you performed an act or omission in violation of that duty • Whether or not you had criminal intent

3. Elements of a Criminal Act • Duty—it is everyone’s duty to know the law and to conform his/her conduct to the law’s requirements • Breach of Duty—the specific conduct of the defendant that violates the statute • Criminal Intent—the defendant: • Intended to commit the act • Intended to do evil

4. Vicarious Criminal Liability • Criminal intent of an employee of a corporation can be used as a substitute for the requirement of criminal intent for an officer of the corporation • If the employees were doing their assigned duties and the criminal act benefits the organization, most courts will find criminal intent in the organization

5. Juvenile Justice • Intent of the juvenile justice system is rehabilitation • Most states consider this at an age between 18-21 • States differ as to when a juvenile can be considered an adult—most fall between 10 and 14

6. Crimes • Felony—a crime punishable by confinement for more than a year in a state prison or by a fine of more than $1,000, or both—or even death • Misdemeanor—a crime punishable by confinement in a county or city jail for less than a year, by fine, or both • White-Collar Crime—offenses committed in the business world; do not involve force or violence and do not cause physical injury to people or physical damage to property

7. Crimes • Larceny—commonly known as theft—wrongful taking of money or personal property belonging to someone else with the intent to deprive the owner possession • Robbery—taking property from another person’s immediate presence, against the victim’s will, by force, or by causing fear • Burglary—entering a building without permission when intending to commit a crime

8. Crimes • Receiving Stolen Property—knowingly receiving stolen property—either through receiving or buying—with the intent to deprive the owner possession • False Pretenses—one who obtains money or other property by lying about a past or existing fact—type of fraud • Forgery—falsely making or materially altering a writing to defraud another—also falsely making copies of famous artwork and passing it off as the real thing

9. Crimes • Bribery—unlawfully offering or giving anything of value to influence performance of an official • Soliciting or accepting a bribe is also criminal • Extortion—blackmail—obtaining money or other property from a person by wrongful use of force • Conspiracy—an agreement between two or more people to commit a crime • Arson—the willful and illegal burning of a building

10. Computer Crimes • Fraud achieved by the manipulation of computer records. • Spamming wherever outlawed completely or where regulations controlling it are violated. • Deliberate circumvention of computer security systems. • Unauthorized access to or modification of o programs (see software cracking and hacking). o data. • Intellectual property theft, including software piracy. • Industrial espionage by means of access to or theft of computer materials • Identity theft where this is accomplished by use of fraudulent computer transactions. • Writing or spreading computer viruses or worms. • Salami slicing is the practice of stealing money repeatedly in extremely small quantities • Denial-of-service attack, where company websites are flooded with service requests and their website is overloaded and either slowed or crashes completely • Making and digitally distributing child pornography

11. Rights and Responsibilities • Rights of the Accused: • Due Process • Probable cause—a reasonable ground for belief • Right to be represented by a lawyer • Establish guilt with proof “beyond a reasonable doubt” • Trial by jury • Witnesses for defense

12. Defenses to Criminal Charges • Procedural Defenses: • Based on problems with the way evidence is obtained or the way an accused person is arrested, questioned, tried, or punished • Examples: • Miranda Rights not read • Evidence that is not disclosed • Coercion of a confession • Ignorance of the law IS NOT a defense

13. Defenses to Criminal Charges • Substantive Defenses • Disprove, justify, or excuse the alleged crime • Examples: • Self-defense • Immunity • Criminal insanity

14. Other Vocabulary • Contempt of Court—action that hinders the administration of justice • Refusing to testify • Violating a court order of protection • Punishment—penalty provided by law and imposed by a court • Plea-bargaining—pleading guilty to a less serious crime in exchange for having a more serious charge dropped