Transcript Defining and Measuring Crime

Defining and Measuring Crime
Mr. Whitaker
Get Used to Latin Words
Vocabulary





Actus Reus (ak-tus ray-uhs)—Criminal conduct—
intentional or criminally negligent (reckless) action or
inaction that causes harm
Civil Law—a means of resolving conflicts between
individuals.
Corpus Delicti—the body of circumstances that must
exist for a criminal act to have occurred.
Dark Figure of Crime—the number of crimes not
officially recorded by police
Hate Crime Law—a statute that provides for greater
punishments against those who commit crimes against
an individual or a group based on human differences.
Vocabulary




Index Crimes—those crimes reported annually
by the FBI in its Uniform Crime Report. Index
crimes include murder, rape, robbery,
aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, motor
vehicle theft, and arson.
Mala in Se—a descriptive term for acts that are
inherently wrong, regardless of whether they are
prohibited by law.
Mala Prohibita—a descriptive term for acts
that are made illegal by criminal statute and are
not necessarily wrong.
Mens Rea (mehns ray-uh)—criminal intent; a
guilty state of mind
Vocabulary





Negligence—the failure to take reasonable precautions
to prevent harm
Self-Reported Surveys—a method of gathering crime
data that relies on participants to reveal and detail their
own criminal or delinquent behavior.
Strict Liability—certain crimes, such as traffic
violations, in which the defendant is guilty regardless of
her or his state of mind at the time of the act.
Uniform Crime Report (UCR) An annual report
compiled by the FBI to give an indication of criminal
activity in the United States.
Victim Surveys—a method of gathering crime data
that directly surveys participants to determine their
experiences as victims of crime.
Vocabulary
Civil Law- The branch of law dealing with the
enforcement o all private or public rights, as
opposed to criminal matters.
Mala in Se-a descriptive term for acts that are
inherently wrong, regardless of whether they are
prohibited by law.
Mala Prohibita-a descriptive term for acts that
are made illegal by criminal statute and are not
necessarily wrong in and of themselves.
Purpose of Criminal Law

To teach the social expectations of society

To protect citizens from “criminal harm”
and punish wrong doers

To express the judgment of community
condemnation
Criminal Law V Civil Law

Criminal Law

Offenses against society as a whole

Wrongful Act – violation of a statute that prohibits some type
of activity

Party who brings the suit – The state

Party Who Responds – personal who allegedly committed the
crime

Standard of Proof – beyond a reasonable doubt

Punishment (fine or imprisonment)
Civil Law






Area of Concern – rights and duties between
individuals
Wrongful Act – harm to a person
Party who brings the suit – person who suffered
harm
Party Who Responds – person who supposedly
caused the harm
Standard of Proof – preponderance of the evidence
Remedy – damages to compensate for the harm
Felony Versus Misdemeanors

Felony



More serious or atrocious than a
misdemeanor
Punishable by death or imprisonment in a
penitentiary
Misdemeanor


A less serious crime
Punishable by fine or imprisonment otherwise
than in a penitentiary
Murder
a.Definitions vary, but first degree when:
1.It is premeditated (Malice)
2.It is deliberate
Manslaughter lacks malice
2.Voluntary manslaughter includes intent to
kill but not the malice.
3.Involuntary manslaughter includes
negligent acts without intent to kill.
Misdemeanors
a. Gross misdemeanors which are generally
punishable by thirty days to one year in jail.
b. Petty misdemeanors which are generally
punishable by less than thirty days in jail.
Violations usually include traffic offenses.
1. Generally do not involve jail time.
2. Usually result in fines.
3. Do not go on criminal record.
Social Functions of Law
Mala in se


“Natural laws”
Acts against the “natural, more and public
principles of a society”
Mala prohibita


“Man made law”
Acts that are considered criminal only because
they have been codified
Activity

List five crimes in each category on your
outline notes

Mala in Se

Mala in Prohibita
Elements of a Crime







Harm
Legality
Actus Reus
Mens Rea
Causation
Concurrence
Punishment
Harm
The external consequence required to make
an action a crime
Harm must require physical or verbal
action
 Thinking without action is not a crime

Is This Considered Harm?


Victimless Crimes
Prostitution, Drugs,
etc…
Legality

The harm must be legally forbidden for
the behavior to be a crime
Ex post facto
1. An act that was illegal when it was
committed

Legality Question

Are Religious, Union,
Home associations, or
school rules crimes?
Actus Reus


Criminal conduct—
intentional or
criminally negligent
(reckless) action or
inaction that causes
harm
Involves things
people do and do not
do
Mens Rea





Criminal Intent or a guilty
state of mind
Intentional or purposeful
action or inaction
Mental aspect of a crime
Negligence—failure to
take reasonable
precautions to prevent a
crime
Reckless action
What do you need to establish
Mens Rea?




Purpose
Knowledge
Negligence or
Recklessness
Causation



The criminal act must
lead directly to the
harm without a long
delay
Father incident
Reasons why?
Why Causation?

To prevent from facing the threat of
criminal charges the rest of their lives.
Concurrence


Criminal conduct and intent must occur
together
Repair man example
Punishment


In order to be a crime, a law must have a punishment
for the broken law.
Without the threat of punishment a law is unenforceable