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Criminal Law 320 Mid Term
Criminal Law Brody Acker Chapter 1-5 vocab
86
Criminal Justice
Undergraduate 3
03/01/2012

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Term
actus reas
Definition
The physical component of a crime; the act that accompanies the intent
Term
affirmative defense
Definition
defenses in which the defendant admits to the essential elements of the crime charged but ofers an excuse or justification that negates criminal responsibility
Term
battered woman syndrome
Definition
refers to a “cycle of violence” that induces a state of “learned helplessness” and keeps a battered woman in the relationship; may end with a violent reaction causing death to abuser
Term
Bench trial
Definition
a procedure by which a judge, rather than a jury determines the guilt or innocence of a defendant
Term
Burden of proof
Definition
Legal principle that dictates on whom (plaintiff or defendant) the requirement to establish one's case rests
Term
castle doctrine
Definition
a person has a reasonable expectation of safety in his or her home an may defend him or herself without retreat
Term
causation
Definition
an element required to demonstrate that a person's conduct “causes the harm proscribed by law
Term
cause in fact
Definition
“But for” causation
Term
choice of evils
Definition
A justification defense aka necessity, raised when a person commits what under normal circumstances would be a crime to prevent a greater harm from occurring
Term
complaint
Definition
a statement by the plaintiff setting forth the cause of action
Term
concurrence principle
Definition
a coexistence of two or more conditions for the elements of a crime or harm to be met
Term
court of appeals
Definition
an intermediate level court in which the outcome of cases from lower level courts are appealed
Term
crime
Definition
a legally prohibited action that is deemed injurious to the public welfare
Term
criminal
Definition
having to do with the nature of crime; an individual guilty of a felony or misdemeanor
Term
criminal negligence
Definition
actions by an offender that demonstrate reckless disregard for another, and such action leads to an injury or other harm
Term
Cruel and unusual punishment
Definition
sometimes seen as a vague and unspecified concept of the eighth amendment, a guarantee by the constitution that punishment shall not be excessive.
Term
culpable omissions
Definition
the failure to act in a situation that results in harm to another
Term
deadly force
Definition
a degree of force used to apprehend suspects that may result in death or bodily harm
Term
dependent intervening cause
Definition
refers to a condition that must be present for the incident to occur, and will not absolve a defendant of criminal liability
Term
district courts
Definition
county, state or federal level trial courts having general and original jurisdiction
Term
duress
Definition
conduct that otherwise would be criminal may be excused if committed under duress. At common law, several elements had to be satisfied to establish the defense of duress; a reasonable belief or fear; of a present, imminent, and impending threat of death or serious injury; to him or herself or another (sometimes limited to a close relative); from which there was no reasonable escape or alternative course of action; and the danger or threat was not brought about by the defendants own conduct
Term
entrapment
Definition
a legal defense in which a person claims to have committed an offense that he or she would not otherwise have committed but did due to inducement or persuasion by law enforcement officials
Term
equal protection of the laws
Definition
fourteenth amendment clause guaranteeing all citizens, regardless of race, color, gender, class, origin or religion, equal protection under the law
Term
excuse defenses
Definition
a situation in which a defendant admits committing the accused act, and even that the act was wrong and the ensuing harm regrettable, but claims that his or her conduct should be excused because of extenuating circumstances such as insanity or duress
Term
ex post facto laws
Definition
laws that retroactively make an act illegal or increase the penalty for an existing crime, held to be unconstitutional
Term
fair notice
Definition
an ordinance or statute that clearly defines what conduct is prohibited or required
Term
federal insanity defense reform act
Definition
created in 1984, and governing all trials in federal courts that involved the insanity defense, the federal insanity defense reform act makes it more difficult for a defendant to be found insane than the tests under the model penal code and M'Naghten. The defense must prove that the defendant was unable to appreciate the nature and quality or the wrongfulness of his or her acts at the time of the commission of the acts and that such diminished capacity was the result of a severe mental disease or defect.
Term
Felony-
Definition
a serious crime punishable by more than 1 year in state or federal prison
Term
general deterrence
Definition
the idea that future crime can be prevented by inflicting punishment on one lawbreaker to deter others
Term
general intent crimes
Definition
method of legal proof used in court that establishes that actions can indicate a criminal purpose (trespassing, or breaking and entering)
Term
good samaritan laws
Definition
legal obligation in some jurisdictions to summon or render aid to others in distress
Term
guilty but mentally ill
Definition
GBMI is an alternative to not guilty by reason of insanity offered in some jurisdictions. Under a GBMI verdict the defendant is deemed to have been mentally ill at the time of the crime but is still criminally responsible for his or her conduct
Term
imminent harm
Definition
An apparent, immediate threat to life or safety that must be dealt with instantly
Term
independent intervening cause
Definition
breaks the chain or causation and absolve the defendant of criminal liability
Term
indictment
Definition
a formal accusation by a grand jury to initiate a criminal case
Term
infancy
Definition
the principle addresses consideration given by a court as to whether or not a person will be held responsible for his or her actions based on age
Term
information
Definition
a formal criminal charge brought by the authority of a public prosecutor rather than through the indictment of a grand jury
Term
insanity defense
Definition
a claim by a defendant that he or she lacks the mental capacity to make a distinction between right and wrong due to a biological or psychological cause
Term
involuntary intoxication
Definition
a defense to a crime. To establish involuntary intoxication as a defense, the defendant generally must show that he or she unknowingly or involuntarily ingested an intoxicating substance that prevented him or her from forming the mens rea required for conviction or understanding the difference between right and wrong
Term
just deserts
Definition
only grave wrongs merit severe penalties; minor misdeeds deserve lenient punishments. Disproportionate penalties are undeserved-severe sanctions for minor wrongs or vice versa
Term
justification defenses
Definition
instances where the defendant admits committing the accused act but claims that the actions were appropriate under the circumstances
Term
knowingly
Definition
conscious; intentional; deliberate
Term
M'Naghten rule
Definition
a rule that stems from a mid 1880s english case and is used in the US as a standard to ensure that the defendant is presumed to be sane until it can be shown that he or she suffered from a defect in reason, a disease of the mind, or that he or she was not capable of knowing the nature of the crime for which he or she is charged.
Term
mens rea
Definition
the mental factor necessary to prove criminality, including purpose, knowledge, recklessness, and negligence
Term
misdemeanor
Definition
a minor crime punishable by usually less than 1 year in city/county jail and/or a fine
Term
mistake of fact
Definition
involves a misunderstanding about the true nature of events (other than law) that, in this context, results in the commission of an act that ordinarily would be a crime
Term
mistake of law
Definition
presented when a person does not know the proper meaning of a law or otherwise misinterprets it
Term
model penal code
Definition
assembled in 1962 by the american law institute, the model penal code was an attempt to codify american criminal law for the purpose of uniformity
Term
model penal code test for insanity
Definition
a person in not responsible for criminal conduct, if at the time of such conduct, it results from mental disease or a defect, a lack of substantial capacity either to appreciate the criminality of his or her conduct, or a lack of ability to conform his or her conduct to the requirements of the law
Term
necessity
Definition
a situation in which a person commits what under normal circumstance would be a crime to prevent a greater harm from occurring
Term
objective standard
Definition
a standard that is based on the perspectives of the average person on the street
Term
objective test for entrapment
Definition
focuses on the conduct of the police and essentially considers whether the police's actions would likely have induced a normal, law-abiding citizen to commit the crime
Term
offensive conduct
Definition
behavior that has a tendency to provoke others to acts of violence or to in turn disturb the peace
Term
offensive speech
Definition
speech that is not protected by the first amendment to the constitution
Term
overbreadth doctrine
Definition
doctrine that allows invalidation of laws that punish people for engaging in constitutionally protected behaviors, such as expression of speech and religious rituals
Term
police courts
Definition
a municipal court that tries those accused of violating city ordinances
Term
product test
Definition
first pioneered by the supreme court of new hampshire in state v. pike, a test designed to facilitate full and complete expert testimony and to permit the jury to consider all relevant information, rather than restrict its inquiry to data relating to a sole symptom or manifestation of mental illness
Term
proportionality
Definition
the legal principle that a person may use only that amount of force that is reasonable necessary to repel his or her attacker
Term
provocation
Definition
an action designed to result in a particular response such as assault
Term
proximate cause
Definition
an act from which an injury or event results as a direct, uninterrupted consequence, one that without the injury would not have occurred
Term
punishment
Definition
a penalty imposed for committing an offense against legal rules
Term
purposely
Definition
intentionally; deliberately; with a particular purpose specified
Term
reasonable doubt
Definition
doubt as would cause a reasonable and prudent person to pause and hesitate before taking the represented facts as true and relying and acting thereon
Term
recklessness
Definition
conscious disregard for the consequences of one's actions
Term
retributive justification
Definition
to punish in kind for wrongs committed, “an eye for an eye”
Term
right of association
Definition
as protected by the first amendment, the right of association with others without prejudice is guaranteed
Term
right of privacy
Definition
the individual's right to decide in what way they will share or withhold beliefs or behaviors
Term
self defense
Definition
the justifiable use of force against another person to repel an unprovoked attack
Term
specific deterrence
Definition
focuses on the individual in question. The aim of these punishments is to discourage the criminal from future criminal acts by instilling an understanding of the consequences.
Term
specific intent crimes
Definition
a special mental element required above and beyond any mental state required with respect to the actus reus of the crime (breaking and entering with the intent to steal jewelry)
Term
stare decisis
Definition
legal doctrine that a court will refer to precedent cases when determining the outcome of a present case
Term
status
Definition
in legal terms, refers to ones condition as opposed to ones action it is not illegal to be an alcoholic, but it is illegal to drive while intoxicated
Term
subjective criterion
Definition
a principle that dictates whether a given act seemed reasonable to the actor at the time
Term
subjective test for entrapment
Definition
requires a defendant establish that (a) government conduct induced the commission of the crime, which (b) the defendant was not predisposed to commit. If a defendant was predisposed to commit the crime, the entrapment defense will not be available. The subjective test, designed to allow the police to capture unwary criminals, shifts much of the emphasis away from the conduct of the police and toward the character and criminal history of the defenant
Term
substantive due process
Definition
a legal principle that deems that not only is ones due process guaranteed but their substantial rights are also protected in a legal process
Term
superior courts
Definition
higher level trial courts in a jurisdiction
Term
supreme court
Definition
the highest appellate court in a jurisdiction
Term
the legality principle
Definition
a constitutional limitation on a state or federal power to enforce criminal laws
Term
torts
Definition
cases involving personal injury and damage to or loss of property handled as civil action
Term
U.S. District courts
Definition
federal trial courts that only have jurisdiction over cases involving federal crimes or crimes alleged to have been committed against the US govt
Term
utilitarian justification
Definition
a principle that supposes benefit from punishment, such as deterrence, incapacitation and rehabilitation
Term
vagueness
Definition
a law that is not clearly defined
Term
voluntary intoxication
Definition
in cases requiring specific intent, some jurisdictions permit the jury to consider a defendants voluntary intoxication. Some states do not permit the jury to consider evidence of voluntary intoxication under any circumstances, whereas others allow its consideration in cases involving first degree murder. There is no constitutional obligation for them to do so.
Term
writ of certiorari
Definition
an order by which a superior court can call up for review the record of a proceeding in an inferior court
Term
year and a day rule
Definition
a limiting rule that assumes and assigns criminal responsibility to a defendant if a situation occurs within “a year and a day” of the commission of the crime that let to the onset of the condition
Term
Statute
Definition
A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs a state, city, or county.[1] Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy.[1] The word is often used to distinguish law made by legislative bodies from case law, decided by courts, and regulations issued by government agencies.
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