Chapter 6 7 Law Enforcement Study Guide Along with Statutes Chapter 6 1 Why are the police sometimes called the gatekeepers to the criminal justice process One role of a police officer is to enforce the criminal law In this sense the police are the gatekeepers to the criminal justice process This means that the decision to arrest a person triggers the criminal justice process After arresting someone the officer must prepare an affidavit for courts review This affidavit does two things First it outlines the details surrounding the criminal event Second he officer also tells the court what info he or she used to formulate probable cause 2 Explain how corpus delicti mens rea and actus rea relate All criminal acts consist of corpus delicti mens rea and actus rea relate The body of a crime contains two parts the mens rea and the actus rea Mens rea actually means the guilty mind and refers to the mental state of the suspect Actus rea pertains to the elements or physical acts that define a particular crime 3 Give some examples of lack of a lack of mens rea Certain classes of people are incapable of forming criminal intent In one sense they retain their innocence or a modicum of innocence For example most states make special allowances for juveniles They assume that children under certain ages usually around seven to ten years old do not have the ability to form criminal intent A mentally retarded person may not understand the consequences of his or her actions Someone suffering from a psychological disorder might not really know what he or she is doing An elderly person who is senile could fall within this category 4 What is the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor A felony is a serious crime punishable by more than one year imprisonment A misdemeanor is a minor crime that carries a maximum confinement of up to one year 5 Define homicide The killing of one human being by another There are two general classes of homicide lawful and unlawful 6 What does a justifiable homicide mean Involves the use of lethal force to prevent serious injury or death to mother or to oneself 7 To what does an excusable homicide refer A death which results from an accident or sheer misfortune 8 What constitutes murder It is committed purposely or knowingly or it is committed recklessly under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life 9 What is first degree murder Involves malice aforethought deliberation and premeditation 10 Define malice aforethought deliberation and premeditation Malice aforethought is the intent to commit a felony or to cause death or serious harm Deliberation means that the person has thought over the consequences and has still decide to kill the victim Premeditation implies that the person planned to carry out the killing Chapter 6 7 Law Enforcement Study Guide Along with Statutes 11 What is included under manslaughter An unlawful murder characterized by a lack of premeditation Manslaughter as an intermediate crime which lies half way between the more serious crime of murder at one extreme and at the other extreme justifiable or excusable homicide which is not criminal at all Manslaughter can be voluntary or involuntary 12 What four conditions make up heat of passion First precaution must be reasonable Second the death must take place during the heat of passion Third there must not be a chance for a cooling off period during the lapse between the provocation and the killing Finally the suspect must have acted in heat of passion If any others are missing more than likely the appropriate charge would be murder 13 Explain the standard reaction of reasonable person A reasonable person does not m normally try to kill somebody else Moreover the law does not allow a reasonable person who becomes so provoked or outraged to choose homicide as a deliberate strategy Thus if a person is so upset that he or she kills the provoker that death is a crime What the charge of manslaughter does is determined whether the killing was understandable given the circumstances surrounding the case 14 Contrast voluntary from involuntary manslaughter The lack of premeditation precludes a charge of 1st degree murder The charge is voluntary manslaughter Involuntary is a catchall Either negligence or recklessness can produce this type of homicide 15 What is the felony murder rule If a person dies during the course of a felony that is dangerous to life usually robbery burglary sexual battery arson kidnapping the suspect is responsible for death 16 Compare simple assault simple battery aggravated assault and aggravated battery There are two types of assaults depending upon the severity of the threat The first is a simple assault misdemeanor the second is an aggravated assault felony The usual distinction involves the presence or absence of a deadly weapon If Hector says that he is going to use his hand to slap Johnny across the back of his head the offense changes to an aggravated assault A simple battery does not involve a weapon An aggravated battery occurs when the assailant use a weapon or an item as a weapon Another prominent distinction is that a simple battery results in minor injury whereas an aggravated battery produces serious bodily harm disability or disfigurement 17 What is the difference between rape and sexual battery The primary difference between sexual battery and rape is that with battery there is no penetration between the sexual organs With sexual battery all that matters is the non consensual touching of another person s sexual organs Also older rape statutes were sexist Only males could be offenders and women victims Also antiquate rape laws made this a capital offense punishable by death 18 What are the elements of sexual battery Includes any oral anal vaginal penetration or union by the sexual organ of another or with any object This language recognizes males a as victims and females as offenders as well as vice versa The sexual contact must be nonconsensual That Chapter 6 7 Law Enforcement Study Guide Along with Statutes the victim did not agree to the sexual liaison or was unable to form consent The final requirement is the use of force or the threat of force to make the victim submit 19 What is spousal immunity Common law does not recognize a husband as being capable of raping his own wife The thinking here is that marriage represents contractual arrangement between husband and wife This matrimonial agreement means that the husband pledges to support
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