BCOR 320 1nd Edition Lecture 14 Crime Chapter 7 Civil law concerns the rights and liabilities between private parties criminal law concerns those activities that society has outlawed Prosecution Only the government can prosecute a crime and punish someone by sending him her to prison Burden of proof Because the penalties for conviction in a criminal case are so serious the government has to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt Felony Misdemeanor A felony is a serious crime for which a defendant can be sentenced to one year or more in prison A misdemeanor is a less serious crime often punishable by a year or less in a county jail Intent crime A crime that requires the defendant to be found guilty of committing a criminal act Actus reus Guilty act Mens rea Evil intent The criminal process 1 Gathering evidence The Fourth Amendment prohibits the government from making illegal searches and seizures of individuals corporations partnerships and other organizations As a general rule the police must obtain a warrant before conducting a search Warrant Fifth Amendment if a search is needed police take an affidavit sworn written statement from an informant to a judge who issues a warrant giving permission to search a particular place looking for particular evidence Probable Cause based on the information given it is likely that the specified evidence will be found The Exclusionary Rule Under the exclusionary rule evidence obtained illegally may not be used at trial Arrest Warrant based on information found in the search the judge may issue an arrest warrant Arrest when a suspect is arrested he is informed of his rights and booked name photograph and fingerprints are recorded along with the charges Self incrimination the Fifth Amendment provides that the prosecution may not use coercion to force a confession from a suspect The suspect may refuse to answer any questions that could be used to convict him Indictment if a grand jury ordinary citizens determines that there is probable cause to proceed to trial the suspect is indicted charged with the crime These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute Arraignment the indictment is read to the suspect who then pleads guilty or not guilty to the charges Nolo contendre The accused agrees to the imposition of a penalty but does not admit guilt Plea Bargaining in many cases the prosecution will offer to end the case with reduced charges if the defendant will plead guilty Trial and Appeal if no plea bargain is reached the case goes to trial The prosecution must convince the jury beyond a reasonable doubt in order to convict Convicted defendants may appeal Double jeopardy The prohibition against double jeopardy means that a defendant may be prosecuted only once for a particular criminal offense Punishment The Eighth Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishment The Patriot Act of 2001 passed in response to the terrorist acts of September 11 2001 designed to give law enforcement officials greater power to investigate and prevent potential terrorist assaults This act has been controversial because it violates individual privacy liberties It has been revised but is still contested by many people
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