Criminal Law

Course Description

This is an introductory course in the study of criminal law, general legal principles, and how the criminal law functions in and affects modern society. This course highlights a variety of key topics, including the concept of crime and the development of criminal law, defenses to criminal charges, and a number of specific types of crimes, including personal crimes, property crimes, public order crimes, and offenses against public morality. Legal issues affecting punishment will also be discussed, as will ways the criminal law impacts victims of crime.

Topics and Objectives

The Nature and History of Criminal Law

• Define criminal law and understand the relationship between laws and other rules.
• Learn how crimes may be classified.
• Discuss other categories of law besides criminal law.
• Explain the purpose of law and the various sources of modern criminal law.
• Understand the concept of the rule of law and its importance.
• Discuss the Model Penal Code and its significance.

Criminal Liability and the Concept of Crime

• Explain the adversarial system.
• Discuss the standards of proof in the legal system.
• Identify all elements of a crime.
• Define criminal liability and explain the concept of strict liability crimes.
• Discuss the concept of criminal attempt.
• Explain criminal conspiracy and its essential elements.
• List possible parties to a crime.

Criminal Defenses

• Understand the concept of an affirmative defense.
• Distinguish between justifications and excuses.
• Explain the types of justification that may be used as defenses.
• Identify the categories of excuses that may be used as defenses.
• Differentiate the insanity defense from the diminished capacity defense.
• Discuss the history of the insanity defense and the legal criteria for determining sanity.

Homicide and Other Personal Violent Crimes

• Understand the different types of homicide.
• Discuss the key elements of the crime of murder.
• List the elements of manslaughter.
• Understand the concept of negligent homicide.
• Distinguish between an assault, a battery and an attempted assault.
• Differentiate between rape and sexual assault and explain statutory rape.

Property and Computer Crimes

• Explain the concept of theft and distinguish between theft crimes.
• Discuss burglary as distinct from theft crimes.
• List the elements of the five types of computer crimes.

Public Order Crimes and Crimes Against Public Decency

• Explain the three categories of social order crimes.
• Distinguish between disorderly conduct and a breach of peace.
• Understand vagrancy as opposed to loitering.
• Understand DWI and DUI crimes.
• List the three main types of crimes against the administration of government.
• Discuss pornography, obscenity, and lewdness.
• Identify consensual sex offenses.
• Discuss federal and state anti-drug legislation and asset forfeiture.

Victims and the Law

• Understand the concept of victim, and victims' assistance programs.
• Discuss "Son of Sam" laws and their benefit to victims of crime.
• Analyze the purpose of victim impact statements and their constitutionality.
• Review the costs of criminal victimization, including the hidden costs of crime.
• Define the restoration movement.

Punishment and Sentencing

• Discuss rationales of sentencing.
• Distinguish between determinate and indeterminate sentencing.
• Understand plea bargaining.
• Analyze capital punishment versus the Eighth Amendment.
• Identify intermediate sanctions.