When we hear the words “criminal law in America,” we naturally think about laws related to criminals, and that’s exactly right. The world of criminal law can be quite intricate, but we can understand it. Criminal law is different from other laws, and we’ll talk about it here. In the United States, there are two main types of criminal law.
To make sense of these types, let’s start by looking at the big division: substantive and procedural criminal law in America. These two categories are the foundation of the U.S. criminal justice system.
Substantive criminal law is all about deciding what actions are crimes. It helps us understand what things are illegal and can lead to punishment.
On the other hand, procedural criminal law focuses on the steps the legal system follows when a crime happens. It tells us how law enforcement, courts, and lawyers handle criminal cases, from the start of an investigation to a trial and potential punishment.
In simple terms, substantive law defines what’s a crime, while procedural law explains how the legal system deals with those crimes. These two types work together to make the U.S. justice system work. Understanding this difference is important to grasp how the system operates.
What Is Criminal Law?
A crime is when you do something that goes against the law. It is also something that you don’t do something the law says you should. Moreover, you could call it an act or omission.
Criminal law in America is all about crimes and what happens to people who commit them. It’s different from civil law. You see, civil law deals with arguments between two parties.
In the former, we deal with the legal process of “criminal prosecution.” That’s when the government decides to punish a person for what they did or didn’t do (the crime).
So, in simple terms, criminal law is about crimes and their consequences. It is a big part of the criminal justice system. Civil law solves disagreements between people. Criminal prosecution is the government’s way of handling when someone breaks the law. Moreover, these rules that keep our society fair and safe.
Codes Of Criminal Law In The US
Each state in the United States of America has the right and ability to conduct a thorough investigation of what they would consider a crime. As such, each state has its own criminal code. Congress has also decided to punish certain conduct that has led to the codification of federal criminal law in America. This is Title 18 of the U.S. Code, which is federal criminal law.
Criminal laws differ enormously within the states and the federal government. While some statutes tend to resemble the common law criminal code, others, like the New York Penal Law, tend to mimic the Model Penal Code (MPC).
What Are The Elements Of A Crime?
An individual committing a crime would be required to prove that he or she has fulfilled every element of the crime. The statute that tends to establish the crime also states the elements of that offense.
There are three basic elements to every crime, which are:
- Actus Rea, meaning the act or conduct,
- Mens Rea, meaning the individual’s state of mind at the time of the act, and
- Proximate causation, meaning the causation between the act and the effect.
Within a criminal prosecution, the government tends to have the burden of proof for the establishment of every element of a crime that is beyond a reasonable doubt.
In Elonis v. United States, 575 U.S. (2015), the Supreme Court stated that courts will infer mens rea, which is necessary for the separation of wrongful from innocent conduct.
What Are The Two Kinds Of Criminal Law In The United States?
The two very distinctive laws that tend to govern the two kinds of offenses are as follows:
Felony
Crime that is categorized within the U.S. Penal Code is a “felony.” A felony is a kind of offense that is punishable under criminal law. Many states in the US tend to classify felonies under different categories relating to the graveness of the crime and its punishment.
The classification of the felonies is as follows:
- Class A felony: when the maximum term of imprisonment authorizes life imprisonment or the maximum penalty is a death sentence.
- Class B felony: when the maximum term of imprisonment allows twenty-five years or more.
- Class C felony: the maximum term of imprisonment is less than 25 years or more.
- Class D felony: the maximum term of imprisonment is less than ten years or more.
- Class E felony: if the maximum term of imprisonment is less than five years or less.
Moreover, there are states that do not categorize felonies into categories, which makes the sentencing process based on the basis of the crime’s seriousness.
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a kind of offense that is punishable under criminal law. An offense is termed a misdemeanor when it is generally punishable by less than 12 months in prison.
Many states in the US tend to categorize misdemeanors depending on their seriousness and the punishment they will be provided. The categorization of misdemeanors is as follows:
- Class A misdemeanor: the maximum term of imprisonment is a year or less but more than 6 months.
- Class B misdemeanor: the maximum term of imprisonment is six months or less but more than thirty days.
- Class C misdemeanor: the maximum term of imprisonment is 30 days but not less than 5 days.
Moreover, there are states that do not categorize misdemeanors into categories, which makes the sentencing process based on the basis of the crime’s seriousness.
What Are Defenses In Criminal Law?
There are various kinds of defenses that are available to the defendant during a criminal prosecution. The following are some of the examples of defenses that a defendant can rely on during a criminal prosecution.
- Failure of proof, which is a defendant’s simplest defense in criminal prosecution. This means the prosecution has failed to provide any evidence regarding the occurrence of the crime.
- A mistake of law is another defense where the defendant has made a mistake in interpreting the law that leads to the occurrence of the offense.
- A mistake of fact is a mistake that is regarding the legal status within a certain circumstance.
- Self-defense is used when the defendant has committed the crime while protecting themselves from the harm inflicted.
- Defense of property is used when the defendant has committed a crime while protecting their property.
- Defense of others is the right to protect a third party that has led to the occurrence of the crime.
- Necessity is when someone commits a crime knowing its consequences for the purpose of saving the larger population from greater harm.
- Duress is one who has been forced to commit a crime that they have not intended.
- Intoxication is when the defendant has committed the crime under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
- Insanity is when the defendant’s mental state is categorized as unstable, and they cannot plead guilty.
And Its A Wrap!
Felonies tend to be categorized as more serious offenses compared to misdemeanors. Due to this, they have lengthier life sentences and more serious punishments.
So, it can be stated that if a person has been accused of a felony.there is a higher chance of getting prosecuted and awarded a serious imprisonment or punishment term.
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