Chapter 8 Vocab. -Crime-

The guilty act. The prosecution must show that a criminal defendant committed some proscribed act. In a murder prosecution, taking another person’s life is the actus reus.

The guilty state of mind.

To find the defendant not guilty of the crime for which he was tried.

A written statement signed under oath.

A person who acts for a principal.

Is the malicious use of fire or explosives to damage or destroy real estate or personal property.

Is a plan to prevent and detect criminal conduct at all levels of the company.

It permit a government to punish certain behavior by fine or imprisonment.

The process of investigating, interrogating, and trying a criminal defendant.

Using punishment, such as imprisonment, to discourage criminal behavior.

A criminal defendant may be prosecuted only once for a particular criminal offense.

(1) A criminal defense in which the defendant shows that she committed the wrongful act because a third person threatened her with imminent physical harm. (2) An improper threat made to force another party to enter into a contract.

Fraudulent conversion of property already in the defendant’s possession.

A criminal defense in which the defendant demonstrates that the government induced him to break the law.

Is a ban on the use of evidence obtained in violation of the Constitution during a criminal trial.

Detailed rules that judges must follow when sentencing defendants convicted of crimes in federal court.

The most serious crimes, typically those for which the defendant could be imprisoned for more than a year.

Is a sentence that will discourage others from committing a crime by setting examples of what the consequences of a crime can be.

The defendant intended to perform an illegal act, such as to assult but not to kill (the actus reus).

Is a group of ordinary citizens that decides whether there is probable cause the defendant committed the crime and should be tried.

Are the court’s finding that a defendant has committed a crime.

Is the government’s formal charge that a defendant has committed a crime.

Is a criminal defense in which the defendant establishes that he broke the law to avoid a greater harm.

Taking personal property with the intention of preventing the owner from ever using it.

Is a less serious crime, typically one for which the maximum penalty is incarceration for less than a year, often in a jail, as opposed to a prison.

Is when taking the profits of criminal acts and either (1) using the money to promote more crime or (2) attempting to conceal the money’s source.

Is a request that the court exclude evidence because it was obtained in violation of the Constitution.

Is an agreement in which the defendant pleads guilty to a reduced charge and the prosecution recommends to the judge a relatively lenient sentence.

In a search and seizure case, it means that the information available indicates that it is more likely than not that a search will uncover particular criminal evidence.

When the government’s attempt to convict a defendant of a crime by charging him, trying the case, and forcing him to defend himself.

Is a powerful federal statute, originally aimed at organized crime, now used in many criminal prosecutions and civil lawsuits.

Are any of a long list of specified crimes, such as embezzlement, arson, mail fraud, wire fraud, and so forth.

Restoring an injured party to its original position.

Giving a criminal defendant the punishment he deserves.

Is a sentence intended to discourage the accused from again committing the offence.

Is the intent to perform an illegal act with the knowledge or purpose to kill.