Classification of Crimes and Sources of Criminal Law

This section delves deeper into the classification of crimes and explores the various sources of criminal law.

Vocabulary:

• Malum in se: A wrong in itself, inherently evil and immoral in nature.
• Malum prohibitum: A wrong that is prohibited by statute but not inherently evil.

Examples of malum in se crimes include battery, robbery, murder, and rape. Malum prohibitum offenses typically include traffic offenses, regulatory laws, and carrying a concealed weapon.

The criminal law is divided into general and specific parts:

1. General principles: Voluntary act, criminal intent, complicity, attempt, justification, and excuse.
2. Specific principles: Crimes against persons, property, public order and morals, and the state.

Highlight: The sources of criminal law include the Constitution, state constitutions, common law, US criminal code, state criminal codes, municipal ordinances, judicial decisions, and administrative agencies.

The document traces the common law origin of criminal law, explaining how it evolved from unwritten law based on community customs to being incorporated into court decisions. It also discusses the role of criminal codes, including state legislatures and the Model Penal Code, which influenced more than 40 states to change their criminal codes.

Example: Administrative agency crimes are an important source of criminal law. For instance, the IRS, EPA, and SEC have the authority to make rules that can result in criminal penalties if violated.

The levels of criminal law are outlined as federal, state, and local, with explanations of how they sometimes overlap and interact.

Criminal Punishment and Its Purposes

This section focuses on the concept of criminal punishment and its various purposes within the justice system.

Definition: Criminal punishment is the intentional infliction of pain or other unpleasant consequences by the state on an individual who has committed a crime.

The principle of legality is introduced, stating "No crime without a law, no punishment without a crime." This fundamental concept ensures that individuals can only be punished for actions that were explicitly defined as crimes at the time they were committed.

The purposes of criminal punishment are explored in detail:

1. Retribution
   • Backward-looking
   • Punishes individuals for committing crimes
   • Based on the concept of "just deserts"
   • Requires culpability (blameworthiness)

Highlight: Retribution is based on the idea that it is morally right to punish criminals, but it requires that the offender be culpable for their actions.

2. Prevention
   • Forward-looking
   • Aims to prevent future crimes through various mechanisms

The prevention aspect of punishment is further divided into:

• General deterrence
• Special deterrence
• Incapacitation
• Rehabilitation

Example: General deterrence aims to prevent crime by making an example of punished criminals, thereby discouraging others from committing similar offenses.

The document emphasizes that punishment can only be justly applied to those who can be blamed for their actions, and blame can only be assigned to individuals who freely chose to and intended to harm their victims.

Quote: "We can punish only those whom we can blame, and we can blame only those who freely chose to and intend to harm their victim."

This comprehensive overview of criminal law and punishment provides a solid foundation for understanding the key concepts and principles that govern the criminal justice system.

Types of Preventive Punishment

This page continues the discussion on preventive punishment, elaborating on the four main types introduced in the previous page.

General deterrence is explained in more detail:

Definition: General deterrence aims to prevent crime by threatening potential offenders with punishment, thereby discouraging them from committing offenses.

The text then moves on to discuss special deterrence:

Highlight: Special deterrence focuses on preventing a specific offender from committing future crimes by making the experience of punishment so unpleasant that they will not want to risk experiencing it again.

Incapacitation is introduced as another form of preventive punishment:

Definition: Incapacitation involves physically preventing offenders from committing further crimes, typically through imprisonment or other forms of confinement.

Finally, the concept of rehabilitation is explained:

Highlight: Rehabilitation aims to reform offenders and help them become law-abiding citizens, often through education, vocational training, or therapy programs.

The text emphasizes that these different approaches to preventive punishment are not mutually exclusive and can be combined in various ways within a criminal justice system.

Example: A prison sentence might serve the purposes of incapacitation, special deterrence, and rehabilitation simultaneously, while also contributing to general deterrence in society at large.

The page concludes by noting that the balance between these different purposes of punishment can vary depending on the specific criminal justice system and the prevailing philosophy of criminal law in a given jurisdiction.