CRIMINAL LAW

Criminal Law

Criminal Law

Introduction

The purpose of criminal law is to maintain social order and protect individuals and society from harm. Criminal law is concerned with offenses that threaten the public, is developed and enforced by the state, imposes sanctions that range from fines and imprisonment to death, and requires a standard of proof “beyond a reasonable doubt.” Criminal law is contrasted with civil, contract, and especially tort law. Tort law is that branch of civil law that adjudicates wrongs and damages between private parties; the legal action is initiated by an individual, and the sanction is usually financial. The relationship between criminal and tort law has drawn the attention of legal scholars in recent years because of the use of civil actions against individuals who were earlier acquitted of criminal charges (Cullen, 2002).

Sources of Criminal Law

Criminal law has evolved over the millennia. The Code of Hammurabi is the earliest-known example of an orderly arrangement of a body of laws, pronounced publicly so that citizens might know what behavior was required of them. The code contained a number of rules that are still relevant today, including the principle of “an eye for an eye,” used by some as justification for capital punishment (Cohen, 1955). The Romans also influenced criminal law; the Justinian Code distinguished between two legal categories: public and private law. Public law governs the relationship between a citizen and government. Private law refers to the relationship between a citizen and another citizen. Natural law is also sometimes cited as a source of criminal law. For example, laws prohibiting certain sexual relations (e.g., incest) find their genesis in the belief that such acts contravene the laws of nature.

The U.S. Constitution is another source of criminal law because it delegates certain powers to the federal government, and reserves other powers to state governments. Through Congress the federal government has the power to regulate certain areas of public life (e.g., interstate commerce). When Congress passed the Mann Act, for example, it legislated that the transportation of women across state lines for immoral purposes was a criminal act (Braithwaite, 1989). Regulation of other areas of public life, however, is delegated to the states through the Tenth Amendment; in these areas individual states decide what is lawful within their borders. This amendment has had an interesting effect on criminal law: An act that is illegal in one state may be legal in another. For example, many years ago one had to be twenty-one years of age to purchase beer in Vermont; in neighboring New York it was legal to purchase beer at eighteen.

Distinctions

There are two general categories of crime: felonies and misdemeanors. A felony is a serious crime such as rape or murder. Felony conviction may result in incarceration in a state or federal prison or, in the most serious cases, death. A misdemeanor is a less serious crime (e.g., shoplifting); the punishment is usually a fine or a term in a city or county ...