Criminal Law Basics



Criminal Law is the name given to the branch of law that governs an individual's relationship to the state. It includes the definitions of criminal offenses, which are usually established by Congress or state legislatures. The term "criminal law" also encompasses the rights of an accused and the criminal process, including arrest, arraignment, grand juries, pleas, discovery, pretrial hearings, trials, jury selection, evidence, motions, and posttrial remedies. The main purpose of the criminal law is to set forth the punishment for criminal offenses. In order to prove any crime, no matter how serious, the prosecutor must prove that the accused committed a guilty act with a guilty mind beyond a reasonable doubt. Please read on to find a criminal defense attorney, criminal lawyer, criminal attorney or to learn more about criminal law.

Find a Criminal Law attorney in your area.


Criminal Law Basic Articles
State Specific Resources
-  State Criminal Codes & Statutes-  State Crime Victim Assistance Websites
-  Criminal Process in Your State
 
Articles
 
Criminal Law Overview
-  Crime and Criminal Law Basics-  Murder during the Commission of a Felony
-  Classification of Crimes-  The Criminal Justice Process
-  Assault and Battery-  Restraining Orders
-  Crimes against Property-  Keeping Law and Order: The Prosecutor
-  Crimes Involving Alcohol-  Public Defenders
-  Manslaughter: A Lesser Crime than Murder-  What Are Arrest Warrants?
-  What Are Criminal Indictments?
 
Sex Crimes
-  Megan's Law & Sex Offender Registry-  The Crime of Indecent Exposure
-  Pornography, Obscenity and the Law
 
Pre-Trial Issues
-  Release on Recognizance - A Promise to Appear-  Bail Bonds
-  Initial Appearance in Court after an Arrest-  Bail Hearings - Getting Out of Jail
-  Sharing a Criminal Lawyer: Joint Representation-  A Defendant's Release on Bail with Conditions
-  Promoting a Fair and Speedy Trial with Conferences-  Delaying or Getting a Continuance in a Criminal Case
-  Waiving Your Right to Counsel in Criminal Cases-  Disqualifying a Judge from a Criminal Case
-  Breaking Plea Agreements or Bargains-  Closing the Courtroom to the Public
-  Criminal Contempt of Court-  Warrantless Arrest
-  Criminal Complaints-  Plea Bargains or Agreements and Sentencing
 
Juries and Jurors
-  Reasons for Rejecting Potential Jurors-  Excluding Jurors: Removing and Disqualifying
-  Trial by Jury: Selecting Diverse Jury Pools-  Fair Trials and Challenging Makeup of the Jury Pool
 
Trial
-  Getting Ready for a Criminal Trial: Pretrial Motions-  Criminal Defenses: General Overview
-  Criminal Trials - Who Has the Burden of Proof?-  Criminal Law Defenses - Abandonment & Withdrawal
-  Criminal Law Trials - Opening Statements-  Criminal Defenses: Insanity
-  Changing Lawyers: Substitution and Withdrawal-  Criminal Law Defenses - Ignorance or Mistake
-  Representing Yourself in a Criminal Case-  Criminal Law Defenses: Consent
-  Criminal Law Trials - Defendant's Rights-  Criminal Law Bench Trials - No Jury Required
-  Defendant's Right to a Speedy Trial-  Criminal Law Trials - Motion for Mistrial
-  What if a Witness Is Unavailable to Testify?-  Ending a Criminal Trial with a Motion for Acquittal
 
Verdicts and Punishment
-  General Overview of Criminal Verdicts-  Are Verdicts All or Nothing? Inconsistent Verdicts
-  Using Special Verdicts & Answering Exact Questions-  Partial Verdicts and Breaking Down the Criminal Case
-  How Do You Stop a Defective Judgment? Arrest It!-  Punishment of Crime
-  How Do You Temporarily Stop a Criminal Sentence?-  Challenging Criminal Jury Verdicts: Impeachment
-  Criminal Sentencing: The Basics-  How Do Multiple Convictions Affect My Sentence?
-  Sentence Must Be Proportional or "Fit" the Crime-  Sentence Enhancements Mean Harder Punishments
 
Prisoner Rights
-  Prisoner's Rights
 
Hot Topics
-  Baby Pictures or Baby Porn?-  Bernard Kerik: From Policeman to Prisoner
-  Bernard Madoff Sentenced to 150 Years-  Boy's Balloon "Ride" Was a Scam
-  Can We Send Juveniles to Jail for Life?-  Community Leaders Arrested by FBI
-  Football's Plaxico Burress Sentenced on Gun Charge-  Forensic Evidence Labs Are under the Microscope
-  Getting Property Back after an Arrest-  Internet Threats to Kill
-  Michael Jackson's Death Ruled a Homicide-  Military Wife Sues State for Wrongful Prison Term
-  Missing Adults: The Susan Powell Disappearance-  New York Targets Illegal Sales of Toy Guns
-  Online Jail Listings-  Osborne: Due Process & DNA Tests after Conviction
-  Problematic Pardons; the Clemmons Clemency-  Proms, Parties and Underage Drinking
-  Raised Voices: The Unborn Victims of Violence Act-  Reporting Crimes: Witnessing, Ignoring, Falsely Reporting, and Lying
-  Robber Sues the Store He Robbed-  Self-help Guru's Irresponsibility Leads to 3 Deaths
-  Speaking Up for the Right to Remain Silent-  The Call of Jury Duty
-  The Failure of 911-  What Is a Search Warrant and When Is One Needed?
-  Will the Supreme Court Expand the Miranda Rights?-  You're Under (Citizen's) Arrest: Now What?
-  What Is the Price for Your Right to Free Counsel?-  Who’s Lying? The Megan Williams Story
-  What is a Hate Crime?
 
Criminal Law Basics FAQs
-  Criminal Law: Crime Definition FAQs-  Criminal Law: Appeals FAQs
-  Criminal Law: Arrest and Evidence FAQs-  Criminal Law: Procedure FAQs
-  Criminal Law: Expungement FAQs-  Criminal Law: Defenses FAQs
 
Lawyers.comsm Virtual Community
Legal Forums
-  Crimnal Law-  Traffic Citations
 
Chats
-  Chat Listing
 
Hiring a Criminal Lawyer
-  Criminal: Meeting with a Lawyer-  Criminal: Preparing to Meet with a Lawyer
-  Criminal Law: Selecting a Good Lawyer
 
Related Topics on Lawyers.comsm
-  Criminal-  DUI DWI
-  Parole and Probation
 

Terms & Conditions    Privacy    Copyright© 2010 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.