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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
On a blank piece of paper write down:
Probable Cause
Reasonable Doubt
Mens Rea
Corpus Delecti
Writ of Certeori
Preponderance of Evidence
-Get 1 or 2 names next to each term, these will
be class groups we will use this semester
(groups of 2 or 3). Cannot be in 2 groups with
the same person
Chapter 1 – Laws & Their Ethical
Foundations:
*take notes and follow along in
Chapter 1 of your textbook


Describe the differences between common
law and positive law.
Identify the origin of the U.S. legal system

Laws: enforceable rules of conduct in a society
◦ Do we need laws?
◦ People need protection for others

Common Law: rules used by judges to settle
people’s disputes.
◦ Sets a “precedent” – courts use prior cases as a guide
◦ Examples??

Positive Law (Civil Law or Roman Civil Law):
dictated by a central authority, leader or
government. Put in place to prevent wrongs.
◦ Examples?

Disputes settled based on local customs, led to
inconsistencies & laws hard to follow.
◦ Example – p. 7


King sent judges to ride circuit & hear cases.
Local people hear the cases & interpret the
local customs.
King’s court has “jurisdiction” over circuit court
◦ Leads to circuit court & jury
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
Advantage: uniformity & ability to adjust to
societal changes
Disadvantage: courts had to wait for the harm
to occur before they could take action
◦ An injunction, which stops something from being
done, could be issued.

Only one U.S. state does not operate under
common law, but rather civil law.
◦ What state??


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Constitutions: framework of a government,
highest source of law
Statutes: laws enacted by state or federal
legislatures on behalf of those that elected them.
Ordinances: local rule or law
◦ Examples? Smoking, pets on a leash, watering in
summer
◦ Hot Debate, page 4. Answer #1-3 in your notes

Case Law: appeals based on rulings made by
lower courts.
◦ Stare decisis: Let the decision stand, lower courts must
follow established case law. Does not bind one court
though, which is the?????
◦ Supreme Court

Page 12 What’s Your Verdict
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Offense against society, not individuals
Government investigates and prosecutes on
behalf of the people
Conviction results in fine, imprisonment &
possibly execution.
It is possible to try a defendant in criminal
court and then try the same defendant again
in civil court, for the same event.
◦ Example?
◦ O.J. Simpson Murder trial
Civil Law: wrongs against individuals
 Police do not take action in civil conflicts
 When sued you become the defendant, if you
lose a civil case you must pay money to
plaintiff.

Civil offenses are known as “Torts”

What’s Your Verdict - Page 13

Is shoplifting a crime or a tort?
◦ Both-tort to business owner losing merchandise &
crime as it violates the law.

Procedural Law

Substantive Law: defines rights & duties
◦ The process that a case will go through (whether it
goes to trial or not).
◦ Example: How and when police can make arrests
◦ Criminal procedure & Civil procedure
◦ Defines how the facts in the case will be handled, as
well as how the crime is to be charged. In essence, it
deals with the substance of the matter.
◦ Defines offenses: murder, theft, breach of contract,
negligence
◦ Stare decisis is a …
 Procedural law


Rules that apply to business situations &
transactions
UCC: Uniform Commercial Code
◦ Laws vary from state to state
◦ UCC provides uniformity in state commercial laws
◦ Governs sales & leasing of goods, aspects of
banking

Business Law is generally civil or criminal?
◦ civil
 Vocabulary
& Concept Review
◦ Page 20, #1-16

Pages 21 & 22
◦ Answer #’s 31-34 & 36-38 in your
notes

July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence
◦ Thomas Jefferson. All men are created equal…life,
liberty & pursuit of happiness.
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Articles of Confederation: charter by 13 colonies
Articles create framework for U.S. Constitution
What’s Your Verdict? P 25
Bill of Rights: 1st 10 amendments
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
VA, NC, NY & RI don’t ratify Constitution until now, issue of
the failure to protect human rights now resolved
Page 27 Checkpoint
◦ Magna Carta
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
Search is property
Seizure is a person
Chapter 2 – Constitutional Rights
 Due process: Defendant given adequate
notice & proper hearing
 What’s Your Verdict – page 31
 Cyberlaw
◦ Intended to govern e-commerce & internet
In groups research the following cases
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
People of California v. Orenthal J. Simpson
Roe v. Wade
Miranda v. Arizona
People of Illinois v. Larry Eyler
Hustler v. Falwell
Texas v. Johnson
New Jersey v. TLO
Tinker vs. Des Moines
Christian Burial Case
Slide1: Case name & your names
Slide 2:Years & process through court system
Slides 3-5: Story, background, major people
involved & events
Slide 6: Ruling (9-0, 8-1, 7-2, 6-3, 5-4)
Slide 7: Dissent (list judge and their opinion)
Slide 8: Significance, impact, precedent set?
Slide 9: Related cases, interesting facts, extra
details.

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Only applies when offender is in cutody being
questioned about his own guilt
Police don’t have to read you Miranda if
you’re caught red handed robbing a store
◦ Evidence still exists independent of the confession

Roth v. United States
◦ Companion case of Alberts v. California
◦ Both sent lude, indecent pictures through mail
◦ Court issues writ of certiorari for both cases
 Order to lower court to produce record for Supreme Court
◦ 1957, 1st Amendment doesn’t protect obscenity

Miller v. California
◦ Set up 3-part test to determine obscenity: “Miller Test”
 whether the average person would find that the work
appeals to the purest interest;
 whether the work depicts or describes, in a patently
offensive way, sexual conduct or excretory functions
specifically defined by applicable state law; and
 whether the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary,
artistic, political, or scientific value

Burger King v. Rudzewick
◦ Rudzewicz & partner open BK in MI, train in FL
◦ Miss payments (franchise fees & royalties) & BK sues for
breach of contract and trademark infringement
◦ BK wins in district court-FL has jurisdiction on those
who breach contract in the state
◦ Court of appeals reverses decision-violates due process
◦ Supreme Court-BK wins, FL does have jurisdiction
◦ Dissent: unfair to businessman in MI to go to FL court
◦ Relation to cyberlaws & cybersecurity?

Child Online Protections Act
◦ Makes it a crime for site operators who fail to prevent
minors accessing “harmful” material

Spamming: occurs by gathering, “cookies”
◦ Personal info on website visitor such as buying
patterns sold w/out visitors knowledge
◦ Illegal on video & cable but not internet
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Page 39 What’s Your Verdict?
IN THIS CASE – p. 42
VOCAB AND CASE REVIEW
 Chapter 1 p. 20 1-16, 31-38
 Chapter 2 p. 44 1-12, 24-30


Litigate (go to court) or settle dispute w/out court?
3rd party options:
◦ Mediator:
 Acceptable decision to both, usually not legally binding
 Mediation effective in resolving approx. 75% of cases &
greatly reduces the trial docket of courts
◦ Arbitrator
 3rd party like mediator, decision binding can be enforced by
the court
 Often 3 arbitrators involved, majority decision rules

Trial court: original court where dispute is heard
◦ Has original jurisdiction (power) to decide the case

Appellate court: reviews decisions of lower courts
◦ Concerned solely with errors of the law
◦ Examine transcript & appellate briefs(written arguments)
◦ Decide if lower court decision is:




Affirmed (upheld)
Reversed (overturned)
Amended (changed)
Remanded(sent back to trial court for correction or new trial)

Federal District Courts
◦ Cases involving Constitution, U.S. law & treaties
◦ Lawsuits between citizens of diff. states/nations

Federal Court of Appeals
◦ Has jurisdiction when lower court case is appealed
by a party in the case

U.S. Supreme Court
◦ Has original & appellate jurisdiction (most common
from U.S. dist courts & State S.C.)
◦ Can issue writ of certiorari compelling lower court
to turn over record of case to S.C.

Court of record: keeps exact account of trial
◦ Transcript, evidence, statements, judgment

Municipal Courts: traffic & criminal divisions
◦ Are ordinances criminal laws?
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Small Claims: under $2,500, no jury or
attorneys. Can be appealed to state trial court
Juvenile Courts: 13-18, see page 58
Probate Courts: administer wills & estates for
deceased
State Supreme Court
◦ Issue final decision unless U.S. Constitution or
federal question of law is involved

List the three elements of a crime and specify
if the crime is a felony or misdemeanor.

Elements of Criminal Acts
1. Duty: know the law
2. Violation of the Duty: conduct that violates the
statute
3. Criminal Intent: intended to commit the act,
intended to do evil
◦ Before one is convicted of a crime, prosecutors must
prove these 3 elements
◦ What’s Your Verdict p. 65: is it a crime, what crime?
 Can a corporation form criminal intent like individuals?
 Example?
 Called ‘Vicarious Criminal Intent’

Insane not responsible, intoxicated & drugged are
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Felony: punishable by prison, fine of over
$1,000 or death
Misdemeanor: punishable by fine, county/city
jail.
◦ Lesser misdemeanors know as infractions: littering,
parking tickets-no jail just a fine

White collar crime: offenses committed in
business world. No force, violence or property
damage. Examples?
◦ Insurance fraud, embezzlement, tax evasion, stock
fraud, false weighing machines, price-fixing
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Conduct by law enforcement inducing a person to
commit an offense that the person would
otherwise wouldn’t commit.
A possible defense against criminal liability
Nonexample: sting operation where officer poses
as buyer of drugs or under 21 buys alchohol
3 elements present for entrapment
1. The idea of committing the crime came from
government agents & not from the person
accused.
2. Government agents persuaded person into
committing crime. (Simply giving someone
the opportunity to commit a crime is not the
same as persuading them).
3. Person was not ready and willing to commit
the crime before interaction with the
government agents.
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Unauthorized taking of property of another with
the attempt to deprive
Not larceny in IL, called theft
Theft is a felony if the value of the property
exceeds $500 (in IL) or the property is stolen
from the person of another.
Thresholds at $10,000, $100,000, and
$500,000 determine how severe the punishment
can be.
Amount varies from state to state
Grand Theft Auto? Not just a game, Felony Theft
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Robbery- forcefully taking property from
someone in their presence *Felony
Burglary: entering a building/house without
permission & with the intent to commit a
crime *Felony
Selling stolen property, shoplifting, pick
pocketing

Receiving stolen property: receiver/buyer called

False Pretenses: receives money/property by lying


fence
Forgery: falsely/materially altering a writing to
defraud another, common with checks*Felony
What’s Your Verdict? – p. 67. What crime? Felony?
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Bribery: giving something of value to
influence performance
Extortion: blackmail-using force, fear or
power to obtain money or property
Conspiracy: agreement between 2 or more
people to commit a crime.
Arson: intentionally burns building w/out
owners consent
What’s Your Verdict? - p. 68
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Assault: threat or fear of violence
Battery: offensive touching
◦ Can be criminal
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False Imprisonment: held against will
Defamation
◦ Slander-spoken; Libel-written
◦ False, communicated to 3rd party, cause injury
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Invasion of Privacy: eavesdropping, reading
mail, tapping phone
Trespassing: entry on property w/out
consent
Conversion: using property inconsistent w.
owner’s rights
Fraud: intentional misrepresentation of a
material fact
Negligence: carelessness; most common
tort

Students will be able to analyze cases and
determine what crime, if any, has been
committed

Elements of Criminal Acts
1. Duty: know the law
2. Violation of the Duty: conduct that violates the
statute
3. Criminal Intent: intended to commit the act,
intended to do evil
◦ Before one is convicted of a crime, prosecutors must
prove these 3 elements
◦ What’s Your Verdict p. 65: is it a crime, what crime?
 Can a corporation form criminal intent like individuals?
 Example?
 Called ‘Vicarious Criminal Intent’

Insane not responsible, intoxicated & drugged are

Latin for “guilty mind”

The intention to commit a crime

One of the necessary elements of a crime,
criminal intent
Habeas Corpus

A person can’t be held in prison without first
being charged
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Latin for body of the crime; the essence of
the crime
a crime must have been proven to have
occurred before a person can be convicted of
committing that crime.
For example, a person cannot be tried for
larceny unless it can be proven that property
has been stolen


Explain the use of illegally obtained evidence
and how the burden of proof in a case is
solved.
Identify cases


Evidence that is obtained illegally cannot be used
Aligns with the 4th amendment...which is??
◦ Illegal search and seizure
◦ Testimony is considered evidence too


Larry Eyler serial killer, confesses to murder of
Robert Calise in Lake Forest.
He was not arrested but he felt like he was not
safe to go because put in squad car (not
cuffed) & questioned in room (not cell) –total of
12 hrs
◦ Evidence obtained was thrown out. Unlawful seizure.

Eventually convicted of the murder of Daniel
Bridges, 15 year old from Chicago and later
confessed to 21 other murders all in the gay
community of Chicago, Indianapolis & Ohio

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt
◦ Applies in Criminal Proceedings
◦ If there is a real doubt, based upon reason and
common sense after careful and impartial
consideration of all the evidence, or lack of evidence,
in a case, then the level of proof has not been met.

Preponderance of Evidence
 Must be present for ruling in favor of plaintiff
 Applies in Civil Court
 Also in Family Court, Grand Jury

Need more evidence to convict in Criminal than
Civil.

Probable cause: reasonable ground for belief
◦ When tried you must be proved guilty “beyond a
reasonable doubt”
◦ IL v. David Hendricks
 David Hendricks convicted of murder of wife & 3
children, case appealed overturned years later at
McLean County Law & Justice Center.
 Murder weapons found, no other suspects
 Motive was Hendrick’s religion saw divorce as a sin
 Can’t prove Hendricks guilty “beyond a reasonable
doubt”

What’s Your Verdict - P. 71
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

In custody being questioned about your own
guilt
Rights read after you are arrested
When are you arrested?
◦ When you don’t feel free to leave
◦ Are you arrested in a traffic stop?

Ex: Caught red handed but not read rights
◦ Only confession is thrown out
◦ Theft that officer or witness saw is not thrown out