ACE Criminal Law Online

1.2 Separation of Powers

1.3 The Structure of the Court System

1.4 Duties and Powers of the Judicial Branch

1.5 Comparing Civil Law and Criminal Law

1.6 The Authority of Government to Regulate Behavior

1.7 The Purposes of Punishing Criminal Law Violators

• Describe the basic constitutional structure of state and federal governments with an emphasis on how structure affects criminal law and criminal justice administration.
• Compare and contrast federal and state authorities in criminal law.
• Describe both civil and criminal law with an emphasis on their differing objectives and procedures.
• Describe the third branch of government, the judiciary, including the structure of U.S. courts and the authorities and duties of courts in criminal justice.

2.2 Sources of Criminal Law

• Identify and describe the objectives of criminal law and begin thinking critically about these objectives.
• Identify and describe the various sources of criminal law.
• Brief a judicial opinion and you should have begun practicing your case analysis skills.
• Outline and explain the fundamental history of the U.S. legal system.
• Explain the tension between social control and freedom.

3.2 Actus Reus

• Identify and define the two basic elements of most crimes, mens rea and actus reus.
• Describe the evolution of mens rea and actus reus from the early common law to modernity, particularly as found in the Model Penal Code.
• Be challenged to reflect on what it means to have a guilty mind, from both a psychological and a legal perspective.
• Define and describe corporate and vicarious liability.
• Apply and compare the historic and modern law of mens rea and actus reus to real life scenarios.
• Define and apply element analysis to statutory definitions of crimes.
• Read and identify the major elements of a judicial opinion.
• Identify the major elements of a case brief.

4.2 Homicide

4.3 Assault and Battery

4.4 Mayhem

4.5 Sex Crimes

4.6 Kidnapping and False Imprisonment

4.7 Stalking

4.8 Civil Rights and Hate Crimes

• List, explain, and compare the elements of common law and contemporary crimes against the person, such as murder, rape, and assault.
• List, explain, and compare the common defenses to charges of crimes against the person, such as self-defense.
• Identify and analyze contemporary legal issues concerning death and suicide.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in 1/3 of the cases you read.

5.2 Burglary

5.3 Theft Crimes

• List the elements of historic and contemporary crimes involving property and habitation, such as arson, burglary, and larceny.
• Identify the crimes of arson, burglary, and larceny in given fact scenarios.
• Describe how computers and the Internet have given rise to new ways to commit old crimes and how the law is changing to deal with these developments.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in one-third of the cases you read, and describe the court’s analyses and conclusions in the cases.

6.2 Crimes Against Public Morality

6.3 Crimes Against the Public Order

6.4 Crimes Against the Administration of Government

6.5 Crimes Against Sovereignty and Security

6.6 Crimes Against the Environment

• Describe historic and contemporary crimes against the public, including crimes against the public order, against the administration of government, against public morality, and against the environment.
• Critically examine and discuss the laws of terrorism, especially those laws enacted in response to the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
• Explain the tension between national security and freedom and how the war on terror confounds the historic distinction between the law of war and criminal law
• Explain what role that morality has, and what you believe it should play, in penal law.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in one-third of the cases you read and describe the court’s analyses and conclusions in the cases.

7.2 Inchoate Crimes

• Identify and describe the roles of the various participants to crimes in both common law and contemporary legal terms.
• Identify the various participants to crimes in given fact scenarios.
• Explain relative culpability of the participants to a crime.
• Explain the culpability for unsuccessful attempts to commit a crime.
• Identify the elements of, and contract, attempt, conspiracy, and solicitation.
• Apply attempt, conspiracy, and solicitation to fact scenarios.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in one-half of the cases you read, and describe the court’s analyses and conclusions in the cases.

8.2 Affirmative Defenses

8.3 Insanity

8.4 Duress and Necessity

8.5 Use-of-Force Defenses

8.6 Infancy

8.7 Intoxication

8.8 Mistake

8.9 Entrapment

8.10 Alibi and Consent

8.11 Statutes of Limitation

• Define, recite the elements of, and apply to factual scenarios common factual defenses to criminal accusations, such as alibi.
• Define, recite the elements of, and apply to factual scenarios common statutory defenses to criminal accusations, such as the insanity defense.
• Critically discuss these defenses.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in one-half of the cases you read and describe the court’s analyses and conclusions in these cases.

9.2 Double Jeopardy

9.3 Self-Incrimination and Immunity

9.4 Due Process and Equal Protection

9.5 Vagueness and Overbreadth

9.6 Analyzing Constitutional Claims

9.7 Ex Post Facto and Bills of Attainder

9.8 First Amendment and Religion

9.9 First Amendment and Speech

9.10 Privacy and Other Unenumerated Rights

9.11 Privileges and Immunities

• Identify and describe specific rights discussed in the chapter, such as freedom from double jeopardy, to speak, to practice one’s religion, from the establishment of a religion by the government, to privacy, to be treated equally, and to substantive and procedural due process.
• Identify and explain the landmark Supreme Court cases featured in the chapter.
• Apply the basic principles learned in the chapter to fact scenarios.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in two-thirds of the cases you read, and describe the court’s analyses and conclusions in these cases.

10.2 A Common-Law, Adversarial, and Accusatorial System

10.3 The Due Process Model

10.4 The Participants

10.5 Liability of Governments and their Officials

• Explain the common-law, adversarial nature of the U.S. criminal justice systems.
• Think critically about the due process and crime control models of criminal justice.
• Describe the role and the ethics considerations of major players in the criminal justice system: law enforcement officers, defense attorneys, prosecutors, victims, and judges.
• Describe the basic liability that government officials can incur when performing their duties.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in two-thirds of the cases you read and describe the court’s analyses and conclusions in the cases.

11.2 Incorporation

11.3 Expansion of Rights

11.4 Exclusionary Rule

11.5 Fruit of the Poisonous Tree

11.6 Standing

11.7 State Constitutions and the “New Federalism”

• Identify and describe the major provisions in the Constitution of the United States and its amendments that apply in the criminal context.
• Explain why the U.S. Constitution’s prominence in criminal justice has increased in recent decades.
• Define, identify the landmark cases, and explain the underlying theory and rationale of the exclusionary rule, fruit of the poisonous tree, and related doctrines.
• Describe the authority of the states to increase individual liberties through their constitutions and describe the relationship of federal and state constitutional and statutory law in this context.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in two-thirds of the cases you read, describe the courts’ analyses and conclusions in the cases, and demonstrate the ability to synthesize and think critically about the law of the subject.

12.2 Searches and Seizures

12.3 Arrest

• Explain the history of property/trespass law and privacy interests as the underlying principle in the law of searches and seizures.
• Describe the requirements for the issuance of search and arrest warrants.
• Identify, explain, and in some cases identify the landmark cases of, the many exceptions to the probable cause and warrant requirements.
• Specifically explain search and seizure law as it is applied to homes, automobiles, and other locations.
• Apply the law of search and seizure to specific facts scenarios.
• Identify and provide examples of how technological advances has challenged the Fourth Amendment.
• Critically examine recent developments intended to curb drugs and terrorism.

13.2 Electronic Surveillance

13.3 Pretrial Identification Procedures

• Describe the law, including the major constitutional cases, of interrogations, confessions, and admissions, including the important constitutional limitations upon governmental authority to extract confessions and admissions. You should be able to apply this law to fact scenarios.
• List and describe the federal statutory law of electronic surveillance and apply that law to fact scenarios.
• Explain the law, including major constitutional cases, of lineups and apply that law to fact scenarios.
• Explain the law, including the major constitutional cases, of scientific identification procedures and apply that law to fact scenarios.
• Think critically about recent developments and controversies concerning the use of eyewitness identification, electronic surveillance, and other procedures.
• Describe the major provisions of FISA, including who is subject to FISA, when surveillance orders are required and not required, and the role of FISC. Identify the material facts and legal issues in nearly all of the cases you read, describe the courts’ analyses and conclusions in the cases, and demonstrate the ability to synthesize and think critically about the law of the subject.

14.2 Discovery and Investigation of Criminal Activity

14.3 Arrest

14.4 The Complaint

14.5 Initial Appearance

14.6 Pretrial Release and Detention

14.7 Preliminary Hearing

14.8 The Formal Charge

14.9 Arraignment

14.10 Pretrial Activity

14.11 Extradition and Detainers

14.12 Removal

• Outline the process of a criminal case from discovery of the criminal act to preparation for trial.
• Describe the two formal criminal charges that are filed against defendants in the United States.
• Discuss the history, purpose, and procedures of grand juries, and contrast that with contemporary grand juries.
• Describe and apply to fact scenarios the law of pretrial release of defendants.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in nearly all of the cases you read, describe the courts’ analyses and conclusions in the cases, and demonstrate the ability to synthesize and think critically about the law of the subject.

15.2 Trial Procedure

• Identify and explain, in sequence, the various steps and procedures of trial.
• List, describe, and identify the landmark cases discussed in the book for the constitutional rights possessed by defendants at trial, such as the right to a public, speedy, jury trial, counsel, to remain silent, to cross-examine witnesses, and to confront accusers.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in nearly all of the cases you read, describe the courts’ analyses and conclusions in the cases, and demonstrate the ability to synthesize and think critically about the law of the subject.

16.2 Postconviction Remedies

• Describe and apply to fact scenarios the laws of punishment, including the constitutional limitations of punishment.
• Describe the sentencing process and identify the constitutional rights defendants possess at sentencing.
• Connect and apply the various forms of punishment to the objectives of criminal justice.
• Identify and describe the law of appeals and postconviction relief.
• Identify the material facts and legal issues in nearly all of the cases you read, describe the courts’ analyses and conclusions in the cases, and demonstrate the ability to synthesize and think critically about the law of the subject.