Criminal Law
Part A:
As the prosecutor, what, if any, charges would you bring against Susie?
As the prosecutor, I would charge Susie with conspiracy towards her husband’s shooting and eventual death. This is based on the evidence provided by Doris in relation to the case, in question. Susie participated in the act through informing Doris on the situation within their family. She also agreed to unblock the backdoor during the ordeal. She also had a fling with Doris thus the motive to kill her husband. Susie was tremendously involved if Doris evidence is to be believed in the court of law. Conspiracy is against the criminal laws thus the need to answer to the charges of conspiring with Doris to kill her husband. Susie had a motive towards the death of her husband. This relates to her wishes of inheriting the wealth. This enables her to conspire with Doris, who also wants to have some wealth, in the shooting of her husband. This totals to charges against conspiracy in the law courts.
What, if any, charges would you bring against Doris? Discuss fully.
I would bring two charges against Doris in relation to this case. The first charge is a conspiracy to the death of Vinnie. The second charge would be shooting with intent of killing. This develops to murder charges. This is because Vinnie dies following the shooting incident. This makes Doris to be responsible for the death of the Susie’s husband. I would also charge Doris with trespassing into private property in the execution of the incident. Doris invaded Vinnie’s property to commit the crime. This is trespassing into private property thus should be answered in the court of law. This is a form of burglary since Doris decides to shoot Vinnie in his private property.
If you find that, the women conspired to commit any crime, discuss whether either could claim she withdrew from the conspiracy.
In the case of conspiracy, one of the women might have the opportunity to claim she withdrew from the act. Between the women, Susie has a greater chance than Doris does to claim her withdrawal from the incident. This is because of several reasons. The first reason is that the incidence took place several months following their discussion with Doris. The second reason is that Doris did not communicate on the development of the conspiracy. Susie was supposed to unblock the backdoor for easy entrance by Doris. She can argue that this was a form of burglary. This is because Doris never informed her on when the crime was going to take place. She can claim that Doris went ahead to commit the crime on her own. This will enable her to withdraw from conspiracy.
What defenses would you raise in defense of Doris? Discuss fully.
Since Doris publicly declares her involvement, it would be difficult to formulate her defense. The main option she has is to claim that Susie is responsible for the objective of the crime. This indicates that Susie led to the execution of the problem. This is through claiming that Vinnie wanted to poison her. This information led to the participation of Doris. Doris being a family friend saw the need to protect Susie from the poisoning incidence.
Assuming both women are arrested, which of the two is more culpable for the death of Vinnie?
Susie and Doris are culpable for the death of Vinnie. Doris is more culpable of the death of Vinnie than Susie does. This is because of the motives towards the death of Vinnie. Doris had a fling with Susie. This made her see Vinnie as a competitor who had to give way thus the killing incidence. Doris wanted some wealth portion as promised by Susie. This made it necessary to oversee the death of Vinnie. Doris also had a gun. Her gun was used to commit this crime. This makes her critical in the death of Vinnie.
Did either woman have a motive to want Vinnie dead? Discuss fully.
Both women had motive towards the death of Vinnie. Susie had the motive of keeping the wealth accumulated by Vinnie thus the need to see him dead. She also wanted to protect herself from the poisoning incidence. Doris wanted to keep Susie for herself thus do away with the competitor. She also wanted to protect Susie from the poisoning aspect. Doris wanted the wealth accumulated by Vinnie as promised by Susie.
Part B:
What does a prosecutor do? What does a criminal defense attorney do?
A prosecutor acts as the minister of justice. He or she assists the court of law in achieving the truth and justice between the community and the accused individual in relation to the law and fairness. Defense attorney has the role of representing the defendant in a lawsuit or prosecution process.
What are the elements of “homicide”?
Homicide has four critical elements: intent, act, causation, and sentence. This contributes towards the definition of homicide as a criminal activity charged within the law court.
How is robbery different from burglary?
Robbery is the act of committing criminal activity with the intent of taking certain property by force. Burglary entails breaking into personal property such as a house to commit a crime. The intent of robbery (taking property by force) differentiates it from the act of burglary.
What is “imperfect self-defense”?
This is the act of self-defense, which does not offer maximum shield to the defendant in relation to the liabilities. This act of self-defense reduces liabilities in case the defendant is in danger of death or body injury.
How does criminal law differ from civil law? Can certain conduct violate both criminal and civil laws?
Civil law is the act of solving disputes in relation to the individuals, organizations, and entities that result in compensation to the victims. Criminal law refers to the body of law focusing on the crimes and the legal punishments in relation to the criminal offenses. Certain conducts have the ability to violate both criminal and civil laws. For instance, the case of bombing a personal property by the police department can violate both criminal and civil laws.
Why is consent not a defense to the crime of statutory rape?
According to the law, minors have no ability to offer a consent. This indicates that the minor has no ability to give legal consent to the act of having sex. Since the consent to sex cannot be given to the minors, consent is not a defense to the crime of statutory rape.
What is the difference between competency and insanity?
Competency is concerned with the state of mind of the defendant during the prosecution while insanity is mainly focuses on the state of mind of the defendant at the time of the crime.
What might happen to a person who violates a gag order?
Violation of the gag order could result into legal penalties such as fines and extreme cases of imprisonment. In other cases, there is the application of the jury sequestering.
What is the difference between the crimes of kidnapping and false imprisonment?
Crimes of kidnapping in most cases involve the concept of transportation while false imprisonment doe not subscribe to the movement of the victim. Kidnapping involves transportation of the victim without their consent and confining them in different environments while false imprisonment focuses on the confinement of the victims in the same environment of the crime.
Does the Fifth Amendment prevent a defendant from being tried in federal court and state court for the same offense? Explain.
The Fifth Amendment protects the defendant from double jeopardy thus preventing him or her from double trial in the federal and state courts for a similar offense. This is through protection from the three violations of rights: after an acquittal, after a conviction, and multiple sentences.
Readings in World Civilization
How did Turkey end up getting involved in World War I? Why was Turkey important to the war and how did their involvement affect the progress of the war?
Prior to the World War I, Turkey was under the Enver’s government. The opposition, thus the growing tension within the region, had boycotted the previous election in the nation. The current government noted that Turkey had lost numerous wars because of their inappropriate positioning during the wars. Turkey saw the World War I as an opportunity to obtain the Islamic lands absorbed by the allied powers in the form of Russia. Turkey joined the war on the German side. This was under the fear of Germany losing to Britain, France, and Russia would result into deprivation of their territory. Turkey contributed immensely in helping the Germans bombard Russia on the context of the Black Sea. The nation also closed the straits existing between Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea. They also conducted assault to the Russia’s Caucasus Mountains during the war.
How did Catholicism come to play a part in the employment of the Irish Women in the 19th Century America? What did Catholicism represent to employers and how did some Irish handle the problem when seeking employment? Finally, what did Catholicism have to do with the new kind of employer-employee relationship that developed during this period?
The alliance in the context of the Catholic community and the labor movement proves to be an exciting encounter in the history of Catholicism and American social action. Catholicism played a critical role in the enhancement of the living condition of the Irish Immigrants. This is through the teachings of equality among the individuals thus offering the opportunity for immigrants to seek employment. The Irish women proved to be the most oppressed individuals across the globe. Through the teachings of the Catholic community, individuals learnt the concept of work and the need to perform for the rewards. This supplemented the concept of reaping the rewards of hard work. Catholic community taught on the concepts of equality thus the need for quality interaction between employers and employees.
Part B:
What problems had to be overcome before Africa’s interior could be opened up to Western Explorers? What helped to overcome these problems?
In the exploration of the African continent, the Western Explorers had to overcome several problems before achieving their goals and objectives. The first problem to be overcome was knowledge of the region thus the need to acquire local scouts for guidance. The second problem was the chance to obtain permission from the local authority for the activities within the region. The third was the language barrier between the explorers and the natives. The last problem was the need for the strong infrastructure, labor, and facilities for the movement across the terrain. The main effort behind overcoming of these problems was because of available resources in the facilitation of movement within the region. Welcoming natives also played a critical role in the overcoming of the problems.
Why did Confucian philosophy discourage trade? What could result from commercial activities and why would this be bad?
Trade was discouraged by this philosophy because of the belief on agriculture, as the system with significant benefits in relation to the development of the state. This indicates that the prosperity of any nation according to this belief lies in the context of its agrarian situation. The eventual results of trade activities and commerce would be disproportionate delivery of products thus realization of disadvantage to the majority.
Why didn’t post-World War II Jews seek revenge against Germany? Where did they funnel their anger toward Germany?
Physical, psychological, repercussion, and erosion of identity reflect some of the sufferings by the Jews survivors. The fight and defeat of the Nazis was a reflection of the will of the Jews survivors. Most of the survivors fueled their anger towards achievement of higher education, improved social status, incursion within politics, and the opportunity to gain wealth and become famous. Despite all these efforts, most of the survivors also dedicated the part of their living conditions to demand freedom for the Holocaust victims. This was through the illustration of the genocide and ways towards its prevention thus limiting its influence on the entire population.
Explain the terms continuity and complementarity in relation to the domestic and factory systems.
Complementarity illustrates on the technological change in the increase of the relative demand in relation to labor thus facilitating the application of the emerging machinery deviating to the factory system from the domestic system. Continuity indicates the event that illustrates the conversion or transformation of the domestic workers to factory labor.
Why were folk tales and slave songs relevant to Caribbean slaves?
The folk tales and slave songs were critical because of several reasons. Slaves were restricted from speaking their languages, education, thus minimal opportunity to learn, write and read. The adoption of the folk tales and the songs provided avenues for the transmission of the culture and suffering of the slaves. This is because the folk tales and songs were mainly concerned with weak animals within the society. The weak animals are usually oppressed by the strong animals thus an illustration on the concept of overcoming oppression to emerge as strong entities. The songs were also applicable in the transmission of morals and principles. The songs also took their mind off from the massive labor and adverse conditions. The songs were also means of communication as they passed the message among the slaves.
Briefly describe how American-made machines exhibited at the Centennial Exposition of 1876 differed from the European-made machines.
Before the exhibition, European nations (colonial governments) had viewed the United States as an upstart country. The exhibition was an illustration or displaying opportunity for the American manufacturers in relation to the machines presented. The products under the display during the exhibition by the American manufacturers include sewing machines, stoves, typewriters, lanterns, guns, horse-drawn wagons, carriage, agricultural tools, pumps, and turbines. The American machines were bigger, smaller, unornamented, and uniformly built in comparison to the European-made machines during the exhibition.
Reference
Gardner, T. J., & Anderson, T. M. (2012). Criminal law. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Lynn H. Nelson & Steven K. Drummond. (1996). The Human Perspective: Readings in World Civilization, Volume II: The Modern World Through the Twentieth Century. Wadsworth Publishing; 2 edition (November 8, 1996).
