What's the question?
The Big Picture View of Crime, Criminal Law, Criminal Investigation, and Criminal Justice
The Big Picture View of Crime, Criminal Law, Criminal Investigation, and Criminal Justice
Student: What Question am I being asked?
Professional: How do I solve a crime?
Which of the following questions involves criminal procedure.
a. Is fighting in public illegal?
b. Does searching Joe require reasonable suspicion or probable cause?
c. Is sneaking out of the library with a library book, theft?
d. Does a citizen commit a crime by not reporting a crime?
Which of the following involves a question criminal law?
a. James thinks a defective tire caused him to crash his truck and break his arm.
b. Officer Johnson is concerned that her partner didn’t have enough probable cause to make the last arrest he made.
c. Officer Smith ignored the suspects request to stop answering questions and continued questioning him.
d. Julie bought a mask that her husband used to rob a bank and is worried she will get in trouble.
Which of the following involves a question proof?
a. Did the police advise Jon of his Miranda rights before questioning him?
b. Was Jon's gun used to kill the victim?
c. Was the victim murdered?
d. Did Jon hate the victim?
Protect Lives
stop people from hurting other people.
Provide first aid
Apprehend Suspects
Capture people fleeing the scene
Find people hiding
Secure Evidence
Rope-off the crime scene
Photograph and collect evidence
First-responder decisions happen in seconds!! That is why we give police, firefighters, paramedics, and ER doctors and nurses a lot of slack when it comes to what they do.
It high stress!
High pressure!
Low Light!
Low Information!
Life or Death!
Do you know what question you are being asked or what you are asking yourself?
Substantive Law Question
Is it a crime?
Was a crime committed?
What crime was committed?
*Considerations and Concepts:
What penal code section applies?
Are the Elements of the offense present?
Is there culpability - Intent, knowing, reckless, criminal negligence?
Is there a defense or justification?
Where do we find this information? Penal Codes. Texas Penal Code.
Title 18 U.S. Code, Part I - Crimes
*Criminal Justice Classes
CRIJ 1310 Fundamentals of Criminal Law -
This course is concerned with substantive criminal law, meaning the formation and understanding of criminal statutes.
Procedural Law Question
Can you arrest him? Search something?
Is there probable cause?
Is there reasonable suspicion?
Can I make an arrest?
Can I search?
*Considerations and Concepts
Levels of proof needed to act:
probable cause - Arrest, Search, Seizure
reasonable suspicion - stop, frisk, question, detain
Interviews and Interrogation
Where do we find this information?
Texas Code of Criminal Procedure
Title 18 U.S. Code Part II - Criminal Procedure
*Criminal Justice Classes
CRIJ 1306 Court Systems and Practices
This course is a study of the court system as it applies to the structures, procedures, practices and sources of law in American courts, using federal and Texas statutes and case law.
CRIJ 2323 Legal Aspects of Law
Exploration of police authority. Topics include responsibilities and constitutional restraints, law of arrest, search and seizure, and police liability.
Investigative Question (Proof)
Did the specific suspect commit the crime?
Is there evidence implicating a specific person(s) in a crime?
Does the evidence link someone to a crime, also known as "affirmative links"?
*Considerations and Concepts
What physical evidence is found at the crime scene?
Affirmative Links
Fingerprints?
DNA?
Incriminating statements?
Witnesses?
Where do we find this information?
Forensic Science - Biology, physics, chemistry - scientific research.
*Criminal Justice Classes
CRIJ 2314 Criminal Investigation
Investigative theory; the collection and preservation of evidence; sources of information; interview and interrogation; uses of forensic sciences; case and trial preparation.
Criminological Question
**Motive is not required for charging someone with a crime. Motive does help provide context to crime scenes and make sense of why someone committed the crime.
MOTIVE - Why someone commits a crime. Not required to know to prosecute charge or convict someone of a crime.
Hate Crime: At the federal level, a crime motivated by bias against race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability.
From <https://www.justice.gov/hatecrimes/learn-about-hate-crimes>
Bias or Hate Incident: Acts of prejudice that are not crimes and do not involve violence, threats, or property damage.
From <https://www.justice.gov/hatecrimes/learn-about-hate-crimes>
What is Justice?
Justice is done when all three parts of the process have been completed using reason, logic, and critical thinking.
The process is done without bias, emotion, or political influence.
The outcome should not make us happy or sad.
The process is all that matters.
If there is a criminal trial:
The burden of proof is on the government to prove all the elements of the crime.
The accused does not have to prove his innocence.
Decision of guilty or not guilty:
is decided by a judge (bench trial) or a jury (jury trial)
Judge and jury did not witness the crime or care about the outcome
What part does social media play in all of this?
NOTHING!! It is useless noise.