Crimes against persons
Homicide is the unlawful killing of a person. The judge must determine that there is a ‘causal relationship’ between the actions of the accused and the harm caused to the victim.
HOMICIDE CAN BE CLASSIFIED IN DIFFERENT CATEGORIES
Murder: the deliberate killing of a person; there was a deliberate act designed to cause serious harm during which death occurred; or there was a reckless indifference to human life which resulted in death.
Manslaughter: where a person dies but the defendant’s state of mind is different to that present when there is a murder.
The three types of manslaughter are involuntary (where the accused didn't want to kill but was negligent and this resulted in death).
Voluntary (intention to commit murder but mitigating factors reduce the severity of the crime)
Constructive (the accused didn't want to kill but did so accidentally during the commission of a crime).
Infanticide: the homicide of an infant who is under the age of 12 months, by their mother.
Assault: Causing physical harm or threatening to cause physical harm to another person.
Economic Crimes
Crimes against property
Larceny (theft): the removal of another person’s property without the consent of the owner, and with the intention of permanently keeping them.
Breaking and Entering: When a person illegally enters a building in order to commit an offence.
Robbery: the taking of a person’s property directly from them or from their vicinity; theft accompanied by force or the threat of force.
White Collar Crime
Tax Evasion: An illegal practice where a person, organization or corporation intentionally avoids paying his/her/its true tax liability.
Computer Crime: this is an example of the way in which law needs to adapt in order to keep abreast of new technology.
Insider Trading: where a person with special knowledge of a company uses that knowledge to buy or sell shares.
Embezzlement: when employees in a business steal by falsifying business accounts while they use the business finances for personal gain.
Offences Against the State
These are offences in which the accused is targeting the state (government). These offences are criminalized to protect the state because a stable government is a necessary characteristic of society.
Treason: activities which undermine the government by passing on information to other governments etc.
Sedition: The inciting of public unrest with the aim of bringing down the government; the act of encouraging hatred or contempt for the government.
Drug Offences
These are highly serious offences because of their connection with other crimes. Drug offences are categorized into four different areas:
Importation: The importation of border controlled drugs is a federal offence. It is a serious offence, reflected by the fact that the maximum penalties range up to imprisonment for life.
Cultivation: The act of sowing, growing or harvesting a narcotic plant. You can be charged if you cultivate a ‘deal-able quantity’ or intend to sell some.
Possession: to be caught with enough illegal drugs for personal use only
Trafficking: to be caught with an amount deemed greater than which a person could use for themselves.