Questions tagged [criminal-law]
For questions about laws related to crime. Please add a location tag if the question is specific to a particular jurisdiction.
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The Prevention of Corruption Act in India
The section 7A of the Prevention of Corruption Act in India states:
Taking undue advantage to influence public servant by corrupt or
illegal means or by exercise of personal influence.
Whoever ...
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What was the impetus for the Offences Against the Persons Act 1861?
Why in the mid nineteenth century of all times was there seen to be an overhaul of the provisions which surely existed in other forms previously barring such age old offences as assault/rape/murder/...
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What are the consequences (if any) of admitting to a crime one did not commit?
Say that Vicky the Victim is murdered by Mark the murderer. However, Mark's best friend Fred doesn't want Mark to go to jail. So Fred admits to the murder, trying to take the fall in Mark's stead.
In ...
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What is the minimum sentence for murder in Japan?
In the Yakuza series, several characters are sent to jail for murder, but it's only ever for 10-15-ish years. I was wondering if this was at all realistic, since I'm only aware of people going to jail ...
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Does Romeo & Juliet (1968) constitue Child Porn?
In Romeo and Juliet (1968), the actress playing Juliet (age 15 at the time), had her bare chest exposed for a bit after sleeping with Romeo. Romeo's actor (who was also underage) had his naked bottom ...
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Are there any countries where ex post facto amnesty laws are a thing?
laws that decriminalise acts and sentences that also retroactively free or reduce the sentances of convicts who commited various offences prior to the decriminalisation / sentance reduction
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Is forcibly smearing someone with feces a crime, and which one?
In February 2023, a German ballet director forcibly smeared dog feces into the face of a journalist. The director said the journalist had written scathingly critical reviews of his work for years, and ...
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If exactly one of two people committed a crime, but both deny it, how is conviction handled? [duplicate]
Say a crime has been committed, and there are literally only 2 suspects, one of whom it HAD to be. How can the conviction be handled?
As an example: Bob and Carl are caught alone in a room with a ...
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what does "probable consequence" mean?
In various laws related to abetment and aid of offences the offenders are also held liable for any other criminal acts done by the person who has been aided or instigated to commit an offence if the ...
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Is it illegal to threaten to present criminal charges in a civil lawsuit?
New Jersey Rule of Professional Conduct 3.4(g) provides that an attorney “shall not … present, participate in presenting, or threaten to present criminal charges to obtain an improper advantage in a ...
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Collateral damage when an atttorney lies in civil court?
When an attorney knowingly makes a false statement in civil court in an attempt to tip the scale in his client's favor, what are the possible ramifications?
I'm aware that a lie under oath can be ...
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How is a wealthy criminal expected to get a good lawyer?
Say Carl the criminal is a bad guy who's rich. One day, he gets caught. They confiscate his phone and lock him up and deny bail. How is Carl supposed to find a good lawyer? He's locked up and doesn't ...
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How illegal is it to give your prescription medicine to another person (in any amount)?
Is it expressly illegal to give even one pill of a prescription medicine you have to another person? If so, what law says this, and under what terms? If not, what are the minimum terms, for example, ...
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What happens to the possessions of a convicted person?
What happens to a person's assets, such as a vehicle, house, or company, when they are given a long prison sentence, such as several years or life? Are these items automatically turned over to the ...
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Statute of limitations in the USA
I was reading this interesting article by Bruce Schneier, where he explains how a notorious hacker called Kevin Mitnick "hacked" California Law in 1983 by researching the statute of ...
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Is "not committing a crime" sufficient consideration?
Alice sees John attempting to steal her car. For some reason, instead of calling the police, she says "I'll give you $1,000 tomorrow if you don't steal my car." John agrees.
Scenario 1
Alice ...
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What happens when the law changes?
Assume a criminal offence occurred in the past (for example 2015), before a new law was passed at a future date (for example 2016).
What law would be referred to by the judge when it comes to ...
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Is not stopping for a damaged car wing mirror counted as a hit-and-run?
It is a fairly common occurance for many motorists to have either a car wing mirror damaged or knocked off, especially on tight and difficult to navigate roads in the UK where there is little room to ...
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Employee acting illegally on direction from management
I thought of this when reading the Meta case regarding negative testing.
Say a state has a law regarding data-retention of log files for banks.
A manager instructs an employee to wipe drive of logs. ...
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For a criminal attempt, when is an act more than merely preparatory?
In several jurisdictions, the actus reus of a criminal attempt is taking an act beyond mere preparation towards the completion of a criminal offence. What is the test for determining when an act is ...
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what are some common defences to criminal attempt charges? [closed]
Generally factual impossibility isn't a defence but are there other kinds of defences to criminal attempt and criminal preperation other than factual impossibility defence ? Also can factual ...
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Can people who are mistaken in their beliefs be convicted of criminal attempts?
For example:
Self proclaimed exorcists who claim to put curses and blessings on people. If that person performs a ritual, fully believing it will kill the person they are cursing.
Or some guys ...
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Why is Chris Hansen not charged with criminal impersonation?
I was watching an episode of the Hansen vs predator series.
In the show, there is a random guy called Chris Hansen who goes online and pretends to be a 13-year-old girl. When people chat with him, he ...
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Is it a crime to engage in sexual talk with a stranger that pretends to be a little girl but actually isn't?
I was watching the Hansen vs predator series.
In there a random guy called Chris Hansen goes online and pretends to be a 13 years old girl.
When people chat with him, he tries to steer the discussion ...
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What year did Spain outlaw computer virus spreading?
What year did Spain outlaw malware (computer virus), in the public side of their Civil Legal System? I am also interested in what the penalty would be, as having read through their criminal Articles ...
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Does an MLAT request have an age limit?
Having recently found out about Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) requests, I had some questions that I could not find on the government (gov.uk) website. I am interested in both between UK and EU ...
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How often do people who make complaints that lead to acquittals face repercussions for making false complaints?
In response to a recent question and others related to it, it appears that defendants who are found guilty, despite lying, are rarely punished further apart from the conviction.
However, what happens ...
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What would the punishment be for an accidental killing, provoked by threats of sharing a video of the attacker naked?
This is based on the Drishyam Bollywood movie
Suppose a boy made an MMS video of a girl taking a bath, and then asked of her sexual favours, with a threat to circulate the video otherwise. Next, the ...
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Has anyone been charged for stealing their own stuff?
Suppose someone "A" has a storage unit, and was told by the manager to remove their belongings by a certain date.
"A" was then notified that the manager was leaving early and not ...
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Minimum sentence for Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) request
I was told by a friend studying Law, that for a country to submit a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) request there would be certain criteria that must first be met. If they are not met, the MLAT ...
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Why doesn’t the maxim of de minimis apply to shoplifting or other petty crimes, or does it?
If you steal a candy bar does de minimis apply? Why or why not? What’s about other forms of crime in general?
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What are the regulatory equivalents of "prosecute" and "convict"?
If I understand correctly, the terms "prosecute," "convict," "guilty," and "innocent" are only used in criminal cases. What are the equivalents in cases of ...
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Other historical forms of punishment besides serving time or money?
I am currently undertaking a personal research project to create a comprehensive list of all forms of punishment that have been meted out by legal systems across history.
Common forms of punishment ...
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Does double jeopardy apply if the prosecution did a "terrible job"?
The point of this question is about how double-jeopardy could potentially be abused.
Say that Bob is suspected of murdering Mary. If he is tried for this crime and found not guilty, then he can't be ...
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Is it required for a defendant to be in court?
Say that Nathan is on trial for 100 murder charges. He already knows his life is over, so every time they bring him into court, he starts screaming expletives out of turn. They charge him 1000 times ...
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Could an employee be held liable for taking parts meant for another assembly line?
If foreman A of assembly line AA took parts meant for a different assembly line BB for their own crews to use, which would help them meet their production quota but hurt foreman B and their crew, ...
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Are there any cases where mistake of law can be a defence?
Courts generally don't allow mistake of law as a defence but are there any cases other than insanity where mistake of law is used as a or has been used as a successful defence ?
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Does ambiguity in law go in favor of the defendant in a criminal case?
Is it an out if the law a person is accused of breaking is ambiguous or in any way poorly written that an accused can be set free from it?
I cannot think that every law enacted are made equally. ...
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Computer Fraud and Abuse Act statute of limitations
I was looking into the criminal law application of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act in the United States of America.
Since, to the best of my knowledge, it is a Federal crime the statute of ...
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Is a non dwelling burglary under s91b theft act 1968 strict liability?
Section 9(1)(b) of the theft act 1968 specifies an offence of entering as a trespasser and then taking or damaging things from a building. Does conviction for this offence require a demonstration of ...
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Why is there no limitations period on indictable offences?
In England, it seems one can be charged with an indictable or either-way offence 70 years after the fact.
Is it not so that in most places this is not the case?
And what are the stated justifications ...
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Is there any recourse if a defendant was found guilty due to an unknowingly false claim made by a juror during deliberations swaying jurors?
I know that often a potential juror who is a lawyer, or anyone with direct expertise relevant to a case, will be removed by one side or the other. However, this doesn't always happen, if for example ...
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Falsely accused of following someone in Germany
I am a foreigner living in Germany for some years. Unfortunately on one public holiday, I threw some bottles in nearby trash dedicated for glass where there were not many houses. I wore a latex gloves ...
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When aquitted in a "The People vs XYZ" trial, is XYZ entitled to any compensation for all they went through as an innocent party?
Say that Bob is put on trial for murder in some County. So the trial will be "The People vs Bob", and headed by the local government*. Bob spends weeks held in jail and spends tens of ...
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Defendant not present for sentencing
If the defendant does not turn up to court for sentencing, can the defence still put forward mitigations and character references?
One would assume that the defence would be prevented from bringing ...
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Defendant's Cherry-Picking
In Discovery, "the prosecutor is obligated to provide to the defendant any information that is exculpatory or potentially exculpatory".
I am looking for cases where the defendant, on the ...
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"Most junior counsel present"
In W.S. Gilbert's The Maiden Brief -- a work of fiction set in England in the mid-nineteenth century -- when prosecuting counsel does not attend due to another case, the judge calls for "the most ...
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Is Facebook liable when they fail to remove illegal postings?
There are criminals creating hundreds of Facebook accounts for identity theft and other scams. Besides the illegality of the scams themselves, most of these masquerade as someone else. Both actions ...
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$1,000 Minimum for Criminal Copyright Infringement
According to this answer, criminal copyright requires at least $1,000 of copied work within a 6 months period:
An element of criminal copyright infringement, a minimum amount of
copying. I believe ...
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Is it possible to try Colin Powell for the Iraq debacle?
Is it possible to try Colin Powell for the Iraq debacle because he lied about WMD and that helped the Bush admin to invade Iraq based on false premises of WMD, and millions of people died as a result?
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