Knowing how to read the law will help you determine whether it's been broken.
All criminal statutes define crimes in terms of required acts and a required state of mind, usually described as the actor's "intent". These requirements are known as the "elements" of the offense. A prosecutor must convince a judge or jury that the person charged with the crime (the defendant) did the acts and had the intent described in the law. For example, commercial burglary is commonly defined as entering a structure (such as a store) belonging to another person, with the intent to commit petty or grand theft (that is, to steal) or any felony. To convict a person of this offense, the prosecutor would have to prove three elements:
1.The defendant entered the structure.
2.The structure belonged to another person.
3.At the time the defendant entered the structure, he intended to commit petty or grand theft or any felony.
Example: Steve was stopped by a security guard as he left a department store. His oversized backpack contained three pairs of expensive running shoes and nothing else. After interviewing the guard, who described seeing Steve take the shoes and leave without paying for them, the prosecuting attorney decided to charge Steve with burglary.
At the trial, the prosecutor was able to prove the following three elements:
1.Steve entered a structure listed in the burglary statute. (The state statute included the term "store.")
2.The structure belonged to another person. It was easy to show that Steve did not own the store.
3.Steve entered with the intent to commit theft. The prosecutor convinced the jury that Steve's use of an oversized, empty backpack was evidence that, at the time he entered the store, he was planning to stash stolen goods. The jury didn't buy Steve's claim that he only decided to steal the shoes (and therefore formed the intent to steal) after he had entered the store.
For most people, familiarity with criminal law comes in fragments -- from movies, television, and books. But when we become personally involved in the criminal law system, real-life issues come into focus and the need for information and assistance can arise quickly. This overview discusses the basics of criminal law: criminal statutes, criminal law players and procedure, and the potential outcome of a criminal case. Links to additional introductory information on criminal law are also provided.
Criminal Laws and Their Sources
When a society and its government decide that certain conduct is dangerous to citizens, or damaging to the society as a whole, such conduct is labeled a "crime" and is made punishable by sanctions such as fines and imprisonment. Most crimes are identified in statutes that have been enacted by federal, state, and local government legislatures, in response to issues that affect the jurisdiction. For example, a city may determine that it is a crime to be drunk in public, while the federal government decides bank robbery is a federal crime, since most banks are federally insured.
Criminal statutes describe the type of conduct that has been deemed a crime, the mindset or intent required, and in some instances, the proper punishment. For example, the following "Burglary" statutes are from the California Penal Code:
Section 459. Every person who enters any house, room, apartment, tenement, shop, warehouse, store, mill, barn, stable, outhouse or other building, tent, vessel, [etc.]...with intent to commit grand or petit larceny or any felony is guilty of burglary.
Section 461. Burglary is punishable as follows:
1. Burglary in the first degree: by imprisonment in the state prison for two, four, or six years. 2. Burglary in the second degree: by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year or in the state prison.
People who are found to have violated a criminal law -- whether through their own admission by a "guilty" plea, or as a result of a jury trial -- can be punished through imposition of fines, imprisonment, probation, and community service, among other penalties.
Practice Areas: Elder Law; Elder Guardianship; Financial Planning; Estate Planning; Wills; Probate; Trusts; Estate Litigation.
Admitted: 1964, New York; 1966, New Jersey and U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
Law School: University of Pennsylvania, LL.B., 1963
College: University of Pennsylvania, B.S., 1960
Biography: Author: "Physician-Patient Privilege under Article 81 of the Mental Hygiene Law," New York State Bar Journal, Nov. 1998; "Paying A Medicaid Lien After Cricchio v. Pennisi," New York State Bar Journal, Dec. 1997; "The Role of the Evaluator Under Article 81 of the Mental Hygiene Law," General Practice Quarterly of the New York State Bar Association, Spring 1996. Quarterly Columnist, Guardianship News, Elder Law Section, New York State Bar Association. Faculty Member, Summer Seminars for Judges on Guardianship, White Plains Justice Institute, 2008. Member, Board of Directors, 1983-1992, Vice President, 1988-1991 and Treasurer, 1986-1988, New York City Alzheimer's Association. Member, Guardianship Advisory Committee, Office of Court Administration, 2008-.New York State Bar Association (Member: Executive Committee, Elder Law Section, 1997-; Executive Committee, Trust and Estates Section, 2002-; Chair, 1997-2004 and Vice-Chair, 2004-, Committee on Guardianships and Fiduciaries, Elder Law Section; Chair, Committee on Elderly and Disabled, Trusts and Estates Section, 2006-.
Reported Cases: Calvanese v. Calvanese 93 NY 2d 111 (1999); Weisler v. Metal Polishers Union, 533 F.Supp. 209 (S.D.N.Y. 1982); Tauber v. Lebow 65 NY 2d 596 (1985); Matter of Rosen, 296 A.D.2d 504, 747 NYS 2d 99 (20 Dept. 2002); Matter of Gershenoff, 2 Misc. 3d 847 (Sup. Ct. NY Cty. 2004, affd. 17 AD 3d 243 1st Dept. 2005).
Born: Jersey City, New Jersey, August 1, 1939
ISLN: 905722410
Welcome to the Criminal Law Center, providing information and help if you or a loved one are faced with a legal need related to the criminal justice system. Here you will find definitions for dozens of common crimes, an overview of stages in a typical criminal case, tips on your constitutional rights, information on criminal records, and much more.
This article is about the profession as practiced in the United States. For a more general discussion, see Lawyer.
For discussion of powers granted to an Attorney-in-Fact, see Power of attorney.
For the Japanese profession, see Attorney at law (Japan).
An attorney at law (or attorney-at-law) in the United States is a practitioner in a court of law who is legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions in such court on the retainer of clients. Alternative terms include counselor (or counsellor-at-law), and lawyer.[1]
The U.S. legal system has a united legal profession, which means that it does not draw a distinction between lawyers who plead in court and those who do not. Many other common law jurisdictions, as well as some civil law jurisdictions, do draw such a distinction: for example, the division of solicitor and barrister (advocate) found in the United Kingdom, and the division of advocate and civil law notary in Italy and France. An additional factor which differentiates the American legal system from other countries is that there is no delegation of routine work to notaries public or their civil law equivalent.
Medical transcription is the process whereby one accurately and swiftly transcribes medical records dictated by doctors and others, including history and physical reports, clinic notes, office notes, operative reports, consultation notes, discharge summaries, letters, psychiatric evaluations, laboratory reports, x-ray reports and pathology reports.
It involves receiving dictation by tape, digital system or voice file, and using ear phones, a foot pedal for start-stop control and a word processing program. A variety of word-processing systems are used. It requires good listening and language skills, computer skills and knowledge of medical terms.
Several dictionaries are necessary: Medical definitions, medications, medical terms by specialty, laboratory terms, surgical terms and abbreviations. Specialized word lists are also helpful, and journals and computer networking are helpful for current information about new medications and terms. Transcription is done more efficiently with the use of a medical spellchecker and an extensive abbreviation system such as Instant Text or Smartype.
As an employee in an office or hospital, transcriptionists may be paid by the hour. In the year 2000 in the United States, a starting transcriptionist in an office may make the equivalent of $8-12 per hour. After two years of experience, one can expect to make the equivalent of $12-20 per hour in an office. National transcription companies usually require 1-5 years of hospital experience.
Statutory employee status is the same as independent contractor except that the company pays half of the FICA tax (about 7.5%) and withholds the other half. Independent contractors pay the 15% as self-employment tax. Self-employed transcriptionists provide their own benefits. They may start at the equivalent of $10-15 per hour (7-14c per line), and within several years can expect to earn $15-40 per hour, depending upon the type of work and equipment used. Quarterly payments on taxes and self-employment taxes are required. Equipment expenses are tax deductible, including a percentage of home expenses if working at home.
Cancer is a term used for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control and are able to invade other tissues. Cancer cells can spread to other parts of the body through the blood and lymph systems.
Cancer is not just one disease but many diseases. There are more than 100 different types of cancer. Most cancers are named for the organ or type of cell in which they start -- for example, cancer that begins in the colon is called colon cancer; cancer that begins in basal cells of the skin is called basal cell carcinoma.
Cancer types can be grouped into broader categories. The main categories of cancer include:
Carcinoma - cancer that begins in the skin or in tissues that line or cover internal organs.
Sarcoma - cancer that begins in bone, cartilage, fat, muscle, blood vessels, or other connective or supportive tissue.
Leukemia - cancer that starts in blood-forming tissue such as the bone marrow and causes large numbers of abnormal blood cells to be produced and enter the blood.
Lymphoma and myeloma - cancers that begin in the cells of the immune system.
Central nervous system cancers - cancers that begin in the tissues of the brain and spinal cord.
Origins of cancer
All cancers begin in cells, the body's basic unit of life. To understand cancer, it's helpful to know what happens when normal cells become cancer cells.
The body is made up of many types of cells. These cells grow and divide in a controlled way to produce more cells as they are needed to keep the body healthy. When cells become old or damaged, they die and are replaced with new cells.
However, sometimes this orderly process goes wrong. The genetic material (DNA) of a cell can become damaged or changed, producing mutations that affect normal cell growth and division. When this happens, cells do not die when they should and new cells form when the body does not need them. The extra cells may form a mass of tissue called a tumor
High blood pressure (hypertension) means high pressure or tension in the arteries. The arteries are the vessels that carry blood from the pumping heart to all of the tissues and organs of the body. Chronic high blood pressure is a "silent" condition. It can cause blood vessel changes in the back of the eye (retina), abnormal thickening of the heart muscle, kidney failure, and brain damage.
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