Deck 1: Foundations of Criminal Law

Question 1

If,upon conviction,a criminal defendant is ordered to pay a monetary fine,what is the disposition of that fine?

A)The fine is split 50/50 between the government and the victim of the crime.
B)The victim of the crime receives all of the fine in property crimes but none of the fine in crimes against the person.
C)The government receives the entire amount of the fine.
D)The trial judge decides who will receive the fine money.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The unwritten Common Law crimes have been statutorily abolished in Texas.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

No crime may be prosecuted without the consent of the human victim of the illegal conduct.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

In classifying crimes,an offense which potentially requires incarceration in a penitentiary is known as a:

A)breach of the peace.
B)crime involving moral turpitude.
C)felony.
D)misprision offense.

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT a stated purpose of the Texas Penal Code? Select the exception.

A)insuring public safety by the rehabilitation of criminal offenders
B)insuring public safety by incarcerating violent offenders
C)insuring public safety by deterring criminal conduct
D)safeguarding conduct that is without guilt from condemnation as criminal

Question 6

An offense that imports an act of baseness,vileness,or depravity which is contrary to usual and accepted rights and duties of a citizen is called a(n):

A)secular offense.
B)crime involving moral turpitude.
C)ipso facto offense.
D)ecclesiastical offense.

Question 7

For a Texas criminal statute to apply to an individual's conduct,the conduct must have:

A)occurred within the state.
B)occurred outside the state but caused a harmful result within the state.
C)either a or b above.
D)both occurred within the state and caused a harmful result within the state.

Question 8

A Texas criminal statute can apply to conduct that occurred in another state or foreign country:

A)never.
B)only if the offender is a Texas resident.
C)only if the offender returns to Texas after commission of the crime.
D)only if the conduct or result that is an element of the offense occurred in Texas.

Question 9

The 8?? Amendment to the U.S.Constitution prohibits punishment for a crime that is:

A)disproportionate to the crime committed.
B)unique to a particular state.
C)cruel or unusual.
D)embarrassing to the defendant.

Question 10

Which of the following offenses is a form of malum prohibitum crime?

A)arson
B)shoplifting
C)perjury
D)parking violation

Question 11

In the Texas justice system,responsibility for the prosecution of a criminal case lies with the:

A)police.
B)district or county attorney.
C)victim.
D)Attorney General.

Question 12

An important concept in American criminal law is the principle of stare decisis.A synonym for the principle of stare decisis is:

A)the rule of primogeniture.
B)the rule of legal precedent.
C)the rule in Shelly's case.
D)the rule of three.

Question 13

In Texas,all crimes are created and defined by some level of governmental entity.

Question 14

The U.S.Constitution specifically prohibits the enactment of:

A)ex parte laws.
B)ex post facto laws.
C)extraneous laws.
D)extracurricular laws.

Question 15

Which of the following factors is a required component of a criminal prosecution?

A)In a crime a specific person must be identified as the victim of the conduct.
B)The legislature or a court must have declared the conduct to be a crime prior to its occurrence.
C)The government prosecutor is responsible for moving the case forward.
D)A human victim must sign a sworn complaint before prosecution may commence.

Question 16

Which of the following is a stated purpose of the Texas Penal Code?

A)to punish persons who violate the rules of society
B)to insure the public safety by incarcerating those individuals that reject majority rule.
B)to punish corporations who create dangers to the public health and welfare
C)to guide and limit the exercise of official discretion by law enforcement

Question 17

Murder and theft are examples of malum in se crimes.

Question 18

Which of the following historical legal systems most strongly influenced American criminal law?

A)English Common Law
B)German Civil Code
C)Code of Hammurabi
D)Ten Commandments

Question 19

Criminal laws enacted by Texas municipalities are known as:

A)home rule statutes.
B)municipal decrees.
C)collateral offenses.
D)city ordinances.

Question 20

The primary historical foundation of Texas criminal law is the Code Napoléon used in 19?? century Spain.

Question 21

If a particular criminal law lacks the support of the bulk of the population,the courts will generally ignore the law.

Question 22

The principle of __________ means that no crime occurs without the existence of a previously enacted law.

Question 23

In addition to its Anglo-American legal heritage,the laws of Texas have been somewhat influenced by the laws of the countries of ____________ and __________.

Question 24

The 8?? Amendment requires the states to formally adopt a set of sentencing goals and then adhere to those goals when imposing criminal sentences.

Question 25

One stated objective of the Texas Penal Code is to insure the public safety through the rehabilitation of offenders.

Question 26

By state constitutional mandate,the specific phrase (8 words)must appear in all Texas indictments.

Question 27

For Texas to exercise jurisdiction over a crime,only a single element of the offense need occur with the state.

Question 28

The use of enhanced punishments for repeat offenders is based on the specific deterrence theory of criminal law.

Question 29

A (2 words)offense is one that is NOT naturally evil but is made unlawful solely by legislation.

Question 30

If a criminal statute fails to provide the kind of notice that will enable the ordinary person to understand what the law prohibits,the statute violates the (3 words)doctrine.

Question 31

The primary purpose of the Texas Penal Code is to punish individuals who violate the statutes contained in the code.

Question 32

For a crime to be categorized as a breach of the peace,sufficient noise must be created that would disturb the reasonable person under same or similar circumstances.

Question 33

Texas was an early participant in the 19?? century ___________ movement to clearly spell out in written form the definition of criminal offenses.

Question 34

In America,criminal offenses are generally divided into two categories based on severity: felonies and ______________.

Question 35

The use of discretion by the police when enforcing the criminal law is legally permissible.

Question 36

One goal of the Texas Penal Code is (2 words),which seeks to encourage conformance with the law by threatening a penalty for violating the law.

Question 37

Texas asserts jurisdiction over any crime committed against a resident of Texas no matter where in the United States the crime occurred.

Question 38

The extent of Texas' criminal jurisdiction into the Gulf of Mexico is limited by federal law to three miles from the mean high tide line.

Question 39

The __________ doctrine is whereby a higher level government entity assumes total authority for lawmaking responsibility regarding a particular topic.

Question 40

Because of concerns by elected officials that newly enacted laws enjoy popular support,it is accurate to say the lawmaking is a ___________ process.

Question 41

List and briefly describe the three objectives of the Texas Penal Code that seek to insure the public safety.

Question 42

The territorial waters of Texas extend three ______ into the Gulf of Mexico.

Question 43

Select one of the statutory purposes of the Texas Penal Code.Discuss how well this purpose is achieved in day-to-day society.

Question 44

List and explain the primary attributes of a crime.

Question 45

What would be the likely result of enactment of a criminal law that is not supported by the bulk of the population? Provide an example to support your answer.

Question 46

With the exception of ______ cases,courts have generally deferred to legislative bodies to determine the appropriate penalty for criminal offenses.

Question 47

Identify and briefly discuss three legal limits on the creation of a criminal statute.

Question 48

The land,water,and airspace above the land and water where Texas statutes are enforceable is known as the ___________ jurisdiction of the state.

Question 49

One purpose of criminal law is to deter the commission of criminal offenses.In your view,how much does the threat of punishment deter you from engaging in undesirable social behavior?