What Is the Exclusionary Rule? What Are Common Situations Where It Applies? Are There Exceptions? How Has It Changed Criminal Law? One of the hallmarks of American democracy is the right of citizens to be free from unreasonable search or seizure, as ... [Read more...]
Criminal Law
False Imprisonment: Protecting Yourself Against Wrongful Detention
What Is False Imprisonment? What Are the Potential Remedies? Are There Exceptions to the Rule? As humans, one of our most cherished freedoms is the freedom of movement, to be able to go to the places we are legally allowed to go. Accordingly, when ... [Read more...]
Lying Under Oath: The True Penalty for Perjury
What Is Perjury? What Must the Prosecutor Prove? What Are the Penalties? In the legal system, oral and written testimony plays a critical role in the outcome of a criminal or civil matter. The effectiveness of the American legal system depends, to a ... [Read more...]
What Is Second-Degree Murder?
How Does It Differ From Other Forms of Murder? What Are the Potential Penalties? The intentional killing of another person—commonly referred to as murder—is generally prosecuted under state law, though there are limited situations where murder can ... [Read more...]
What Is Homicide?
How Does the Law Define Homicide? What Are the Different Types of Homicide? The killing of another human being has been considered a crime for most of recorded history. The Code of Hammurabi, estimated to have been written nearly two thousand years ... [Read more...]
Bail Bondsmen-How They Get You Out of Jail
What Is a Bail Bond? How Does the Bail Bond Process Work? With certain types of criminal offenses, you can be incarcerated with a requirement that you deposit a certain amount of money with the court, known as bail. Bail is a tool used by the ... [Read more...]
Grand Jury Indictment
What Is a Grand Jury Indictment and How Does It Work? Often, when a particular legal matter is getting a lot of press, there will be reports of grand jury proceedings and whether the grand jury has "returned an indictment." What is a grand jury ... [Read more...]
Obstruction of Justice—What Does It Mean for You?
A Basic Understanding of the Often-Heard Legal Charge If you've watched many police or courtroom shows, you've most likely heard the term "obstruction of justice" bandied about by a law enforcement officer or prosecutor. What is obstruction of ... [Read more...]
Understanding Jury Nullification
What Is It? When Is It Permissible? What Arguments Can Be Made for and Against the Practice? In the American legal system, when determining the outcome of a criminal matter, a jury is commonly directed to return a guilty verdict if the prosecution ... [Read more...]
What Does Homicide Mean?
How Does the Law Define Homicide? What Are the Different Types of Homicide? What Defenses Are Available for a Homicide Charge? The term "homicide," derived from the Latin words homo (man) and cidium (the act of killing), is commonly used in the ... [Read more...]