Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
In modern politics, "law and order" is an ideological approach focusing on harsher enforcement and penalties as ways to reduce crime. [1] Penalties for perpetrators of disorder may include longer terms of imprisonment, mandatory sentencing , three-strikes laws and even capital punishment in some countries.
A criminal charge is a formal accusation made by a governmental authority (usually a public prosecutor or the police) asserting that somebody has committed a crime. A charging document, which contains one or more criminal charges or counts, can take several forms, including: complaint; information; indictment; citation; traffic ticket
Peine forte et dure (Law French for "forceful and hard punishment") was a method of torture formerly used in the common law legal system, in which a defendant who refused to plead ("stood mute") would be subjected to having heavier and heavier stones placed upon his or her chest until a plea was entered, or as the weight of the stones on the chest became too great for the condemned to breathe ...
State law currently allows private citizens the right to press charges under certain circumstances. In Alabama, a citizen or "victim" who has probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed can directly go to court and sign an arrest warrant before a magistrate, without the police or a judge's approval.
In common law, the principle of prosecutorial discretion allows public prosecutors a wide latitude to decide whether or not to charge a person for a crime, and which charges to file. [1] A similar principle in continental law countries is called the principle of opportunity .
In federal law, crimes constituting obstruction of justice are defined primarily in Chapter 73 of Title 18 of the United States Code. [ 7 ] [ 8 ] This chapter contains provisions covering various specific crimes such as witness tampering and retaliation, jury tampering , destruction of evidence , assault on a process server , and theft of court ...
Police misconduct is inappropriate conduct and illegal actions taken by police officers in connection with their official duties. Types of misconduct include among others: sexual offences, coerced false confession, intimidation, false arrest, false imprisonment, falsification of evidence, spoliation of evidence, police perjury, witness tampering, police brutality, police corruption, racial ...
A warrant is generally an order that serves as a specific type of authorization, that is, a writ issued by a competent officer, usually a judge or magistrate, that permits an otherwise illegal act that would violate individual rights in order to enforce the law and aid in investigations; affording the person executing the writ protection from damages if the act is performed.