Why We Have Laws Chapter 19

Essential Questions Are laws necessary for our society to function? How do morals and values influence lawmaking? What role do judges play in changing the law? Why do we have separate criminal and civil justice systems?

Purposes of Law: 1. The need for order Tell people what they may or may not do EX: Gasoline pumps or Evidence in trials 2. Protecting lives and property EX: Physical attacks (murder) or Ideas/Inventions 3. Protecting freedom and society EX: Bill of Rights or Restaurant Standards *Criminal and Civil law also have a purpose*

Laws and Morals Morals: beliefs about what is fair and what is right or wrong Civil disobedience: breaking the law in a nonviolent way because it goes against personal morals How do these two definitions influence laws?

Laws Made by Legislature Statutes: written laws made by legislatures (government bodies) Laws passed by Congress reflect basic values shared by Americans Laws passed by state or local governments reflect the basic values shared by a specific group of people EX: when people believed in witchcraft, there were laws against casting spells that would cause harm.

Judges Common law: a body of law based on a judge’s decisions Common law came from England. Used as precedent (do you remember this?) Changed to fit American society Ex: under English common law, it was illegal for a landowner to interfere with the natural flow of a stream. However, in America, water power was used to run factories. American judges began to change the law to fit this need. Can you think of other examples?

Organization of Laws There are so many laws, how do we keep them straight? Legal code: a written collection of laws, often organized by subject Ex: traffic laws = state motor vehicle code History of legal code The Code of Hammurabi carved into stone tablets (eye for an eye) Draconian (most crimes punished by death)

Changing the Law In the U.S., citizens have final say on all laws Add, change or remove any law (amending the Constitution, doing away with a local ordinance) Laws that last are seen as fair, reasonable, and understandable by the majority of the people

Criminal Law Crime: any behavior that is illegal because the government considers it harmful to society Each law must define a behavior and state how it may be punished Criminal Law: the group of laws that tell which acts are crimes, how accused persons should be tried in court, and how crimes should be punished

Criminal Law Purpose: to protect society as a whole Criminal law must set fair and reasonable penalties. Many crimes have minimum and maximum penalties Allows for people guilty of the same crime to be punished depending on the case What would be an example?

Criminal Law Two categories of crime: Felony: a serious crime for which the penalty can be imprisonment for more than one year Ex: kidnapping and murder Misdemeanor: a less serious crime for which the penalty is often a fine Ex: littering, driving without a license

Civil Law Civil law: a group of laws that help settle disputes between people Purpose: provide rules for people to settle disagreements in court if they cannot settle them privately

Criminal and Civil Law Some situations involve both criminal and civil law Ex: drunk driver without car insurance hits a woman on the street Criminal: punish the driver for drunk driving Civil: court forces the driver to pay the woman’s medical bills Try on your own: illegally copied DVD’s Criminal? Civil?