PEARSON EDUCATION Basic Criminal Law: The Constitution, Procedure, and Crimes

For courses in criminal law and criminal procedure (as well as supplementary readings in constitutional law) in the paralegal and more general criminal justice programs. This text guides students through three basic aspects of criminal law: the history of criminal law, the crimes themselves, and specific legal procedures. Offering a new organization, it presents crimes first and then procedures and highlights current events and caselaw throughout. This edition features a new integrative case study, new You Make the Call exercises, and original source material to support classroom discussion and debate. By addressing the fundamentals of criminal law history, the Constitution, and even how media coverage impacts criminal proceedings, students can begin to explore the law in their jurisdiction and build upon the fundamental knowledge this book delivers. From the Back Cover Basic Criminal Law: The Constitution, Procedure, and Crimes, Second Edition Designed for undergraduate legal studies programs this edition of Basic Criminal Law: The Constitution, Procedure, and Crimes provides students with an up-to-date look at the American criminal justice system–both the law and legal procedures.  This new edition also provides examples of where the system fails to live up to its ideals and the lessons learned from these mistakes. Ultimately, this book seeks to show a criminal justice system run by human beings with all the idealism and folly that it entails.  NEW TO THIS EDITION•           New organization builds a sound theoretical base before applying legal procedures •           Many up-to-date integrative cases throughout the text show the best and the worst of the American criminal justice system •           Real court documents included in the case examples will familiarize students with documents they will use in the real world•           Historical Highlight boxes show the historical basis for the Anglo-American legal concepts and their current applications•           You Make the Call scenarios allow students to use their critical thinking abilities to resolve real-life challenges•           Key terms now appear in the margins and are also provided in a glossary at the end of the book for easy reference