When someone accidentally crashes their car into the vehicle in front of them, they can still be held responsible – even though it was unintentional. But what about a felony? Can someone be held responsible for a felony that they didn’t mean to commit? Surprisingly, the answer is yes. The Felony Murder Rule When someone […]
You may be under the impression that bribery and extortion are the same things, but they are not. While many people use these terms interchangeably and they are both considered to be “white-collar” crimes often involving money, the elements of each are different. Extortion Extortion is a crime that involves demanding payment or compensation of […]
For more than 100 years it has been accepted that finding someone’s fingerprints at the scene of a crime means that they were in fact there. However, according to new research, this may or may not be the case. Per the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), fingerprint analysis may not be as […]
When someone has been accused of committing a crime, we often think of a defense as evidence that the person could not have or did not commit it. However, sometimes a defense to a criminal conviction is not that the defendant didn’t commit the act, but rather that he or she cannot be held morally […]
The crime of “breaking and entering” is as it sounds: going into someone else’s property (forcibly) without first receiving permission from those who reside there or own the property. But depending upon the type of property and the intent of the crime that was committed, you can be charged with either a misdemeanor or a […]
While you may think of “imprisoning” someone as locking them in a room, your actions need not be so extreme for you to be guilty of a crime. In North Carolina, the common law crime of false imprisonment is the unlawful restraint of another person. In order to be convicted of false imprisonment, the prosecution […]
Free speech is one thing that differentiates the United States from many other countries. Under the Bill of Rights, you are protected permitted and protected to speak your mind. However, not all speech is protected under the First Amendment. There are, in fact, certain types of speech that are illegal. One type of speech that […]
With the growth of the Internet and specifically social media, it’s extremely easy to connect with people across the world. However, what’s not as easy is knowing to whom you are actually speaking. “Catfishing,” or an interaction in which someone pretends to be someone else, can be extremely disheartening. But what many people fail to […]
Sometimes things happen that you didn’t mean to have happened. This sometimes even includes the outcome of criminal actions. While some people want to commit a crime, others want to commit a crime for the purpose of having something happen. This is the difference between general intent and specific intent respectively. Regardless of your full […]
Social media has become somewhat of a normal, daily activity. It has helped to shape our lives in many ways, connecting us to our jobs, our families, and our friends across the world. Through social media, we can meet others who share our favorite hobbies and interests and stay up-to-date on current events. Social media […]
