Criminal Law

This casebook offers both theoretical and practical treatment of criminal law, which helps students to understand the underlying principles and to relate them to real-life situations. Criminal Law introduces students to the criminal justice system, raises the question of why and how we punish, and provides a framework for classroom discussion of the relationship between the state and the individual. It covers a broad range of topics including many cutting-edge issues such as efforts by cities to prosecute homeless people for sleeping in public areas, assisted suicide, conspiracy and multiple defendant trials, rape (including date rape and post-penetration rape), attempted murder based on biting / spitting by AIDS patients, stand your ground statutes, battered victim syndrome, theft of computer services and information, and white collar crime.

Unlike many other casebooks that merely cite the Model Penal Code, Criminal Law discusses various state statutes, helping students to understand how similar crimes are treated in different jurisdictions. In addition, this book does contain numerous references throughout to the Model Penal Code and the various other proposed codes. The extent of editing of cases varies according to the principles being highlighted. Some cases that focus entirely on a particular issue are reproduced in full, while other cases are heavily edited to emphasize the key questions raised. This highly focused approach makes the cases, and the principles they illustrate, easier for students to comprehend.