Deck 2: Limitations on the Criminal Law

Question 1

The text that states "where the same act or transaction constitutes a violation of two distinct statutory provisions, the test to be applied to determine whether there are two offense or only one, is whether each requires proof of an additional fact, which the other does not" refers to which rule?

A)Burger rule
B)Blockburger rule
C)Blockbuster rule
D)Buster rule

Answer 1

B

Question 2

All of the following are exceptions in which re-prosecution for the same offense is permissible except for which of the following?

A)If a defendant successfully appeals a criminal conviction or otherwise succeeds in overturning a conviction.
B)If a case is dismissed by the judge but the defendant is not acquitted.
C)If a mistrial occurs over the defendant's objections and is a "manifest necessity."
D)The defense attorney fails to successfully appeal a criminal conviction.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

The First Amendment literally forbids the abridgement only of which action?

A)Oppression
B)Governmental control
C)Speech
D)Public meetings

Answer 3

C

Question 4

What is a system of government where power is constitutionally divided between a central governing body and various constituent units?

A)Legislativism
B)Regulatory
C)Federalism
D)Statehood

Question 5

An interpretation of the U.S. Constitution that suggests a system wherein the only powers vested in the federal government are those explicitly listed in the document, with the remaining powers being left to the states, is known as:

A)Triple federalism
B)Bi-federalism
C)Uni-federalism
D)Dual federalism

Question 6

The ruling in People v. Summers is based on which of the following?

A)The principle of lenity
B)The principle of leniency
C)The rule legality
D)The rule of limitations

Question 7

In what case did the Supreme Court sanction a conviction under a statute that prohibited "any offense, derisive, or annoying word" addressed to anyone in a public place?

A)Steward v.Kentucky
B)Burlinsky v.New York
C)Algeny v.Dallas
D)Chaplinsky v.New Hampshire

Question 8

Which law is designed to ensure that a person who has been convicted or acquitted of a crime is not tried or punished for the same offense twice?

A)Twice removed
B)Previous trial rule
C)Double jeopardy
D)Multiple jeopardy

Question 9

The principle of lenity is relates to which of the following?

A)The strict letter of the law
B)Lack of ambiguity
C)Ambiguity in a statute
D)Double jeopardy

Question 10

What law criminalizes conduct without the benefit of a trial?

A)Bill of attainment
B)Bill of attainder
C)Bill of addition
D)Bill of adversity

Question 11

What Amendment suggests that double jeopardy occurs when a person's "life or limb" is threatened?

A)First Amendment
B)Third Amendment
C)Fifth Amendment
D)None of the above

Question 12

What constitutional doctrine is based on the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution and requires that laws be written with sufficient clarity and specificity?

A)Void of definition
B)Void of action
C)Void of vagueness
D)Void of opportunity

Question 13

The Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits what two types of punishment?

A)Harsh, typical
B)Cruel, unusual
C)Cruel, justified
D)Cruel, mean

Question 14

The Eighth Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. Based on this, when is the death penalty not permissible?

A)Murderers who were younger than 19 years old at the time of the crime
B)Mentally retarded
C)Rape cases
D)All the above

Question 15

Ex post facto is a term based on laws enacted in order to retroactively punish behavior. What does this Latin term mean?

A)Prohibition
B)Before the fact
C)After the law
D)After the fact

Question 16

What is a system of government that lacks a strong central authority?

A)Specialization
B)Confederation
C)Federalism
D)Localism

Question 17

The U.S. Constitution divides governmental authority into what three branches?

A)Executive, legislative, and judicial
B)Executive, democratic, and governing
C)Democratic, judicial, and courts
D)Executive, ruling, and judicial

Question 18

What was the practical result of the Gregg decision?

A)The death penalty was abolished.
B)The death penalty was admonished.
C)The death penalty was reinstated.
D)The death penalty was reviewed.

Question 19

What laws that provide for the death penalty based on weighing aggravating and mitigating circumstances?

A)Guided-discretion
B)Government-discretion
C)Legislative-discretion
D)Judicial-discretion

Question 20

A bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself possesses which of the following?

A)Offensive, disagreeable
B)Meaningful, acceptable
C)Foreign, forbidden
D)Criminal, inhumane

Question 21

The 1970 California case Keeler v. Superior Court reviewed the determination of whether or not a fetus in the womb is considered a human being.

Question 22

There are seven constitutional limitations on the criminal law.

Question 23

The bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment is that the government may prohibit the expression of an idea because the majority of society finds the idea offensive.

Question 24

The Supreme Court decided in favor of the state in Solem v. Helm with a ruling that the verdict was not cruel and unusual punishment.

Question 25

What option do prosecutors have when searching for charges to file against alleged terrorists?

A)Using existing statutes not previously meant to target terrorists.
B)Creating a law that deals with each terrorist action as it arises.
C)Wait until lawmakers criminalize actions that are committed in furtherance of a criminal attack.
D)Both a and c

Question 26

The legality principle holds that crime does exist, even if a law does not exist to prohibit it.

Question 27

Members of the executive branch include all high-level officials except for the president and his cabinet.

Question 28

Double jeopardy protection does not extend to sentencing increases because of the lack of relevance to the verdict.

Question 29

A law enacted in order to retroactively punish behavior is known as the ex post factus law, which means "before the fact."

Question 30

The void for vagueness doctrine is based on the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment due process clauses.

Question 31

In Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire, the Supreme Court sanctioned a conviction under a statute that prohibited "any offense, derisive, or annoying word" addressed to anyone in a public place.

Question 32

Death penalty laws based on the presence of aggravating or mitigating circumstances are known as guided-discretion laws.

Question 33

New Mexico voted to abolish the death penalty in March 2009. However, the repeal was not retroactive and left two people on the state's death row.

Question 34

The U.S. Constitution's Fifteenth Amendment requires that, "no state shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Question 35

In States v. Ohio, it was determined that the practice of retrial serves defendants' rights as well as society's interests.

Question 36

Confederation is a system that is known to have a strong central government or authority.

Question 37

Today, every state provides double jeopardy protection because of the Supreme Court's decision in Benton v. Maryland, in which the Court declared that the Fifth Amendment's protection against double jeopardy is a fundamental right.

Question 38

In what case did the Supreme Court declare unconstitutional a statute that explicitly barred African Americans from jury service?

A)Stringer v.California
B)Strauder v.Virginia
C)Jones v.Texas
D)Mohammad v.Florida

Question 39

Which of the following is true about the Furman decision in Furman v. Georgia?

A)The decision was far-reaching.
B)The decision brought executions to a halt.
C)The decision emptied death rows across the country.
D)All the above

Question 40

The void and vagueness doctrine is based on the due process clauses of what Amendments?

A)Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments
B)Fourth and Fifth Amendments
C)Second and Fifth Amendments
D)Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments

Question 41

Discuss the Fourteenth Amendment and how it applies to equal protection under the law not only in federal government, but also in state and local governments.

Question 42

____________ is a clause in the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution requiring that the government justify any differential treatment on the basis of race, gender, age, sexual orientation, or other characteristic with a state interest.

Question 43

_____________ is a principle found in the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that prevents an individual from being tried twice for the same crime.

Question 44

In Beauharnais v. Illinois, a man was convicted under a __________ for distributing a leaflet that called for keeping African Americans out of white neighborhoods.

Question 45

The First Amendment literally forbids the abridgement only of ______________.

Question 46

The __________is often expressed through the Latin maxim " Nullemcrimen, nullapoena, sinelege." This translates into "There is no crime without law, no punishment without law."

Question 47

Sally Smith is a well-known thief that specializes in stealing checks from mailboxes as well as writing bogus checks for items from retail stores. Her violations ranged from $25 to $3000 worth of merchandise fraudulently purchased with stolen checks. Sally is arrested for the tenth time for committing this type of crime. She had stolen checks from a retired couple living in the country. The couple was easy prey. Sally simply dressed as if she were out for a jog along the roadside and stopped by the retired couple's house under the pretense of needing a glass of water. The retired couple allowed Sally to come into their house while she drank her water. Sally notices a checkbook lying on the kitchen counter and shoves it inside her t-shirt when the opportunity arises. Sally thanks the couple for the water and then walks down the road to her car. She returns to the metropolitan area and buys a $150 dress from a small store in a nearby mall. Sally is caught in the process. The district attorney decides to make an example of Sally and pursues the case in conjunction with 15 other similar cases filed against Sally. The district attorney pursues life imprisonment because of Sally being a habitual criminal that preys upon the elderly. Sally is convicted and receives a life sentence with parole after 15 years. Sally appeals her case based on the fact that the crime was only a misdemeanor offense. If this case makes it to the Supreme Court, what will be the probable outcome? If the outcome affirms the original sentence, explain why? If not, why? Do you agree that habitual misdemeanor criminals should receive harsh sentences?

Question 48

______________ is an interpretation of the U.S. Constitution that suggests a system wherein the only powers vested in the federal government are those explicitly listed in the document, with the remaining powers being left to the states.

Question 49

Common law offers one distinct advantage in that it offers a means of punishing inappropriate conduct that legislatures could not have anticipated or made criminal.

Question 50

Alberto attended a demonstration by Mexican-Americans in Douglas, Arizona, which was held to demonstrate against laws allowing law enforcement officers to stop any vehicle occupied by Mexican-Americans without probable cause for the purpose of verification of U.S. citizenship. During the demonstration, Alberto lowered an American flag that was flying in front of a private business. Alberto removed the flag and tossed it onto the ground. He then soaked the flag in lighter fluid and set fire to the flag. Alberto taunted anyone standing around or passing by in a motor vehicle to stop him from committing the act. What crime or crimes did Alberto commit? What charges may be filed against Alberto, if any? Would any American be within his or her rights to physically assault Alberto in attempt to stop him from removing the flag from the flagpole or from setting fire to the flag? If not, what charges could be filed against anyone who chose to comply with Alberto's taunt and engage him in a physical altercation? In your opinion, should a person be allowed to burn or desecrate the American flag or any state flag? If so, why? If not, why?

Question 51

In many states verbal provocation is insufficient grounds for assault. Discuss fighting words and threats to peace. How have federal and state governments dealt with this situation?

Question 52

Discuss the ex post facto law prohibition and how it applies to criminal cases in today's courts. Additionally, give examples of cases where ex post facto has been a factor.

Question 53

Taken to the extreme, the ___________ can be used to interpret a statute in a manner that is at odds with legislative intent.

Question 54

The advantage of the legality principle is that a criminal code provides _____________ notice to the people of what behavior is illegal.

Question 55

____________ is a law that criminalizes conduct without the benefit of a trial.

Question 56

The system of government in the United States is a system of dual federalism. Discuss how this system realistically applies to the U.S. court system. Additionally, compare dual federalism with confederation.

Question 57

The U.S. Constitution divides governmental authority into three branches: ___________, __________________, and ______________.

Question 58

The drug trade from Central and South America is causing a _________ in criminal activity in New Mexico.

Question 59

In Blockburger v. United States, the ____________ _________developed a test that states that "[w]here the same act or transaction constitutes a violation of two distinct statutory provisions, the test to be applied to determine whether there are two offenses or only one, is whether each requires proof of an additional fact, which the other does not."