The felony murder doctrine is one of the most widely criticized features of American criminal law. Legal scholars almost unanimously condemn it as irrational, concluding that it imposes punishment without fault and presumes guilt without proof. Despite this, the law persists in almost every U.S. jurisdiction. Felony Murder is the first book on this controversial legal doctrine. It shows that felony murder liability rests on a simple and powerful idea: that the guilt incurred in attacking or endangering others depends on one's reasons for doing so. Inflicting harm is wrong, and doing so for a bad motive—such as robbery, rape, or arson—aggravates that wrong. In presenting this idea, Guyora Binder criticizes prevailing academic theories of criminal intent for trying to purge criminal law of moral judgment. Ultimately, Binder shows that felony murder law has been and should remain limited by its justifying aims.

-A Mike Daley/Rosie Fernandez novel---Cover.

Distributive principles of criminal law -- Habitual offender statutes -- Death penalty -- Legality requirement -- Provocation/extreme emotional disturbance -- Felony murder -- Causation -- Transferred intent -- Consent to injury -- Mental illness negating an offense element (MINOE) -- Attempt -- Complicity -- Complicity liability of co-conspirators -- Lesser evils/necessity defense -- Self-defense -- Law enforcement authority -- Insanity defense -- Immaturity defense -- Statute of limitations -- Exclusionary rule -- Entrapment defense -- Criminalizing risk creation -- Statutory rape -- Domestic violence, spousal rape exemption -- Stalking and harassment -- Child neglect -- Deceptive business practices -- Extortion -- Adultery -- Criminal obscenity -- Child pornography -- Drug offenses -- Firearms possession offenses -- Antitrust predatory pricing -- Organized crime -- Fixing sporting events -- Extradition -- Jurisdiction

Real stories. Real teens. Real crimes. A backyard brawl turned media circus filled with gang accusations turns a small, quiet town upside down in this second book in the new Simon True series. On May 22, 1995 at 7 p.m. sixteen-year-old Jimmy Farris and seventeen-year-old Mike McLoren were working out outside Mike’s backyard fort. Four boys hopped the fence, and a fight broke out inside the dark fort made of two-by-four planks and tarps. Within minutes, both Mike and Jimmy had been stabbed. Jimmy died a short time later. While neighbors knew that the fort was a local hangout where drugs were available, the prosecution depicted the four defendants as gang members, and the crime as gang related. The accusations created a media circus, and added fuel to the growing belief that this affluent, safe, all-white neighborhood was in danger of a full-blown gang war. Four boys stood trial. All four boys faced life sentences. Why? Because of California’s Felony Murder Rule. The law states that “a death is considered first degree murder when it is commissioned during one of the following felonies: Arson, Rape, Carjacking, Robbery, Burglary, Mayhem, Kidnapping.” In other words, if you—or somebody you are with—intends to commit a felony, and somebody accidentally dies in the process, all parties can be tried and convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life without parole, even if nobody had any intention of committing a murder. What really happened that day? Was it a case of robbery gone wrong? Gang activity? Or was it something else?

An award-winning journalist and producer of This American Life traces the stories of five convicted murderers to assess their struggles for redemption, efforts toward parole and first steps in transitioning back to civilian life. 25,000 first printing.

This author team had students in mind when they wrote the book on Criminal Law. Criminal Law: Core Concepts uses examples and case excerpts that are interesting and informative, along with logically organized, plain-English discussion of the Model Penal Code. This is the basis for developing a solid understanding of criminal law concepts. One look inside this book and you ll notice that every page promises unobstructed learning. You ll see an uncluttered page design, uncluttered coverage, writing uncluttered by legalese, and case excerpts uncluttered by extraneous detail Everything in this book serves a purpose. Criminal Law: Core Concepts features: A commitment to clarity, reflected in the writing style, organization, pedagogy, and design Shrewd case editing that hones in on salient themes and principles Engaging and informative examples throughout the text Plain English discussion of the Model Penal Code Timely coverage of contemporary topics, such as street crime

Why do killers deserve punishment? How should the law decide? These are the questions Samuel H. Pillsbury seeks to answer in this important new book on the theory and practice of criminal responsibility. In an argument both traditional and fresh, Pillsbury holds that persons deserve punishment according to the evil they choose to do, regardless of their psychological capacities. After considering potential objections to this approach, including those based on determinism, unjust social conditions, and the alleged cruelty of retribution, he presents an extended critique of American homicide law. Using real case examples, Pillsbury offers concrete proposals for legal reform, urging that modern preoccupations with subjective aspects of wrongdoing be replaced with rules that focus more on the individual's motives.

Crime Scene Photography is a book wrought from years of experience, with material carefully selected for ease of use and effectiveness in training, and field tested by the author in his role as a Forensic Services Supervisor for the Baltimore County Police Department.While there are many books on non-forensic photography, none of them adequately adapt standard image-taking to crime scene photography. The forensic photographer, or more specifically the crime scene photographer, must know how to create an acceptable image that is capable of withstanding challenges in court. This book blends the practical functions of crime scene processing with theories of photography to guide the reader in acquiring the skills, knowledge and ability to render reliable evidence. - Required reading by the IAI Crime Scene Certification Board for all levels of certification - Contains over 500 photographs - Covers the concepts and principles of photography as well as the "how to" of creating a final product - Includes end-of-chapter exercises

This open access book is the culmination of many years of research on what happened to the bodies of executed criminals in the past. Focusing on the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, it looks at the consequences of the 1752 Murder Act. These criminal bodies had a crucial role in the history of medicine, and the history of crime, and great symbolic resonance in literature and popular culture. Starting with a consideration of the criminal corpse in the medieval and early modern periods, chapters go on to review the histories of criminal justice, of medical history and of gibbeting under the Murder Act, and ends with some discussion of the afterlives of the corpse, in literature, folklore and in contemporary medical ethics. Using sophisticated insights from cultural history, archaeology, literature, philosophy and ethics as well as medical and crime history, this book is a uniquely interdisciplinary take on a fascinating historical phenomenon.