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Infractions, which can also be called violations, are the least serious crimes and include minor offenses such as jaywalking and motor vehicle offenses that result in a simple traffic ticket. Infractions are generally punishable by a fine or alternative sentencing such as traffic school.
Figure 1.3 Diagram of Gradin
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Grading is based on the severity of punishment.
- Malum in se crimes are evil in their nature, like murder. Malum prohibitum crimes are regulatory, like a failure to pay income taxes.
- Felonies are graded the highest. Punishment options for felonies include the following:
- Execution
- Prison time
- Fines
- Alternative sentencing such as probation, rehabilitation, and home confinement
- Misdemeanors are graded lower than felonies. Punishment options for misdemeanors include the following:
- Jail time of one year or less per misdemeanor
- Fines
- Alternative sentencing such as probation, rehabilitation, and community service
- Felony-misdemeanors are punished as either a felony or a misdemeanor.
- Infractions, also called violations, are graded lower than misdemeanors and have less severe punishment options:
- Fines
- Alternative sentencing, such as traffic school
- One difference between jail and prison is that cities and counties operate jails, and the state or federal government operates prisons, depending on the crime. The restrictive nature of the confinement is another difference. Jails are for defendants who have committed less serious offenses, so they are generally less restrictive than prisons.
EXERCISES
Answer the following questions. Check your answers using the answer key at the end of the chapter.
- Harrison kills Calista and is prosecuted and sentenced to one year in jail. Did Harrison commit a felony or a misdemeanor?
- Read Statev. Gillison, 766 N.W. 2d 649 (2009). In Gillison, why did the Iowa Court of Appeals rule that the defendant’s prior convictions were felony convictions? What impact did this ruling have on the defendant’s sentence? The case is available at this link: http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=8913791129507413362&q=State+v.+Gillison&hl=en&as_sdt=2,5&as_vis=1.
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