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General term for physical or mental
mistreatment.
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Child Abuse
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An intentional or
neglectful physical or emotional injury imposed on a child,
including sexual molestation.
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Sexual Abuse
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An illegal sex act, especially
one performed against a minor by an adult. The term is usually
applied to contact not amounting to rape. and is typically divided
into degrees according to the nature and circumstances of the
contact.
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Spousal Abuse
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Physical, sexual, or
psychological abuse inflicted by one spouse on the other spouse. |
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| Arson
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Malicious burning to destroy
property.
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| Assault
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The threat or use of force on
another that causes that person to have a reasonable apprehension of
imminent harmful or offensive contact; the act of putting another
person in reasonable fear or apprehension of an immediate battery by
means of an act amounting to an attempt or threat to commit a battery. |
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Assault With
Intent |
Any of several assaults that
are carried out with an additional criminal purpose in mind, such
as assault with intent to murder, assault with intent to rob,
assault with intent to rape, and assault with intent to inflict
great bodily injury. |
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Attempted Assault |
An attempt to commit an
assault. |
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Sexual Assault |
1. Sexual
intercourse with another person without that person's consent.
2.
Offensive sexual contact with another person, exclusive of rape. |
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Aggravated Assault |
Criminal assault accompanied by
circumstances that make it more severe, such as the use of a
deadly weapon, the intent to commit another crime, or the intent
to cause serious bodily harm.
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Assault and
Battery |
Assault in conjunction with
actual battery.
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Assault
With A Deadly Weapon |
An aggravated assault in which
the defendant, controlling a deadly weapon, threatens the victim
with death or serious bodily injury.
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| Battery
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The application of force to
another, resulting in harmful or offensive contact.
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| Bribery
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The corrupt payment, receipt, or
solicitation of a private favor for official action.
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| Crimes
against a Child
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Child Enticement |
Attempting to entice, lure, tempt,
or persuade any child to enter, leave, or stay in any building,
vehicle, or place if such act is done with the use of force or with
the intent to commit rape, indecent assault, battery, dissemination of
material harmful to children, unnatural and lascivious acts, indecent
exposure, or other sexual offenses.
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Child Exploitation |
The hiring, employment, persuasion,
inducement, or coercion of child to perform in obscene exhibitions and
incident shows, whether live, on video or film, or to pose or act as a
model in obscene or pornographic materials, or to sell or distribute
said materials.
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Child Pornography |
Any visual depiction of actual or
simulated sexual conduct by an individual under the age of 18 or
lascivious exhibition of the pubic area of such an individual. Courts
have held that such material my be banned even if it is not legally
obscene and does not involve nudity.
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Child Procurement |
The act of arranging or instigating
a meeting with a child for the purpose of having sexual relations.
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| Counterfeiting
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The forging, copying, or imitating
of something (usually money) without a right to do so and with the
purpose of deceiving or defrauding.
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| Cyber crimes |
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Cybersquatting
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The act of reserving a domain
name on the Internet, especially a name that would be associated
with a company's trademark, and then seeking to profit by selling
or licensing the name to the company that has an interest in being
identified with it.
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Cyberstalking
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The act of threatening,
harassing, or annoying someone through multiple email messages, as
through the Internet, especially with the intent of placing the
recipient in fear that an illegal act or an injury will be
inflicted on the recipient or a member of the recipient's family
or household.
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Cybertheft
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The act of using an online
computer service, such as one on the Internet, to steal someone
else's property or to interfere with someone else's use and
enjoyment of property.
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e-mail Interception
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The act of reading, storing, or
intercepting email intended for another person without that
person's permission.
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Internet Fraud
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Internet fraud generally refers
to any type of fraudulent use of a computer and the Internet,
including the use of chat rooms, email, message boards, discussion
groups and web sites, to conduct fraudulent transactions, transmit
the proceeds of fraud to financial institutions, or to steal,
destroy or otherwise render unusable (the proliferation of viruses
for example) computer data vital to the operation of a business.
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Telemarketing
Fraud
|
Telemarketing Fraud is a term
that refers generally to any scheme to deprive victims dishonestly
of money or property or to misrepresent the values of goods or
services. |
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| Domestic Violence
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Violence between members of a
household, usually spouses; an assault or other violent act committed
by one member of a household against another.
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| Drug Crimes
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The definitions below encompass
both drugs and drug paraphernalia.
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Cultivation
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The growing of organic drugs or
their precursors, e.g. marijuana, coca, opium poppies, etc.
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Distribution
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The act selling or trading
drugs.
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Manufacturing
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Includes the creation of
synthetic drugs and the act of isolating drug compounds from
organic sources.
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Possession
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Having drugs or drug
paraphernalia on one's person.
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Possession for
Sale
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The possession of drugs in
quantities sufficient for resale.
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Prescription Fraud
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The act of obtaining
prescription (legal) drugs through forged or stolen prescriptions.
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Trafficking
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The act of transferring drugs
from one location to another, usually on behalf of a second party. |
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| Embezzlement
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The illegal transfer of money or
property that, although possessed legally by the embezzler, is
diverted to the embezzler personally by his or her fraudulent action.
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| Extortion
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Obtaining money or property by
threat to a victim's property or loved ones, intimidation, or false
claim of a right (such as pretending to be an IRS agent).
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| Failure To Register
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Failure to register as a sex
offender.
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| Forgery
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The act of fraudulently making a
false document or altering a real one to be used as if genuine.
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| Fraud
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A knowing misrepresentation of the
truth or concealment of a material fact to induce another to act to
his or her detriment.
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Actual Fraud
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A concealment or false
representation through a statement or conduct that injures another
who relies on it in acting.
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Bank Fraud
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The criminal offense of
knowingly executing, or attempting to execute, a scheme or
artifice to defraud a financial institution, or to obtain property
owned by or under the control of a financial institution, by means
of false or fraudulent pretenses, representation, or promises.
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Bankruptcy Fraud
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The act of filing a false
bankruptcy claim.
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Civil Fraud
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An intentional—but not
willful—evasion of taxes.
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Constructive Fraud
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Unintentional deception or
misrepresentation that causes injury to another.
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Credit Card Fraud
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Examples of Credit Card Fraud
include: Illegal counterfeiting of credit cards, the use of lost
or stolen credit cards, and obtaining credit cards fraudulently
through the mail.
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Criminal Fraud
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The willful evasion of taxes
accomplished by filing a fraudulent tax return.
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Extrinsic Fraud
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Deception that is collateral to
the issues being considered in the case; intentional
misrepresentation or deceptive behavior outside the transaction
itself, depriving one party of informed consent or full
participation.
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Health Care Fraud
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Any scheme involving the health
care industry that is designed for illegal financial gain,
including: Billing for services not rendered, inflating the cost
of the service provided, the deliberate sale of medically
unnecessary services, and the payment of "kickbacks," or
illegal payments designed to guarantee awarding of a contract or
the exclusive right to provide a service.
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Insurance Fraud
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Fraud committed against an
insurer, as when an insured lies on a policy application or
fabricates a claim.
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Intrinsic Fraud
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Deception that pertains to an
issue involved in an original action. Examples include the
use of fabricated evidence, a false return of service, perjured
testimony, and false receipts or other commercial documents.
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Investment Fraud
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This form of fraud occurs when
an advisor, stockbroker, or brokerage firm offers investors
biased, unfounded, or contradictory investment advice out of a
conflict of interest.
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Mail Fraud
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An act of fraud using the U.S.
Postal Service, as in making false representations through the
mail to obtain an economic advantage.
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Promissory Fraud
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A promise to perform made when
the promissor had no intention of performing the promise.
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Securities Fraud
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The crime of
knowingly making any materially misleading statement, or failing to
disclose a material fact, in connection with the purchase or sale of a
security. |
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Tax Fraud
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See Tax Fraud
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Wire Fraud
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An act of fraud using
electronic communications, as by making false representations on
the telephone to obtain money. |
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| Hate Crimes
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A hate crime, generally, refers to
a crime committed not out of animosity toward a victim as an
individual, but out of hostility toward the group to which the victim
belongs. |
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| Homicide
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The killing of one person by
another. This is the generic legal term for killing a person, whether
lawfully or unlawfully. Unlawful homicide comprises the two crimes of
murder and manslaughter.
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Criminal Homicide
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Homicide prohibited and
punishable by law, such as murder or manslaughter.
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Excusable Homicide
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Homicide resulting from a
person's lawful act, committed without intention to harm another.
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Justifiable
Homicide
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The killing of
another in
self-defense when faced with the danger of death or serious bodily
injury. (same as excusable homicide)
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Negligent Homicide
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Homicide resulting from the
careless performance of a legal or illegal act in which the danger
of death is apparent; the killing of a human being by criminal
negligence.
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Reckless Homicide
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The unlawful killing of another
person with conscious indifference toward that person's life.
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Vehicular Homicide
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The killing of another person
by one's unlawful or negligent operation of a motor vehicle. |
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| Identity Theft
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Identity Theft primarily involves
either "true name" or "account takeover" fraud.
With "true name" someone uses a consumer's personal
information to open new accounts in his or her name. With
"account takeover" someone gains access to a person's
existing account(s) and makes fraudulent charges. Another form of
identity theft occurs when a criminal provides a victim's personal
information to law enforcement when the criminal gets arrested. The
victim may then have a criminal record or outstanding warrants
attached to their name without even realizing it.
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| Indecent Exposure
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An offensive display of one's own
body in public, especially of the genitals.
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| Lewdness
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Gross, wanton, and public indecency
that is outlawed by many state statutes; a sexual act that the actor
knows will likely be observed by someone who will be affronted or
alarmed by it.
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| Mayhem
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Dismemberment or permanent disfigurement.
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| Manslaughter
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The unlawful killing of a human
being without malice aforethought.
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Involuntary
Manslaughter
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Homicide in which there is no
intention to kill or do grievous bodily harm, but that is
committed with criminal negligence or during the commission of a
crime not included within the felony-murder rule.
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Voluntary
manslaughter
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An act of murder reduced to
manslaughter because of extenuating circumstances such as adequate
provocation (arousing the "heat of passion") or
diminished capacity. |
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| Molestation
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1. The persecution
or harassment of someone, as in the molestation of a witness.
2.
The act of making unwanted and indecent advances to or on someone,
especially for sexual gratification.
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Child Molestation
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Any indecent or sexual activity
on, involving, or surrounding a child, usually under the age of
14. |
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| Money Laundering
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The federal crime of transferring
illegally obtained money through legitimate persons or accounts so
that its original source cannot be traced. |
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| Murder
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The killing of a human being with
malice aforethought.
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Depraved-heart
murder |
A murder resulting from an act
so reckless and careless of the safety of others that it
demonstrates the perpetrator's complete lack of regard for human
life.
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Felony Murder
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Murder that occurs during the
commission of a felony.
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First-degree
murder
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Murder that is willful,
deliberate, or premeditated, or that is committed during the
course of another serious felony (often limited to rape,
kidnapping, robbery, burglary, or arson).
• All murder perpetrated by poisoning or by lying in wait is
considered first-degree murder.
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Second-degree
murder
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Murder that is not aggravated
by any of the circumstances of first-degree murder. |
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| Obscenity
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Any form of expression, such as a
book, painting, photograph, movie, or play, that deals with sex in a
way that is regarded as so offensive as to be beyond the protection of
the constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech. Under the most
recent of the Supreme Court's efforts to define obscenity, the term
applies to material that appeals to prurient interest, depicts, or
describes sexual conduct in a way that is patently offensive, and
lacks "serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific
value."
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| Pandering
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1. The act or
offense of recruiting a prostitute, finding a place of business for a
prostitute, or soliciting customers for a prostitute.
2. The act or offense of selling or distributing textual or
visual material openly advertised to appeal to the recipient's sexual
interest.
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| Perjury
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The act or an instance of a
person's deliberately making material false or misleading statements
while under oath.
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| Pornography
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Pictures and/or writings of sexual
activity intended solely to excite lascivious feelings of a
particularly blatant and aberrational kind, such as acts involving
children, animals, orgies, and all types of sexual intercourse.
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| Prostitution
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The crime of engaging in sexual
intercourse or other sexual activity for hire.
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| Pyramid Schemes
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Pyramid Schemes may involve a
structure that is laid out like a pyramid, with one person at the top,
two persons on the next level, four on the next and eight on the next.
The structure may also be circular with one person at the center, two
on the next, four on the next and eight persons on the outer circle.
The circular structure is merely a view of a pyramid looking from the
top down.
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| Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt
Organizations Act (RICO)
|
|
A federal statute enacted in 1970
and subsequently copied in many state statutes (informally called
"Little Rico" statutes), designed to attack organized crime
by providing special criminal penalties and civil liabilities for
persons who engage in, or derive money from, repeated instances of
certain types of crime.
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| Rape
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Unlawful sexual activity with a
person without consent and usually by force or threat of injury.
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Date Rape
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Rape committed by someone known
to the victim, especially by the victim's social companion.
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Marital Rape
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A husband's sexual intercourse
with his wife by force or without her consent.
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Statutory Rape
|
Unlawful sexual intercourse
with a person under the age of consent, regardless of whether it
is against that person's will. |
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| Self-Defense
|
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The use of reasonable force against
an aggressor by one who reasonably believes it necessary in order to
avoid imminent bodily harm. Self-defense is a justification for
conduct that would otherwise be a crime. |
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| Sexual Harassment
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|
A form of unlawful employment
discrimination consisting of harassment of an employee or group of
employees, usually women. This may take the form of requiring or
seeking sexual favors as a condition of employment (quid pro quo
harassment) or otherwise subjecting an employee to intimidation,
ridicule, or insult because of her sex, whether or not the harassing
conduct is sexual in nature.
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| Sexual Offense
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General term used to describe a
crime of a sexual nature.
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| Sodomy
|
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A term varying in meaning from
state to state, but generally referring to any type of sex act
regarded by a legislature as "unnatural" or
"perverted" In the narrowest and most traditional sense, the
term refers to anal sexual intercourse between men, but it may extend
to those or other acts between men and women (sometimes exemption
married couples, sometimes not), or women and women, or people and
animals. Also called a crime against nature, or an unnatural act.
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| Stalking
|
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The act of threatening, harassing,
or annoying someone, especially with the intent of placing the
recipient in fear that an illegal act or an injury will be inflicted
on the recipient or a member of the recipient's family or household.
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| Tax Crimes |
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Tax Evasion
|
The willful attempt to defeat or
circumvent the tax law in order to illegally reduce one's tax
liability.
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Tax Fraud
|
The crime of intentionally filing a
false tax return or making other false statements under penalties of
perjury to taxing authorities.
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| Terrorism
|
|
Politically motivated violence or
intimidation directed against a civilian population by a subgroup
within a population, by an outside group, or by clandestine agents of
another country.
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| Theft
|
|
1. The felonious
taking and removing of another's personal property with the intent to
permanently deprive the true owner thereof; larceny.
2. Broadly, any act or instance of stealing, including
larceny, burglary, embezzlement, and false pretenses.
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Cybertheft
|
See
Cybertheft.
|
|
Theft By Deception
|
The use of deception to obtain
another's property.
|
|
Theft By False
Pretext
|
The use of a false pretext to
obtain another's property.
|
|
Theft Of Services
|
The act of obtaining services
from another by deception, threat, coercion, stealth, mechanical
tampering, or using a false token or device. |