1. The is the supreme law of the land, and as such is the basis of all law in the United
States.
a. Declaration of Independence
b. U.S. Penal Code
c. U.S. Constitution
d. Case law of the U.S. Supreme Court
2. The Fourteenth Amendment is an example of a(n):
a. constitutional law.
b. statutory law.
c. administrative law.
d. case law.
3. Laws enacted by legislative bodies at any level of government make up a source of law, which is generally referred
to as:
a. administrative law. b. case law.
c. constitutional law. d. statutory law.
4. Texas laws, such as making the theft of cattle a felony, are examples of:
a. constitutional law.
b. statutory law.
c. administrative law.
d. case law.
5. The term “judgemade” law is synonymous with:
a. administrative law. b. case law.
c. constitutional law. d. statutory law.
6. A federal judge overturns a Nebraska state law making it a crime for sex offenders to use social media. This is an
example of a(n):
a. constitutional law.
b. statutory law.
c. administrative law.
d. case law.
7. The rules, orders, and decisions of regulatory agencies make up:
a. administrative law. b. case law.
c. constitutional law. d. statutory law.
8. The federal Environmental Protection Agencies regulations are examples of:
a. constitutional law.
b. statutory law.
c. administrative law.
d. case law.
9. Court decisions that provide guidance in interpreting the law are called:
a. procedural guidelines. b. benchmarks.
c. precedents. d. baselines.
10. The social function of the law includes the concepts of:
a. protecting individual rights and teaching societal boundaries.
b. protecting individual rights and punishing offenders.
c. expressing public morality and teaching societal boundaries.
d. expressing public morality and punishing offenders.
11. Law may be broken down according to various classifications. Which of the following is not one of these
classifications?
a. civil law and criminal law b. felonies and misdemeanors
c. mala in se and mala prohibita d. tort crimes and civil crimes
12. Civil law is concerned with:
a. teaching appropriate behavior.
b. maintaining public safety.
c. offenses against society as a whole.
d. rights and duties between individuals.
13. The remedy for a violation of civil law is:
a. monetary damages awarded to the plaintiff.
b. probation up to 5 years.
c. a fine paid to the state or county.
d. incarceration up to 1 year.
14. What is the burden of proof necessary to win a civil trial?
a. clear and convincing evidence b. probable cause
c. preponderance of evidence d. proof beyond a reasonable doubt
15. In a criminal case, the burden of proof is:
a. beyond a reasonable doubt b. preponderance of the evidence
c. beyond a shadow of doubt d. by clear and convincing evidence
16. In a civil case, the injured party is called the:
a. plaintiff. b. defendant.
c. prosecutor. d. state.
17. Crimes punishable by death or imprisonment in a federal or state penitentiary for 1 year or longer are called:
a. felonies. b. gross misdemeanors.
c. misdemeanors. d. petty misdemeanors.
18. What degree of felony carries the maximum penalty of death?
a. capital offense. b. first degree felonies.
c. second degree felonies. d. third degree felonies.
19. Misdemeanors are punishable by a fine or by confinement up to:
a. 1 year. b. 5 years.
c. 10 years. d. life imprisonment.
20. are offenses punishable by 30 days to a year in jail.
a. Gross misdemeanors b. Third degree felonies
c. Violations d. Petty misdemeanors
21. The least serious form of wrongdoings are often called:
a. petty misdemeanors.
b. gross misdemeanors.
c. infractions.
d. petty crimes.
22. As a circumstance of murder, means that the offender considered the crime beforehand.
a. deliberation b. passion
c. premeditation d. spontaneity
23. Which category of murder occurs when the victim provoked the offender to act violently?
a. first degree murder b. second degree murder
c. voluntary manslaughter d. involuntary manslaughter
24. A homicide that results from the offender’s carelessness, but occurs when the offender lacks intent is classified as:
a. first degree murder. b. second degree murder.
c. voluntary manslaughter. d. involuntary manslaughter.
25. is the state of being aware that a risk does or will exist and nevertheless acting in a way
that consciously disregards this risk.
a. Recklessness
b. Negligence
c. Premeditation
d. Carelessness
26. The term mala prohibita refers to:
a. an act that would be wrong even if no law prohibited it.
b. a violation of natural law.
c. a “humanmade” law.
d. an act that goes against the public morality.
27. Murder, rape, and theft are examples of crimes.
a. mala in se b. mala prohibita
c. premeditated d. deliberate
28. Which of the following is NOT a basic element of corpus delicti?
a. actus reus
b. mala in se
c. mens rea
d. concurrence, or coming together of the criminal act and guilty mind
29. What is the term that means that the guilty act and the guilty intent occur together?
a. causation b. attendant circumstances
c. concurrence d. harm
30. A wrongful mental state, or intent, is known as:
a. actus reus. b. mala in se.
c. mens rea. d. concurrence.
31. The guilty act in a criminal offense is referred to as:
a. actus reus. b. mens rea.
c. corpus delicti. d. habeas corpus.
32. As discussed in the textbook, corpus delicti refers to:
a. the dead body at the scene of a crime. b. the element of criminal intent.
c. the basic elements of a crime. d. the criminal act.
33. Strict liability is inconsistent with the general principles of criminal law because is lacking.
a. mens rea b. actus reus
c. causation d. concurrence
34. A crime in which the defendant is guilty regardless of his or her state of mind at the time of the act is known as:
a. tort. b. first degree homicide.
c. strict liability. d. manslaughter.
35. The facts surrounding an underlying crime are referred to as:
a. causation. b. attendant circumstances.
c. concurrence. d. harm.
36. What is the defense for criminal liability that is used to assert a lack of criminal responsibility because according to
law, a person cannot have the requisite state of mind to commit a crime?
a. duress b. insanity
c. entrapment d. mistake
37. A common law test of criminal responsibility that relies on the defendant’s inability to distinguish right from wrong is
the:
a. Durham rule. b. irresistible-impulse test
c. M’Naghten rule. d. substantial capacity test.
38. A defense for criminal liability in which the defendant claims that the taking of intoxicants rendered him or her
unable to form the requisite intent to commit a criminal act is:
a. never accepted in court.
b. a good defense if the intoxication was voluntary.
c. a good defense if the intoxication was involuntary.
d. not allowed in felony court but is sometimes allowed in misdemeanor trials.
39. Which of the following is NOT an excuse defense?
a. mistake b. infancy
c. insanity d. necessity
40. When the wrongful threat of one person induces another person to perform an act that he or she would otherwise
not perform, exists.
a. duress b. entrapment
c. necessity d. self-defense
41. The owner of a boat marina agrees to allow three federal drug enforcement agents, posing as drug dealers, to use
his dock to unload shipments of marijuana from Colombia. This is an example of:
a. entrapment.
b. duress.
c. mistake of fact.
d. mistake of law.
42. The Fourth Amendment protects against:
a. excessive bail. b. excessive fines.
c. cruel and unusual punishment. d. unreasonable searches.
43. This form of due process requires laws to be carried out in a fair and orderly manner.
a. legislative due process b. procedural due process
c. relative due process d. substantive due process
44. In , the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that confessions of suspects not notified of due
process rights are invalid.
a. In re Gault
b. Mapp v. Ohio
c. Gideon v. Wainwright
d. Miranda v. Arizona
Case 3-1
Johnny and Martin are in a bar drinking beer and talking. Sharon walks in and starts talking to Johnny. Martin gets
jealous because he was engaged to be married to Sharon and they only recently broke up. Martin gets so mad that
he starts to yell at Johnny. He then swings at Johnny and misses. Martin falls to the ground and passes out. Johnny
gets so mad that he stabs Martin in the back and kills him.
45. Martin’s family believes that Johnny should be held responsible for this crime. They request monetary damages to
compensate for the wrong that has been committed. What type of law covers this request?
a. administrative law
b. case law
c. civil law
d. criminal law
46. If the above case would make it to court, which party would be the plaintiff?
a. the bar owner
b. Johnny
c. Martin’s family
d. Sharon
47. What standard of proof would be required in the above case?
a. beyond a reasonable doubt
b. preponderance of the evidence
c. beyond a shadow of a doubt
d. clear and convincing evidence
48. If state prosecutors decide to file charges against Johnny, what crime classification would the charge fall under?
a. felony
b. gross misdemeanor
c. petty misdemeanor
d. infraction
49. Prosecutors would need to prove that Johnny actually committed the guilty act of stabbing Martin. This is known as
the:
a. actus reus.
b. mens rea.
c. mala in se.
d. mala prohibita.
Case 3-2
Mr. Thomas is a criminal defense attorney. Peter contacts Mr. Thomas and tells him that he thinks he may have
committed a crime but he is not sure. Mr. Thomas asks Peter a few questions but Peter refuses to answer any
questions over the phone. Mr. Thomas tells Peter to come to his office for a consultation and he will provide legal
advice if Peter decides to retain Mr. Thomas as his attorney.
50. Peter goes to see Mr. Thomas in his office. He explains to Mr. Thomas that he had been seeing a girl who said that
she was 19. She is really 14. Peter is 22. Peter explains that they had sexual relations on a few occasions. Mr.
Thomas explains to Peter that he can still be found guilty, even though he did not have intent to commit a crime.
What type of crime is this?
a. hate crime
b. negligence
c. strict liability
d. inchoate
51. What crime is Peter guilty of?
a. felony murder
b. hate crime
c. infanticide
d. statutory rape
52. After speaking with Peter for some time, Mr. Thomas believes that something is wrong with Peter. Mr. Thomas
believes that Peter is either slightly mentally retarded or possibly mentally ill. He thinks that if Peter is charged with
a crime the court will need to conduct a hearing to determine whether Peter is mentally well enough to understand
the charges filed against him. What type of hearing is this?
a. arraignment
b. competency
c. preliminary
d. sentencing
53. Peter believes that his crime was justified because his girlfriend deceived him when she told him she was 19. What
legal justification defense does Peter possibly have?
a. duress
b. entrapment
c. necessity
d. none of these
54. Peter wants to hire Mr. Thomas but does not have any money. Mr. Thomas explains to Peter that if he is arrested
and charged with a crime, he has a right to a lawyer at various stages of criminal proceedings. Which amendment
gives Peter this protection?
a. Fourth Amendment
b. Fifth Amendment
c. Sixth Amendment
d. Eighth Amendment
55. The U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the land and as such, it is the basis of all law in the United States.
a. True
b. False
56. A state statute applies only within that state’s borders.
a. True
b. False
57. State law prevails whenever it is in conflict with federal law.
a. True
b. False
58. Case law relies on how courts interpret a statute.
a. True
b. False
59. Criminal law has one primary function: to express public morality.
a. True
b. False
60. Society’s views on morality, which are reflected as laws, are stable and unchanging over time.
a. True
b. False
61. Traffic laws reflect the teaching function of the law.
a. True
b. False