Crime, Criminal Law, and Crime Prevention

1. Teacher's Notes
2. Activity Handouts
3. Community Resource Lesson
4. Family Involvement Activities

Teacher's Notes

Purpose: To provide students with an overview of their rights and responsibilities with respect to crime in our society and the importance of crime prevention.

Materials Needed: Chalkboard or chart paper and CCL (Crime and Criminal Law) activity handouts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8; Text of Amendments 5, 6, and 8 of the U.S. Constitution

Teaching the Unit:

Distribute CCL Activity Handout 1, "Some Facts About Crime." Ask students to examine and discuss each point.

A crime is an act that breaks a law.

Ask students to discuss whether or not they think lying is a crime. Some will probably say "yes," some "no." Explain that lying isn't necessarily a crime. For example, lying about how many candy bars you ate yesterday, or who you voted for, is not a crime. Even lying to your friend about how much money you made last week on your part-time job isn't a crime. However, lying to the government about how much money you made is a crime. Why?

Explain that a crime is, by definition, any act that breaks a law. Some instances of lying may be morally wrong, but unless they breaks laws, they aren't crimes.

Ask students to identify a number of crimes and discuss why laws to prevent these crimes are important.

People don't agree on what causes crime. Have students brainstorm and discuss some of the possible causes of crime, for example:

poverty

unemployment

alcohol and drug abuse

breakdown of the family

television

lack of education

poor police protection

peer pressure

Some people are more likely to be victims of crime than others. Explain that while crime can be found across all groups in society, some people are more likely to be victims than others. Ask students who they think are more likely to be victims of crime and why. List their responses on a chalkboard or chart paper. Explain that the following groups are more likely to be victims of crime:

Teenagers are more likely than any other age group to be victims

Males are twice as likely as females to be victims

People who are poor are more likely to be victims

Members of minority groups are more likely to be victims

There are laws to protect your rights if you are arrested and charged with a crime. Ask students if they can think of some of these laws. Explain that they will be discussing some of them later on in the lesson.

Criminals, victims, and society all pay a heavy price for crime.

Ask students to brainstorm and discuss examples of how criminals, victims, and society pay for crime, for example:

Criminals pay through arrest, incarceration, fines, loss of employment, separation from family.

Victims pay through the loss of life, loss of physical and/or mental well being, loss of money and property.

Society pays through the increasing costs of law enforcement workers and prisons, the loss of respect of individuals for one another and the law, and fear.

Citizens have a responsibility to help prevent crime. Ask students to brainstorm and discuss some of the ways in which citizens can help prevent crime, for example:

Reporting crime to the police

Serving as witnesses

Becoming actively involved in the community

Ask students how many of them have been victims of crime. Ask for volunteers to share examples with the class and to discuss, in hindsight, what they would have done differently to avoid the situation or lessen the degree of loss and/or injury.

Distribute CCL Activity Handout 2, "Role Play," and have students take turns acting out the situation. At the end of each role play, ask the group to discuss whether or not the actions of the police were appropriate.

Explain that when individuals are arrested, they have certain rights that are protected by law. For example, the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects individuals against self-incrimination. This means that they cannot be forced to say anything that might incriminate them. The Sixth Amendment gives a suspect the right to legal representation, even if he or she cannot afford to pay for a lawyer. (You may want to share copies of the actual text of these amendments attached).

Distribute CCL Activity Handout 3, "Who Was Ernesto Miranda?" Ask students to read along with you as you read the first two paragraphs of the handout. Ask for volunteers to read each of the Miranda warnings aloud. For each warning, have students discuss why the right is important and what might happen if it is violated.

Distribute CCL Activity Handout 4, "Rights of the Accused," and explain that there are other ways in which the U.S. Constitution protects individuals who are accused of committing a crime. Have students discuss each of the seven protections listed on the handout and why it is important. (Again, you may want to share the actual text of Amendments 5, 6, and 8, and have students identify the specific language relevant to each protection.)

Explain to students that there are several ways in which they can become involved in a criminal case. One way is to be the accused. Another way is to be a witness to a crime. Ask students to discuss why they think the role of witnesses is so important.

Distribute CCL Activity Handout 5, "If You Are a Witness." Ask students to read along with you while you read the top three paragraphs. Then have them discuss the two illustrations and what might happen in each case.

Explain to students that another way they can become involved in a criminal case is by serving on a jury. Ask if any of them have served on a jury, and if they have, to describe their experiences. Explain that the Sixth Amendment provides everyone with the right to an "impartial" jury trial. Ask students what they think it means to be impartial (not favoring one side more than another; fair).

Distribute CCL Activity Handout 6, "Selecting An Impartial Jury." Tell students that the hypothetical case involves a young, black, welfare mother who is charged with shoplifting. For each of the jury types listed on the handout, ask students to discuss whether or not they think the jury would be impartial and why. Most will agree that the jury made up of a random sample of members of the community is most likely to be impartial. Explain that the jury system is set up in this way and that potential jurors are selected from a large pool of names taken from voter registration lists and lists of licensed drivers.

Tell students that not everyone can serve on a jury. For example, people who can't understand, read, or write English can't serve on a jury. Ask students to discuss why they think this is fair or unfair. (Prospective jurors are not always screened regarding these abilities.)

Distribute CCL Activity Handout 7, "Not Everyone Can Be a Juror." Ask students to read along with you while you read through the list of exclusions. Then, taking one exclusion at a time, have students discuss why it makes sense for these individuals to be excluded or excused from jury duty.

The pace at which the materials are covered will depend on the ability levels of the students. Each of the activity sheets can be completed in anywhere from 10 minutes to 30 minutes or more.

Community Resource Lesson

Depending on time and the availability of community resources in your area, this unit should include at least one lesson presented by a community resource person. A sample lesson plan is included; however, other crime-related or law-related topics would also be appropriate. The specific topic should be determined in collaboration with the community resource person you select to visit the class. Possible resource persons for this unit are:

Representatives of the law enforcement community

Lawyers

State or local legislators

Judges

Family Involvement Activities

Suggestions for family involvement activities for parents/guardians and their preschool children are included. These activities can be completed during class time or at home.

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