Criminal Defense

Traditionally speaking, there are two broad categories that are used to classify all of the crimes that exist in society today. These two sets of crimes have nothing to do with federal or state jurisdiction but are rather umbrella terms that can be applied across all states and even globally to describe the actions that have been prohibited or criminalized by the various legislatures and law-making bodies.

In the English common law system which forms the basis of the United States’ legal traditions and histories and has played a role in a number of other countries’ legal systems as well. The common law tradition created a number of crimes over its history, dating from about the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066. These common law crimes have become the foundation of what we now view as offenses that are “malum in se.”

Malum in se crimes or actions are actions that are wrong in and of themselves. There is no way that a crime that is malum in se can possibly be viewed as being a good thing or a positive action. They are always wrong. Crimes in the categories were the original felony offenses. Offenses in this category include murder in all of its forms, robbery, arson, and a couple of other crimes. It is somewhat impossible to think that murdering a person could be a good thing or not wrong and so murder is bad in and of itself and so is malum in se.

Malum prohibitum crimes are far more common than malum in se ones. These crimes are wrong because they have been prohibited by a legislature or other law-making authority. These crimes vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and can be defined in a wide variety of areas. This type of prohibited action can be either a felony or a misdemeanor depending on the whims of the legislature or other body.

While the malum in se crimes are morally wrong, malum prohibitum crimes are not wrong on their own but are wrong because someone said so. For example, driving at 90 miles per hour is not a bad thing on its own. It is only bad because the legislatures of the states and cities have decreed that there will be a speed limit and those that exceed the speed limit are breaking a law. The same goes for open container rules regarding public streets.

Overall, the number of malum prohibitum crimes far exceeds the malum in se offenses but both are given the full attention of the courts.