Criminal Law
| Motion for an Acquittal |
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| After a defendant is convicted, he may file a motion for an acquittal. An acquittal is a formal certification of innocence or a finding of not guilty. Typically, the basis for filing a motion for an acquittal is that the evidence does not support the verdict. More... |
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| CONTEMPT |
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| Contempt is defined as conduct that obstructs or tends to obstruct the proper administration of justice. Contempt also includes an act that constitutes disrespectful conduct towards a court. In order to constitute contempt, the act itself must be disrespectful. A person's intent or purpose is not relevant. The fact that the conduct may be irritating to the court does not constitute contempt. More... |
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| MOTIONS IN ARREST OF JUDGMENT |
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| When a defendant has been convicted of a criminal offense, the defendant may seek relief from his or her conviction by filing a motion in arrest of judgment. A motion in arrest of judgment suggests that the judgment has not been legally rendered. The motion may be oral or it may be in writing. Although the defendant may have a statutory right in some states to file the motion, the motion is seldom used and is rarely granted by a trial court. More... |
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| JURY INSTRUCTIONS ON DEFENSE THEORIES |
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| If requested by a defendant, a trial court is required to instruct a jury on any defense theories that are raised by the evidence. The defendant may raise those theories by his or her testimony alone. Also, the defendant is entitled to jury instructions on his or her affirmative defenses. The defendant's affirmative defenses do not need to be strong or to be uncontradicted in order for the defendant to be entitled to jury instructions on his or her affirmative defenses. The trial court is required to instruct the jury on the defendant's affirmative defenses, even if the trial court does not find that the affirmative defenses are credible or believable. More... |
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| GAMBLING |
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| A person commits the offense of gambling when he or she makes a bet on the result of a game or contest or on the performance of a participant in the game or contest; when he or she makes a bet on the result of a political nomination, appointment, or election, or on the success of any political nominee, candidate, or appointee; or when he or she plays and bets for money or for any item of value on any game that is played with cards, dice, balls, or other gambling devices. More... |
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