| ASSIMILATIVE CRIMES ACT |
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| Although states are primarily responsible for prosecuting domestic violence cases, the federal government has enacted several laws that may be used by federal authorities to prosecute such cases. Those federal laws include the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA), and statutes that prohibit interstate domestic violence and interstate violation of a protective order.
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| JURY INSTRUCTIONS ON LESSER-INCLUDED OFFENSES |
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| If an offense with which a defendant is charged has a lesser-included offense, a jury may find the defendant not guilty of the greater offense and may convict the defendant of the lesser-included offense. Even if an indictment or an information does not allege the elements of the lesser-included offense, the defendant is entitled to a jury charge on the lesser-included offense if the facts at trial prove the elements of the lesser-included offense.More... |
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| THE FEDERAL "THREE STRIKES" LAW |
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| The Federal "Three Strikes" Law was enacted as part of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. The "Three Strikes" Law requires enhancement of sentencing for a defendant who has been convicted of two prior felonies.More... |
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| WHEN A DEFENDANT'S RIGHT TO COUNSEL ATTACHES |
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| A defendant's right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment and the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution attaches to any point in the criminal process in which the substantial rights of the defendant may be affected or to any critical stage in the proceedings. In addition, some states have enacted statutes that provide that a criminal defendant has a right to counsel in any adversarial judicial proceeding.
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| FORGERY |
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| A person commits the offense of forgery when he or she, with the intent to defraud or to harm another person: (1) makes, alters, executes, or authenticates any writing so that it purports to be the act of another person, to be a writing at a certain time or place, or a copy of an original writing that does not exist; (2) issues, transfers, registers, passes, or utters a writing that purports to be the act of another person, to be a writing at a certain time or place, or a copy of an original writing that does not exist; or (3) possesses a writing with the intent to utter it, which writing purports to be the act of another person, to be a writing at a certain time or place, or a copy of an original writing that does not exist. More... |
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