The Five Sources of Criminal Law (Essay Sample)

The Five Sources of Criminal Law
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The Five Sources of Criminal Law
Criminal law comprises the set of rules that prohibit various criminal offenses which undermine national security and threaten the public interests and safety. The government introduces the collections of laws to provide guidance to both the citizens and law enforcement agencies in a bid to regulate public conduct (Moore & Worrall, 2015). Therefore, criminal law is vital in guiding court proceedings in terms of evidence gathering and prosecution after the perpetuation of a crime, thus facilitating law enforcement through the dissemination of appropriate punishment. The five primary criminal law sources include common law origins, constitutions, statutory laws, administrative laws, and case laws gathered from appellate courts. The first source, common law refers to a section of the criminal law that borrows from the English tradition and judicial precedence. The common law system of the US is a product of a British heritage, which was introduced to North America during the colonial period (Moore & Worrall, 2015). It is a collection of unwritten laws that hinge on court-established legal precedents. Common law guides the court’s decision-making process in circumstances where the existing statutes fail to determine a reasonable outcome. Judges tasked with the interpretation of statutes, therefore, consult the common law principles for guidelines. Crimes like murder and arson are still defined based on their common-law origin. The doctrine of precedence, also known as stare decisis, is the primary characteristic of common law that guarantees equal treatment under the law. Under stare decisis,