Personal Jurisdiction

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The two types of jurisdiction that a court must have to hear a case and render a binding decision over the parties are personal (in personam) jurisdiction and subject matter jurisdiction.
Personal jurisdiction is a court’s power to render a decision affecting the rights of the specific persons before the court. In the state court system, a court’s personal jurisdiction usually extends to the state’s border. State law must authorize jurisdiction over the person and the exercise of that jurisdiction must comport with Due Process. In the federal court system, each court’s jurisdiction extends across its geographic district. A court acquires personal jurisdiction over the Plaintiff when they file a lawsuit with the court. The court acquires jurisdiction …show more content…

Crimes are divided into categories based on the seriousness of the offense. The categories used are felonies, misdemeanors, and petty crimes. The statute defining the crime usually establishes whether the crime is a felony, misdemeanor, or petty offense. Crimes may also be federal or state, depending on whether they are enacted by the state or federal legislature. Felonies include serious crimes, such as murder or kidnapping, that are punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or death. Misdemeanors are less serious crimes punishable by fines or imprisonment for less than one year. Common misdemeanors include trespasses, vandalism, and public intoxication. Petty offense, such as violating a building code or stealing a pack of gum, are minor misdemeanors usually punishable by a jail sentence of less than six months or a small fine.

Chapter 7, Question 3. Affirmative defense are excuses for unlawful behavior. Infancy, is when a person is under the age of majority and is considered an infant. Infants are typically judged as lacking the mental capacity of an adult, thus infancy can be a partial defense to defuse the guilty-mind requirement of a crime. However, for some offense a defendant under the age of majority, an infant, can be determined by a judge to be a legal adult and be tried as such. For example, an extremely malicious murder committed by an infant, defendant near the age of majority may be tried as an

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