Two chapters provide an introduction to the criminal justice system, as they focus on the fundamentals of criminal law and procedure as well as the organization of the criminal justice system. The core of the textbook consists of 12 chapters on various aspects of the substantive criminal law. One chapter addresses the constitutional limitations on the prohibition of criminal conduct. It provides an overview of the various constitutional provisions that limit legislative authority in defining conduct as criminal and prescribing penalties for violations of offenses. Another chapter addresses elements of crimes and parties to crimes. Other chapters profile the various categories of offenses defined and sanctioned under American criminal law. These offense categories are inchoate offenses (attempt, solicitation, conspiracy); offenses against persons (assault, homicide, suicide, sexual battery, sodomy, abortion, abusive offenses, false imprisonment and kidnapping, and civil rights offenses); crimes against property; offenses against public morality; alcohol and drug offenses; white-collar and organized crime; offenses against public health and the environment; offenses against public order and safety; and offenses against justice and public administration. The final chapter discusses criminal responsibility and defenses. Each chapter has sections on questions for thought and discussion, problems for discussion and solution, key terms, and excerpts from judicial decisions. Appended discussion of access to the law through legal research and a copy of the U.S. Constitution, glossary, table of cases, and a subject index