Differentiate between the different written sources of American criminal law.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answers will vary. The federal government and the states have separate written constitutions that set forth the general organization and powers of, and the limits on, their respective governments. Constitutional law is the law as expressed in these constitutions. The U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the land. As such, it is the basis of all law in the United States. Any law that violates the Constitution, as ultimately determined by the United States Supreme Court, will be declared unconstitutional and will not be enforced.Statutes enacted by legislative bodies at any level of government make up another source of law, which is generally referred to as statutory law. Federal statutes are laws that are enacted by the U.S. Congress. State statutes are laws enacted by state legislatures, and statutory law also includes the ordinances passed by cities and counties. Inevitably, the federal criminal statutes are bound to overlap or even contradict state statutes. In such cases, thanks to the supremacy clause of the Constitution, federal law will almost always prevail. Simply put, the supremacy clause holds that federal law is the "supreme law of the land."A third source of American criminal law consists of administrative law-the rules, regulations, orders, and decisions of regulatory agencies. A regulatory agency is a federal, state, or local government agency established to perform a specific function. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), for example, oversees the safety and health of American workers. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is concerned with protecting the natural environment, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates food and drugs produced in the United States. Breaking an administrative rule can be a criminal violation.Another basic source of American law consists of the rules of law announced in court decisions, or precedents. These rules of law include interpretations of constitutional provisions, of statutes enacted by legislatures, and of regulations created by administrative agencies. Today, this body of law is referred to variously as the common law, judge-made law, or case law. Case law is the basis for a doctrine called stare decisis ("to stand on decided cases"). Under this doctrine, judges are obligated to follow the precedents established within their jurisdiction. The doctrine of stare decisis does not require theU.S. Supreme Court always to follow its own precedent, though the Court often does so.