discussion question

“Who’s at Fault”

• The law of the United States punishes only culpable behavior and thus the legal principles of mens rea (i.e., guilty mind) and actus rea (i.e., the forbidden act or omission) form the basis of a criminal prosecution. Compare and contrast these two (2) concepts then specify whether the concurrent occurrence of these elements is more beneficial to the prosecution or the defense. Justify your response.
• Go to the FindLaw Website located at http://www.findlaw.com or use the Internet to research “Three Strikes” sentencing laws. Next, based on the textbook and your research, analyze the importance of “Three Strike” sentencing laws as they relate to a career criminal engaging in more complex criminal activities as a means of completing his or her identity. Support your response with two (2) examples of such cases.