Civic Education - Junior Secondary 1 - Common crimes

Term: 3^rd Term

Week: 9

Class: Junior Secondary School 1

Age: 12 years

Duration: 40 minutes of 2 periods each

Date:

Subject:      Civic education

Topic:-       Common crimes

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES: At the end of the lesson, pupils should be able to

1. Define falsehood, theft, accessory, aggravated assault, arson, battery, perjury and solicitation
2. Discuss the causes of the above crimes

INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNIQUES: Identification, explanation, questions and answers, demonstration, videos from source

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS: Videos, loud speaker, textbook, pictures

INSTRUCTIONAL PROCEDURES

PERIOD 1-2

NOTE

COMMON CRIMES
1. Falsehood

This is the property or characteristics of being false. It is a false statement, especially an intentional one. It is the state of being untrue.

2. Theft

This is the act of stealing. This can come in any form whether taking of property, money or document that does not belong to someone.

3. Accessory

The charge of accessory can be brought against anyone who helps someone else commit a crime, either before the crime takes place or afterward. If you know someone who is planning to commit a crime and you do anything to help – plan the crime, loan him or her money or tools, or even just give advice – you can be charged with accessory before the fact.

Likewise, if you know someone who has already committed a crime and you do anything to help – such as give him or her a place to hide or help him or her destroy evidence – you can be charged with accessory in the court of law.

4. Aggravated Assault

Aggravated assault is causing or attempting to cause serious bodily harm to the victim or using a deadly weapon during an assault.

In most cases, a person has to have intention to do bodily harm, before being charged with aggravated assault, but in some states the charge can be brought if someone negligently causes an injury to another with a deadly weapon.

5. Arson

Arson is the intentional burning of a structure or building.

The structure does not have to be a residence or business; it can be any building to which the fire causes structural damage.

Laws provide for different degrees of arson charges, such as first-degree or second-degree arson. Usually, first-degree arson is charged when someone is injured or killed as a result of the fire. Second-degree arson is charged when the damage caused by the fire is extensive.

Arson can also be charged against anyone who maliciously sets forest fires, crop fires or any kind of wildfire.

6. Battery

Battery is any unlawful offensive physical contact with another person. The contact does not have to be violent for the crime of battery to take place; it can be merely any offensive touching.

Unlike the crime of assault, battery requires that actual contact be made, while assault charges can be brought with only the threat of violence. This is in form of: Simple battery which is usually any form of unlawful contact, criminal battery means there was intent to cause injury while sexual battery is any non-consensual touching of the intimate parts of another person.

7. Perjury

In its most simple form, perjury is lying under oath. The crime of perjury is the willful swearing, either spoken or in writing, to tell the truth and then giving false information.

Perjury can occur even if the person has not been sworn to tell the truth, such as in a courtroom. Merely signing a document under penalty of perjury that contains false statements can be a crime. Signing an income tax return that contains false information is an act of perjury.

8. Solicitation

Solicitation is the offering of compensation for goods or services that are prohibited by law. Solicitation can be requesting, encouraging or demanding that someone else commit a crime, with the intent to contribute to the commission of that crime.

Other common crimes include;

Stalking, statutory rape, tax evasion, vandalism, wire fraud, aiding and abetting, assault, bribery, burglary, child abuse, child pornography, computer crime, conspiracy, credit card fraud, disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace, domestic violence, drug, cultivation or manufacturing, drug possession, drug trafficking or distribution, drunk driving, embezzlement, extortion, forgery, fraud, harassment, hate crime, identity theft, insurance fraud, kidnapping, money laundering, murder, prostitution, public intoxication, rape, robbery, sexual assault, shoplifting.

CAUSES OF COMMON CRIMES

The following are the causes of common crimes:

1. Weakness: People are not bad by nature, but sometimes simply too timid to resist the vicious demons that play on their weaknesses and cut their bond with the source of their Power. Humans are good by default, but not everyone is made of steel so as to defend themselves against the demonic forces – destructive emotions and detrimental attitudes: There are two core reasons why weakness prevails with some:

(i) Lack of faith, not believing enough in the power of one’s own internal weapons (against inner demons), such as:

(ii) Imbalance: Most criminals are simply too strong physically, pumping up the body muscles, but not enough of the mental and emotional muscles. The reason why their strength becomes weakness is because they are not balanced.

2. Poor judgment: Lack of proper education and great role-models causes many to fail to distinguish right from wrong.
   In most cases offenders don’t think they are doing something wrong, it seems right from their point of view.
   Poor judgment is also reflected in knowing it’s wrong, but thinking they could get away with it, not getting caught.
3. Lack of love: Being raised in a dysfunctional family, or coming from a disadvantaged background, or feeling discriminated, none of it alone can cause crime. There are so many others in the world with such conditions, but nevertheless don’t turn to crime. However they cause the lack of love and respect for others. That, endorsed with some other factors, can be a major issue related to crime.
4. Poverty: Poverty is often blamed for leading to crime, however underneath is something more vital – society bombards us with commercial values, making us want more and more material things, to the point when some would do anything (including criminal acts) to get them.
   Unemployment is another factor in this category that contributes to crime through looking ways to earn money by any means possible.
5. Social environment: Social root causes of crime include; overexposure to television as a means of recreation, lack of good leadership in the community, low value placed on children, real or perceived inaccessibility to services.
6. Ecological factors: It has long been known by police officers that cold harmattan nights keep criminals off the streets and crime levels down. Crime scientists speculate that one of the hidden consequences of global warming will be an increase in street crime during warm nights. Studies have suggested that warmer temperatures boost aggression hormones such as epinephrine and testosterone.

EVALUATION:    1.) Define

                             a.) falsehood

                             b.) theft

                             c.) accessory

                             d.) aggravated assault

                             e.) arson

                             f.) battery

                             g.) perjury

                             h.) solicitation    

                             2.) Discuss five causes of common crimes

CLASSWORK: As in evaluation

CONCLUSION: The teacher commends the students positively