VCE Legal Studies - Unit 1, AOS 2 Terminology

The minimum age a person must be to be charged with committing a crime.

A Latin term meaning 'a guilty act': the physical element of a crime.

The release of an accused person from custody on condition that they will attend a court hearing to answer the charges.

A serious offence generally heard before a judge and a jury in the County Court or Supreme Court of Victoria.

A serious offence that is dealt with in a Magistrates' Court, by a single magistrate if the court and the accused agree.

The right of a person accused of a crime to be presumed not guilty unless proven otherwise.

A Latin term referring to the principle in Victoria that a child aged between 10 and 13 years is presumed to be 'incapable of evil'. *

A Latin term meaning 'a guilty mind': the mental element of a crime.

Where culpability or responsibility for committing a crime can be established without having to prove there was 'a guilty mind' *

A minor offence generally heard in the Magistrates' Court

A person charged with a criminal offence but who has not been found guilty or pleaded guilty.

An act or omission that is against an existing law, harmful to both an individual and society, and punishable by law.

The party that institutes criminal proceedings against an accused on behalf of the state.

The degree or extent to which a case must be proved in court.

The obligation of a party to prove a case.