Course Books for Criminal Law Course

Don't let the possession of your books become a substitute for the reading of them.

The more we know, the more willing we are to learn. The less we know,

the more positive we are that we know everything.

Anonymous

I am still learning.

Michelangelo

I don't read books, but I have friends who do.

George W. Bush

If a teacher is indeed wise, he does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom,

but rather leads you to the threshold of your own mind.

"The Prophet"

Kahlil Gibran

Lawbooks can be invaluable to you. When you come home very tired,

pick one up, and before you know it, you'll be asleep.

No lawyer under thirty-five opens law books anymore. Everything is on-line.

Some friendly advice: Tab, underline, highlight, and write in the margins of your casebooks, hornbooks, codes, outlines, and other legal texts. With this personal touch, the publications become much more useful to you and more valuable to the student who may buy them from you. Also, when buying used law books, I would buy the ones that have legible notes written in the margins, rather than the clean ones that may never have been read by their previous owner. The person who owned the books with extensive notes is probably a much better student than the person who never made a mark in his/her casebook. Before you buy a book with notes in the margin, look at the notes to see if they appear clear and well-organized. Buy the used book for its aura.

REQUIRED TEXTS:

THE CASEBOOK: The required course casebook, Johnson & Cloud, Criminal Law, 7th Edition (2002), 847 pages, ISBN 0-314-25649-0 is available in the school bookstore and through Internet bookstores (see below). We will cover approximately 700 pages of the book. Casebooks, including this one, are over-priced, but traditional curriculum requires that we use them. So buy a used one, if possible. Like all 1L criminal law casebooks, this one is a potpourri of interesting cases from a variety of jurisdictions covering a span of many years. The casebook is light on footnotes (a good thing) and has reasonably informative notes. It provides some guidance in understanding the common law of crimes and the MPC, but does not in itself provide you with a comprehensive, integrated, and well-ordered body of cohesive law. It's not an everything-you-ever-wanted-to-know about all the crimes in the code casebook; instead, it focuses on general principles of crimes, defenses, vicarious responsibility, and punishment, with some focus on criminal homicide, inchoate crimes, and property offenses You will get your doctrinal toehold from the codes (MPC & TPC), this web site, and your study of common law and the MPC in the Dressler UCL hornbook (see below).

THE STATE PENAL CODE: (Recommended but not required) You will need access to a copy of the current 2007-2009 Texas Penal Code (TPC) for purposes of reference. This code, like most of the others in Texas, changes every two years when the Texas Legislature meets. The Texas Penal Code, though not always the most current version, can also be accessed on the web from a number of web sites, e.g. , (1), (2), (3). We are fortunate in that the 80th Legislature has recently passed the new 2007-2009 Texas Penal Code, effective in September of 2007. We are also fortunate that it is on-line for free use.

OTHER HELPFUL BOOKS: There are a number of other hornbooks that are helpful in understanding the law of crimes and defenses. You won't have time to read all of them. So we use the Dressler Understanding Criminal Law (UCL) hornbook**. Here's a list of several good criminal law hornbooks:

LaFave, Hornbook on Criminal Law, West Publishing Co. (4th Edition, 2003), 1,065 pages, ISBN 0-414-14997-X. (Hornbook) This is the mother of all criminal law hornbooks. It is an encyclopedic compilation by the renown scholar, Professor Emeritus Wayne LaFave of the University of Illinois. If you have time to read, it can be of enormous help in getting a grip on the subject. If you plan to practice criminal law, it is must reading. A reserved hard copy of this book is available from the reference desk of the library. As far as I know, it's not available for free on the web. [By way of explanation, a hornbook was used by children several hundred years ago to learn their alphabet. The hornbook of that era was a paddle-shaped board to which was attached one sheet of paper containing the alphabet and the Lord's Prayer. The board was called a hornbook because a thin sheet of transparent cow's horn covered the paper to protect it.]

LaFave, Principles of Criminal Law: The Concise Hornbook Series, West Publishing Co. (2003), 737 pages, ISBN 0-314-14650-4. (Mini-Hornbook, Softcover Handbook) Professor LaFave, the sage of criminal law, has written this excellent paperback, scaled-down version of his famous hornbook. It is more scholarly and exhaustive on the common law than Dressler, but is not as easily readable and does not contain the myriad of hypotheticals and the separate sections on the Model Penal Code that makes the Dressler book so useful to the student who is beginning the study of criminal law

**Dressler, Understanding Criminal Law (UCL), Lexis (4th edition, 2006) (Mini- Hornbook, Handbook.) (Recommended but not required) This is the written hornbook that I use as a primary reference on the common law and Model Penal Code in presenting the course. This somewhat more modest and very workmanlike effort of Ohio State's Professor Joshua Dressler offers a good comparison of the common law of crimes and defenses with the Model Penal Code. It contains many useful hypothetical examples and explanations. I suggest UCL as the essential foundation for your doctrinal reading and outlining for this course. See the reading assignments and the recitation list for directions as to the portions of UCL that correspond to the class' case assignments. I rely heavily on this book in constructing the final exam objective questions that relate to the common law of crimes and the MPC. If you wand condensed black letter law, Dressler's Lexis UCL book has also morphed into a couple of West publications Dressler's Black Letter Outline on Criminal Law, West Publishing (2005), softcover, ISBN 0-314-15233-4 and Dressler's Sum and Substance Audio on Criminal Law, West Publishing (4th edition 2005) Cassette: ISBN 0-314-16376-X; CD: ISBN 0-314-16375-1. Some students really warm up to the idea of being able to listen to a criminal law outline or hornbook. The audio is relatively painless, but in my opinion, the oral version doesn't stick to the gray matter in the roof of your brain like reading the UCL book. One doesn't have to be Sherlock Holmes to conclude that it's hard to look things up on a CD or cassette. It's also hard to underline, highlight, refer to, and/or makes notes on a commercial CD or cassette. If you happen to have an open book exam, your teacher may frown on you bringing ear plugs and a CD or cassette player into the exam room. [Did you ever hear the bromide: "Why Johnny Can't Read?, now available on CD and VHS"?]

[Note: Those STCL students on a limited budget might find it useful to consult our library for text of books in the STCL library database. You will need your STCL user ID and password See http://www.stcl.edu/library/libhome.html. ]

Loewy, Criminal Law in a Nutshell, West Publishing Company (4th Edition, 2003), 335 pages, softcover ISBN 0-314-14518-4. This is a handy little summary that gives you a superficial taste of what the law of crimes and defenses is about. I don't agree with everything it says, but it provides you with a quick study. You can finish this one during a weekend trip to the beach or hill country. Buy it only if you are on an unlimited book budget.

Marcus, Questions and Answers: Criminal Law, Lexis Nexis (2003) ISBN 0820556629. This study guide contains 150 multiple-choice and short answer questions to test your knowledge of criminal law.

Other books or articles of interest to criminal law scholars You probably won't have time to read any of the following books during the semester, but, if you have an ongoing interest in the teaching and/or practice of criminal law, you will find that each provides good historical insight into the law of crimes and defenses.

Fletcher, Rethinking Criminal Law, Aspen (1978).

Hall, General Principles of Criminal Law, Michie (1961).

Hart, The Morality of the Criminal Law (1964)

Hart, Punishment and Responsibility, Oxford Press (1968).

Holmes, The Common Law (1881).

Katz, Moore & Morse, Foundations of Criminal Law, Thomson West (1999).

Packer, The Limits of the Criminal Sanction, Stanford Univ. Press (1967).

Robinson, Criminal Law, Aspen Publishing (1997).

Weaver, Burkoff, Hancock, Reed, Seago, Readings in Criminal Law, Lexis Nexis (1998). Some thought provoking articles concerning legal principles, but too esoteric for our basic Criminal Law course.

Williams, Criminal Law: The General Part, Stevens (2nd edition, 1961).

A law review article of enduring philosophical interest: Professor Lon Fuller, The Case of the Speluncean Explorers , 62 Harv. L. Rev. 616 (4999). See also The Case of the Speluncean Explorers: A Fiftieth Anniversary Symposium, 112 Harv. L. rev. 1834 (1999).

Bonus: You'll find some wonderful free on-line books about law, e.g. Oliver Wendell Holmes, The Common Law, etc., and many other non-legal subjects at on-line or digital libraries like Project Gutenberg, an Internet site that publishes books in the public domain (1923 and earlier). For example, you might be interested in downloading works such as Arthur Train's "Courts and Criminals." A savvy friend recommends this 147-page collection of essays written between 1905 -1910 when Train labored as a prosecutor in NY. You'll also find many links to a world of words at library links and a bunch of free downloadable books for leisure reading. If you like free e-books, you'll love these sites (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6). If your want to immerse yourself in learning, read the Harvard Classics. If there are worse crimes than burning books - one of them is not reading them.

Double Bonus: Start learning to access information about criminal justice from the web. You'll find some stepping stone resources on the LINKS page. Take an hour of two to explore them. Remember, knowledge is of two types: we know a subject ourselves or we know where we can get information upon it.

OUTLINES, NOTE-TAKING, BRIEFING CASES, LEGAL WRITING, RESEARCH

Capsule summaries of the Emanuel Law Outline Series, including criminal law, are available online using your Lexis password. I am not sure if first year student's passwords will provide access to this service. Give it a try by hitting this hyperlink: Free Emanuel Outline Capsule Summaries. I don't make any recommendation re purchase of this material, but if you can get it for free, why not download it. For further information on study aids click here.

For a resource containing good articles by professors on the subjects of note-taking, briefing cases, electronic research, outlining, legal writing, time management, etc., take at look at this Jurist page.

Learning Strategies: A helpful old article on note-taking, study strategies, outlining, problem-solving, legal analysis, etc., is found in Wangerin, Learning Strategies for Law Students, 52 Albany Law Review 471 (1989). See also, White, The Study of Law as an Intellectual Activity, 37 J. Legal Educ. 1 (1982); Gordon, How Not to Succeed in Law School, 100 Yale L. J. 1679 (1991). Finally, take a look at "Introduction to Law School Materials," a guide to materials designed to aid first-year law students in adapting to law school.

COMPUTER ASSISTED LEGAL INSTRUCTION

CALI: CALI is a membership organization; +-180 law schools belong. It features computer assisted web based tutorials in 29 legal topic areas, including all of your first year courses, e.g., criminal law. To register, go to CALI's homepage , and click on the "Not Registered User Yet" link. During the registration process you will also create your own password. In subsequent visits to use lessons, you will only need to enter your email address and your password. To access CALI online initially you will need to obtain a school password from either a Reference Librarian or an employee of the Patron Services Department. I suggest that you try CALI as good way of checking your progress by applying the concepts that you are learning to solve multiple choice problems. . All of the criminal law exercises are useful in getting a lasso over this course. Some are quite good. Completion time for most lessons ranges from 30-60 minutes.

STUDENT ACCESS TO LEGAL RESEARCH GIANTS

During your law school days, you'll get free access to the legal research web sites run by the giant publishing houses. Westlaw, Lexis, LoisLaw, and VersusLaw can provide you with a lot of useful information. When you graduate and get your ticket to practice, the price goes way up. Enjoy these web sites while they are gratis.

THE MPC & THE TPC

The Model Penal Code (MPC): During the course, we'll be referencing certain portions of the Model Penal Code (MPC), e.g., actus reus, mens rea, intoxication, mistake, causation, inchoate offenses, liability for conduct (complicity) of another, necessity, self-defense, force in law enforcement, consent to force, duress, entrapment, insanity, diminished capacity, and provocation. The MPC reflects the collective best-mind effort of a group of law professors, judges, practicing lawyers, psychiatrists, and correctional administrators. The MPC was assembled by the American Law Institute (ALI) in the middle of the last century. In 1962, the ALI published the MPC in an approved official draft. It has been described as the most ambitious, and most influential, attempt to work out the principles of American criminal law in a systematic way. The MPC has been the starting point for many states, about 40, that have revised their penal codes over the past several decades. [Notably thus far, California and the federal law have resisted the MPC influence.] Texas completely revised its Penal Code in 1974, relying greatly on the MPC. Extensive revisions to the TPC also were made in 1993. Despite persistent patchwork tinkering by the politicians (primarily legislators with little or no knowledge of criminal law) in our Austin capitol, Texas still has one of the best penal codes in the United States. This is due primarily to the influence of the MPC. Note: All portions of the Model Penal Code that are essential for this course are contained in the Johnson & Cloud casebook.

The Texas Penal Code (TPC): During the course, we'll look at key portions of the Texas Penal Code on many occasions. The TPC is important to us because it contains the substantive law of crimes and defenses for our State and, also, because if we didn't, we would leave you mistakenly believing that the answers to most basic definitional issues in criminal law are to be found in the myriad of appellate cases and the common law of crimes. If you go down to the local courthouse and start citing the common law, you'll be laughed out of court. The truth is that the state Penal Code is the fountainhead of the Texas law of crimes and defenses. The bird's eye picture of crimes in any state always begins with that state's Penal Code. The appellate court opinions in casebooks typically attempt to make sense of the code when disputes, e.g., the scope of the merger limitation on the FM rule, as to its meaning and application occur. In most criminal cases, there won't be any significant question concerning the validity and application of the substantive law defining crimes and defenses, the subject of our study.

SAVING MONEY PURCHASING BOOKS AND ELSEWHERE

The B&N school bookstore stocks assigned course books and some supplementary books. In my experience, the staff has always been helpful and courteous. You will find that there are also Internet bookstore sites that stock a wide selection of casebooks and supplementary texts at discounts (often 10%) and without the added state sales tax. Some of these on-line bookstores ship free for sizeable orders, e.g., totals over $100. If you are interested in buying on-line, you'll have to check these vendors, e.g., Wal-Mart, Amazon, out for yourself. E-Bay has also gotten into the business of selling law books substantially below retail. I make no recommendations or guarantees with regard to these on-line bookstores, but, if you want to save money ... (For saving money elsewhere, check out the FrugalLawStudent.)

Bene vobis.

RE Moses

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