Criminal law is the body of civil law that refers to criminal conduct. It encompasses conduct ranging from minor crimes such as vandalism, theft, drug possession, rape, and murder to major felonies such as racketeering, fraud, identity theft, and violent crimes like felonies, rape, murder, homicide, and so on. Thus, it encompasses a broad range of activities. It is a body of laws which criminalize conduct considered immoral, detrimental, dangerous, or otherwise threatening to society in general.

The most familiar form of criminal law in the US; is that involving offenses against property. This includes burglary, arson, embezzlement, robbery, violence against a family member, violence against a business person or investor, and a variety of other property destruction or burglary-related crimes. Other forms of criminal law include those that criminalize conduct in furtherance of terrorism, seizure of a boat, airplane, ship, tank, or vehicle, fraud in the financial arena, fraud in the sale or purchase of a motor vehicle, sex crimes, kidnapping and ransom, sex trafficking, human smuggling, and so on. In addition, there are state and federal laws that criminalize conduct within the borders of the United States. Not all states have the same statutes because the federal government implements and controls more of the laws on the states than the states themselves implement and control on the federal level.

There are two bodies of criminal law in the United States: state and federal. Although state and federal criminal statutes differ from state to state, they usually co-exist and share some elements. Criminal laws that criminalize conduct in violation of a state law are referred to as penal law. Criminal statues that criminalize conduct in violation of a federal law are called criminal statutes.

• Although the federal and state penal codes are sometimes referred to as penal laws, the term refers to laws that are implemented by state authorities.
• Federal criminal procedure includes a crime with limited penalties, whereas state criminal law is broader in nature and can impose sentences of various types.
• In some instances, a crime that is considered a misdemeanor under federal law can also be charged as a felony under state law.
• Federal criminal law differs from state criminal law in regard to the standing of witnesses and the admissibility of hearsay evidence.

Criminal defense lawyers defend clients; who have been accused of various crimes, including murder, arson, assault, drug possession, drug trafficking, theft, fraud, identity theft, kidnapping, sex crimes, DUI/DWI, solicitation, rape, murder, sexual assault, sex offenders, and many other offenses. Some crimes, such as murder, are considered capital crimes, carrying sentences of life or death. Capital offenses are punished by the harshest penalties in the law. Most defense lawyers use a mixture of every type of criminal law on the defense client, depending on the specifics of the case.

There is a huge difference between state and federal criminal law; and the punishments for crimes in the United States often mirror those in the country that they are committed. While murder is a capital crime, rape is not. Many states still follow the old-fashioned “innocent until proven guilty” system, while others, like the state of California, utilize what is called an “innocent waiver” system. In the case of a guilty plea, it is imperative that the defendant enter a guilty plea to avoid the death penalty, which has been the fate of many defendants who have had no other means of obtaining a fair trial.