Civil versus Criminal Actions
The legal system in the U.S recognizes two types of cases; Civil and criminal cases. It is worth noting the difference between the two actions. Civil actions involve private conflicts between individuals or organizations whereas Criminal action is a public offense that requires trial and punishment (Mann, 1992). The difference may occur in different stages such as the objectives, the remedies, and outcomes, the administration of each action and the subjects involved in each action. Regarding objectives, civil actions aim at compensating the plaintiff for the injuries or damages that were conducted by the defendant. The jury, therefore, needs to be convinced that the accused is responsible for the alleged offense through submission of enough evidence. Conversely, Criminal actions focus on determining whether the charged committed the unlawful act and to determine the punishment they should …show more content…
For instance, the double murder that was suspected to have been committed by O.J Simpson, who is alleged to have murdered his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman. O.J Simpson was suspected to have killed two people, the case was submitted by the police, and therefore the jury required enough evidence to convict the accused categorizing it as Criminal action. The case was later presented by the Goldman’s family in a civil court, and eventually, the jury found O.J Simpson responsible for the murder of Ronald Goldman and was therefore required to compensate the family. O.J Simpson was found “not guilty” in a criminal court but “liable” in a civil court. This is because in a criminal court, “the jury must unanimously find the accused guilty, beyond reasonable doubt,” (JONES p. A5.)whereas the civil court applies the “preponderance of evidence” (Nesson 1364)which only requires fifty percent of the evidence to point at something, thus the case with O.J Simpsons
The legal system in the U.S recognizes two types of cases; Civil and criminal cases. It is worth noting the difference between the two actions. Civil actions involve private conflicts between individuals or organizations whereas Criminal action is a public offense that requires trial and punishment (Mann, 1992). The difference may occur in different stages such as the objectives, the remedies, and outcomes, the administration of each action and the subjects involved in each action. Regarding objectives, civil actions aim at compensating the plaintiff for the injuries or damages that were conducted by the defendant. The jury, therefore, needs to be convinced that the accused is responsible for the alleged offense through submission of enough evidence. Conversely, Criminal actions focus on determining whether the charged committed the unlawful act and to determine the punishment they should …show more content…
For instance, the double murder that was suspected to have been committed by O.J Simpson, who is alleged to have murdered his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman. O.J Simpson was suspected to have killed two people, the case was submitted by the police, and therefore the jury required enough evidence to convict the accused categorizing it as Criminal action. The case was later presented by the Goldman’s family in a civil court, and eventually, the jury found O.J Simpson responsible for the murder of Ronald Goldman and was therefore required to compensate the family. O.J Simpson was found “not guilty” in a criminal court but “liable” in a civil court. This is because in a criminal court, “the jury must unanimously find the accused guilty, beyond reasonable doubt,” (JONES p. A5.)whereas the civil court applies the “preponderance of evidence” (Nesson 1364)which only requires fifty percent of the evidence to point at something, thus the case with O.J Simpsons