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Crimes and offenses

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Key facts: Crimes fall into four general categories—felonies, misdemeanors, inchoate offenses, and strict liability offenses—and penalties are set separately by each state and by the federal government.[1]

Criminal law is a system of laws concerned with crimes and the punishment of individuals who commit them, distinct from civil law disputes between private parties.[1]Each state decides what conduct to designate a crime and maintains its own criminal code, while Congress has codified federal crimes in Title 18 of the U.S. Code.[1]Crimes are generally sorted into a few broad categories, and the punishment attached to each depends on the jurisdiction and the way the offense is classified.[1]

How offenses are organized

A crime is any act or omission that violates a law prohibiting that action or omission, and a criminal prosecution involves the government deciding whether to punish an individual for it, unlike a civil case where two parties dispute their own rights.[1]Each state decides what conduct to designate a crime and maintains its own criminal code, and these codes vary significantly from state to state and from the federal system; some resemble common-law crimes while others closely follow the Model Penal Code.[1]Congress has codified federal crimes in Title 18 of the U.S. Code, covering offenses such as arson, counterfeiting and forgery, embezzlement, espionage, genocide, and kidnapping, along with maximum sentences for each, and federal procedure is separately set out in the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.[1]To convict someone of a crime, the government must prove every element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt, generally including the act itself, the person's mental state, and a causal link between the two.[1]Readers who want a foundation in these building blocks can start with what criminal law is, the distinction between criminal and civil law, and the role of mens rea.

Categories of crime

Crimes can generally be separated into four categories: felonies, misdemeanors, inchoate offenses, and strict liability offenses.[1]At common law there were nine major felonies, including murder, robbery, manslaughter, rape, larceny, arson, and burglary, along with various misdemeanors such as assault, battery, and perjury, but modern state codes are far more detailed; New York's penal law, for example, prescribes nine levels of felonies.[1]A felony is generally a more serious offense, often classified by letter grade based on the maximum term of imprisonment authorized, ranging from life imprisonment or death at the top down to terms of more than one year but less than five years at the lowest grade.[2]A misdemeanor is typically a crime punishable by less than 12 months in jail, with its own letter-grade classifications based on maximum jail time, and lesser punishments such as community service, probation, or fines.[3]The distinction between these categories, and the infractions below them, is covered in more detail at felony vs. misdemeanor vs. infraction. Beyond these general categories, offenses are also commonly grouped by subject matter, including violent crimes, property crimes, drug crimes, white-collar crimes, sex offenses, DUI and DWI, weapons offenses, cybercrimes, and public order crimes, with separate rules for juvenile offenders and for offenses charged under federal law.

How penalties are set

Punishment depends heavily on how an offense is classified and by whom. Felonies not otherwise given a letter grade are typically sorted from Class A, carrying a maximum of life imprisonment or death, down to Class E, carrying a maximum of less than five years but more than one year, though some states sentence felonies case by case instead of using classes.[2]Misdemeanors are similarly classified from Class A down to Class C based on maximum jail time of a year or less, again with some states handling sentencing crime by crime.[3]Both the federal government and state governments have created sentencing guidelines: federal courts use the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, while state courts consult their own state-specific guidelines.[1]A law cannot punish a person merely for their status, since the Supreme Court has held that criminalizing status alone can amount to cruel and unusual punishment, though conduct such as trespassing or loitering by that same person can still be punished.[1]When multiple people are involved in an offense, liability can extend to accomplices, and in some jurisdictions an accomplice can be prosecuted independently of, and can be convicted of a more serious offense than, the principal perpetrator.[1]More on how courts arrive at a sentence appears at criminal sentencing, and on raising a defense at criminal defenses.

How crime is counted

National crime statistics come from more than one source, each measuring something different. The FBI's Crime Data Explorer compiles crimes reported to law enforcement agencies across the country.[4]The Bureau of Justice Statistics' National Crime Victimization Survey instead asks a nationally representative sample of people directly about crimes they experienced, whether or not those crimes were reported to police, covering nonfatal personal crimes such as assault and robbery as well as household property crimes such as burglary and motor vehicle theft.[5]Because the victimization survey captures unreported crime and the police-based data capture only reported incidents, the two sources can show different pictures of how much crime occurs.[4][5]People trying to understand what happens after a crime is charged, rather than how it is measured nationally, can review the criminal process step by step, starting with arrest.

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Common questions

What are the main categories of crime?

Crimes are generally separated into four categories: felonies, misdemeanors, inchoate offenses, and strict liability offenses.[1]Felonies are the more serious offenses and misdemeanors the less serious ones, each with their own classification systems based on potential prison or jail time.[2][3]

How do penalties vary between states and the federal system?

Each state has its own criminal code and decides what conduct to criminalize, so penalties for similar conduct can differ significantly between states and from federal law, which is codified mainly in Title 18 of the U.S. Code.[1]Federal courts use the Federal Sentencing Guidelines while state courts use their own state-specific guidelines, and even felony or misdemeanor letter-grade classifications are not used uniformly in every state.[1][2][3]

How is crime measured in the US?

Crime is measured in more than one way. Police-reported data is compiled through resources like the FBI's Crime Data Explorer, while the Bureau of Justice Statistics' National Crime Victimization Survey asks a representative sample of people about crimes they personally experienced, including crimes never reported to police.[4][5]

What is the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor?

A felony is generally punishable by longer prison terms, with top classes carrying life imprisonment or death, while a misdemeanor is typically punishable by less than 12 months in jail along with penalties such as fines or probation.[2][3]

Can someone be punished just for their status rather than an act?

No; the Supreme Court has held that a law criminalizing a person's status alone can amount to cruel and unusual punishment, though the same person can still be punished for related conduct such as trespassing or loitering.[1]

Can an accomplice be convicted even if the main perpetrator is not?

In some jurisdictions, yes; accomplices can be prosecuted independently of the principal, meaning an accomplice could be convicted even of a more serious offense while the alleged perpetrator is acquitted.[1]

References

All sources retrieved November 2026.

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u "Criminal law (Wex)". Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Retrieved November 2026.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Felony (Wex)". Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Retrieved November 2026.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Misdemeanor (Wex)". Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Retrieved November 2026.
  4. ^ a b c d "Crime Data Explorer". Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved November 2026.
  5. ^ a b c d "National Crime Victimization Survey". Bureau of Justice Statistics. Retrieved November 2026.