felony

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Felony

A serious crime, characterized under federal law and many state statutes as any offense punishable by death or imprisonment in excess of one year.

Under the early Common Law, felonies were crimes involving moral turpitude, those which violated the moral standards of a community. Later, however, crimes that did not involve mortal turpitude became included in the definition of a felony.Presently many state statutes list various classes of felonies with penalties commensurate with the gravity of the offense. Crimes classified as felonies include, among others, Treason, Arson, murder, rape, Robbery, Burglary, Manslaughter, and Kidnapping.

felony

n. 1) a crime sufficiently serious to be punishable by death or a term in state or federal prison, as distinguished from a misdemeanor which is only punishable by confinement to county or local jail and/or a fine. 2) a crime carrying a minimum term of one year or more in state prison, since a year or less can be served in county jail. However, a sentence upon conviction for a felony may sometimes be less than one year at the discretion of the judge and within limits set by statute. Felonies are sometimes referred to as "high crimes" as described in the U. S. Constitution. (See: sentence, misdemeanor)

felony

a now archaic term of English law for crimes that by statute or by common law carried the death sentence and forfeiture on conviction. See MISDEMEANOUR. In some US states this still denotes more serious imprisonable crimes.

Collins Dictionary of Law © W.J. Stewart, 2006

References in periodicals archive ?

Its holdings lead only to dangerous and absurd results: an assault that leads to a death - even if committed in the heat of passion - may serve as the underlying felony of a felony murder conviction.

The Missouri felony murder rule's merger limitation: a doctrine in limbo

(44) But the stage is set: misdemeanor violations, once only punishable by a maximum of one year in jail, (45) can now trigger felony charges and consequences if the criminal history conditions are satisfied.

Crossing the line: an analysis of problems with classifying recidivist misdemeanor offenses as felonies

Data from the state's attorney's office show that progress has been made in convicting pimps and traffickers of felony crimes.

Escorted to jail: sex workers, not their patrons, are bearing the brunt of prostitution-related felony charges in Illinois

Washington's felony disenfranchisement scheme derives its authority from the state constitution, which proscribes persons convicted of an "infamous crime" from voting in any election unless their civil rights have been restored.

Debt to society? The Washington State Legislature's efforts to restore voting rights to persons with felony convictions

"It's going to be a difficult case to convict on for murder because it's such a technicality," said Ernie DiBenedetto, a criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor who has tried and fought felony murder cases.

Felony murder rule under scrutiny

Massachusetts: No one convicted of a felony can own a marijuana establishment, unless the offense was limited to marijuana and did not involve distribution.

When Experience Is a Liability: IN SOME STATES, A MARIJUANA CONVICTION CAN EXCLUDE YOU FROM THE NEWLY LEGAL INDUSTRY

In some cases, the crime rose to felony status because of the value of the items stolen barely reached a threshold.

Life sentence slashed by Fourth Department

Because of SQ 780, about 14,000 Oklahomans avoided a felony charge last year, the report concludes.

Prosperity Policy: State Question 780 is working

The Court of Appeals reversed the District Court's pretrial order dismissing felony domestic-assault charges for lack of probable cause.

Felony-level enhancement based on prior convictions

In a fairly similar incident, a 34-year-old man named Scott Langford of Dieterich, Idaho, was charged with being "an armed habitual criminal, a class X felony along with aggravated discharge of a firearm, a Class 1 felony, being a felon in possession of firearm ammunition, a Class 3 felony, reckless discharge of a firearm, a Class 4 felony, and possession of a weapon by a felon, a Class 3 felony." 

Trial Delayed For 20-Year-Old Iowa Man Charged In Grandfather's Death

One of the clauses amending Clause 1 of Article 80 in the criminal law seeks to eliminate the 30-year statutory limit on prosecution of any felony that caused death and is punishable by the death penalty, a life sentence or a sentence of more than 10 years in jail.

Taiwan's Cabinet sponsors a bill to eliminate statutory time limits on prosecution of certain felonies

More than one-third of Arizona laws involving a felony penalty havent been used in the past 15 years, a new report from the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission found.