Reading and Writing Workshop

Criminal Law and Procedure
Essential Questions:

• What distinguishes criminal law from other forms of law?
• How are laws made, enforced, and challenged?

Session 1: Origins of Criminal Law and Case Law Traditions
Focus: Sources of Law—Statutes, Common Law, and Case Law
Reading:

• Commentaries on the Laws of England by Sir William Blackstone (Vol. 4: Of Public Wrongs)
  Full text: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/8082

Activity:

• Read selected sections on public wrongs (criminal offenses) and discuss how common law shaped U.S. criminal law.
• Annotate a passage to identify key legal principles still relevant today.

Writing Task:

• Write a one-page response comparing how criminal wrongs were defined in Blackstone’s time versus now.

Session 2: Crime and Punishment in American Law
Focus: Distinguishing Felonies and Misdemeanors
Reading:

• Crime and Criminals (1901) by Jessie Annie Anderson
  Full text: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/72399

Activity:

• Students read excerpts describing crimes from early 20th-century perspectives.
• Discuss what has changed in criminal classification and punishment over time.

Writing Task:

• Choose one described crime and rewrite it as a modern statute with classification (felony/misdemeanor), punishment, and rationale.

Session 3: Famous Defenses in Criminal Trials
Focus: Criminal Defenses—Insanity, Self-Defense, Duress, etc.
Reading:

• Trial of Daniel McFarland for the Murder of Albert D. Richardson (1870)
  Full text: https://archive.org/details/trialofdanielmcf00mcfa

Activity:

• Read selections from the trial record and identify the defense used (temporary insanity).
• In small groups, analyze the persuasive strategies used by the defense.

Writing Task:

• Write a courtroom-style closing argument for or against McFarland, using legal language and referencing one accepted defense.

Session 4: The Constitution and the Rights of the Accused
Focus: 4th and 5th Amendments—Search and Seizure, Self-Incrimination, Due Process
Reading:

• Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)
  Full text: https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/384/436/

Activity:

• Students read the syllabus and majority opinion (selected excerpts).
• Use a constitutional chart to identify each right explained and the legal reasoning behind the decision.

Writing Task:

• Write a reflection essay: Should the Miranda warning still be required today? Why or why not?

Session 5: The Rule of Law in Action
Focus: Enforcement and Challenges of the Law
Reading:

• The Federalist Papers No. 78 by Alexander Hamilton (on the role of the judiciary)
  Full text: https://guides.loc.gov/federalist-papers/text-71-80

Activity:

• Students close read No. 78 to identify Hamilton’s argument for judicial independence and how it relates to criminal procedure.
• Discuss the checks on law enforcement powers.

Writing Task:

• Write a letter to a legislator arguing for or against a proposed change to criminal procedure (e.g., limits on search technology, body camera mandates), citing historical context and constitutional protections.

Optional Reading Enrichment (Advanced Students)
Text:

• An Essay on Crimes and Punishments by Cesare Beccaria (1764)
  Full text: https://oll.libertyfund.org/title/beccaria-an-essay-on-crimes-and-punishments

Suggested Use:

• Compare Enlightenment theories on punishment to modern justice reform.
• Host a seminar-style discussion on Beccaria’s opposition to the death penalty and torture.

Workshop Assessment Options

• Legal reflection journal (one entry per session)
• Final persuasive essay: “How should we balance public safety and individual rights in criminal procedure?”
• Public speaking task: Simulate a courtroom argument based on one of the readings