Criminal Defense Terms and Definitions

Levy A seizure; the obtaining of money by legal process through seizure and sale of property. Miranda rule The rule, pronounced in Miranda v. Arizona, that confessions are inadmissible in a criminal prosecution if the police do not advise the suspect in custody of certain rights before questioning. Search warrant An order issued by a judge or magistrate commanding a sheriff, constable, or other officer to search a specified location. Restitution Court-ordered payment to restore goods or money to the victim of a crime by the offender. Battery Actual physical violence, whether serious or minor, inflicted on a person. (A mere threat is called assault, whereas the completed act is called battery) Admissible evidence Evidence which can legally and properly be used in court. Tort An injury or wrong committed, either with or without force, to the person or property of another, for which civil liability may be imposed. Dismissal without prejudice A dismissal which permits the plaintiff to sue again on the same cause of action or the state to proceed again. Dismissal with prejudice bars the right to subsequently bring an action on the same cause. Abstract of record A short, abbreviated form of the case as found in the record. Circumstantial evidence All evidence of an indirect nature. Testimony not based on actual personal knowledge or observation of the facts in controversy.

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	Res Ipsa Loquitur - Literally, "a thing that speaks for itself." In tort law, the doctrine which holds a defendant guilty of negligence without an actual showing that he or she was negligent. Its use is limited in theory to cases in which the cause of the plaintiff's injury was entirely under the control of the defendant, and the injury presumably could have been caused only by negligence.