The book is organized into two parts. Part I discusses the definitions of crime and criminal law, principles of criminal liability, capacity and defenses, preparatory activity crimes, offenses against persons and property, obtaining property by false pretenses, theft, forgery and other fraud offenses, offenses involving morality and decency, offenses against justice administration, and certain aspects of federal criminal law. Each chapter includes a chapter outline, key terms, and concepts. Part II provides judicial decisions relating to Part I.
- Each chapter includes outline, key terms and concepts, guiudance to help the reader understand what is important in each chapter, as well as a new Legal News section that highlights current criminal law issues.
- Part II contains briefs of judicial decisions related to the topics covered in the the text, in order to help the reader learn rule of law as well as the reasoning of the court that guides future court ruilngs.
- Part III contains the Constitution of the United States of America, a Glossary and a Table of Cases.