The 24 types of crimes (and their characteristics)

Laws, despite the fact that they can sometimes be unjust depending on which ethical or moral prism we examine them from, make it possible for us to live in a harmonious society. Conceived as mandatory rules or norms established by higher authorities, the laws seek to regulate the political, economic, cultural and social aspects of a human community.

And in this sense, The laws also classify all those behaviors, actions or omissions that constitute infractions of the criminal law of a country. We are talking, of course, about crimes. Those events that go against the legal system of a company and that, therefore, will be punished with the corresponding sanctions or stipulated penalties.

Homicide, murder, slander, harassment, threats, kidnapping, robbery, theft, extortion, fraud, fraud, medical negligence, drug trafficking, reckless driving, sexual abuse, rape, breaking and entering, obstruction of justice ... The list of crimes it is immense. Therefore, it has been necessary to classify these offenses in the most orderly way possible.

And this is precisely what we are going to inspect in today's article. Hand in hand with the most prestigious publications on this topic, let's see how crimes are classified and what are the characteristics of each of these types of crimes. Let us begin.

How are crimes classified?

Crimes are infractions of criminal law that are subject to penalties or sanctions and that are defined as conducts, actions or omissions punishable by law. Thus, these are fraudulent or reckless actions or inactions that are punishable, as they go against the legal system of a State. The sanction or penalty imposed will vary according to the severity of the same.

But be that as it may, from the legal point of view, a crime is one that meets the following characteristics: typicity (the act is included in the penal code), legality (it is an illegal conduct without justification), action or omission (the fault it can be in doing something or not doing it), imputability (the guilty is judged), punishable (a sanction or penalty is applied) and guilt (determining to what degree the perpetrator wanted to commit the crime).

Now this encompasses many different crimes such as the ones we have listed in the introduction. And to make this whole conglomeration of terms easier, It has been essential to develop a classification of crimes according to different parameters such as their severity, what the offense is inflicted on, the type of damage, the result ... And then, taking all these parameters, we are going to describe the main classes of crimes that exist.

1. Crimes against people

Crimes against persons are all those offenses that threaten the physical integrity of a human being. In this sense, we have the crimes of injuries and even homicide or murder.

2. Crimes against freedom

Crimes against freedom are all those offenses that prevent a person from developing their activities freely. This includes harassment, threats, blackmail, kidnapping, coercion and illegal detentions.

3. Crimes against honor

Crimes against honor are slander and insult, which are all those verbal or written manifestations that seek to discredit a person or attempt against your honor based on lies.

4. Economic crimes

Economic crimes are those acts in which a person, intentionally and using deception as a tool, achieves an economic benefit to the detriment of third parties. This includes fraud, money laundering, fraud, property lifting ...

5. Crimes against road safety

Crimes against road safety are all those illegal behaviors carried out in the context of driving on urban and interurban roads, endangering the perpetrator and other drivers. This includes reckless driving, speeding and exceeding the blood alcohol limits.

6. Crimes against property

Crimes against property are all those that attempt against the material assets of a person or organization, causing damage to them. This includes theft, robbery, usurpation, extortion, the crime of damages, crimes related to intellectual property, etc.

7. Crimes against public health

Crimes against public health are all those actions or inactions that cause damage to collective health. Medical negligence, drug trafficking, contamination of food for human consumption, marketing of harmful drugs, etc., are examples of this.

8. Crimes against public administration

Crimes against the public administration are those committed by the authorities or the public official, who make use of the State systems to commit illegal actions. This includes prevarication, embezzlement, bribery, influence peddling, etc.

9. Crimes against sexual freedom and indemnity

Crimes against sexual freedom and indemnity are those that threaten the sexual intimacy of people. This includes sexual assault, sexual harassment, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, and exhibitionism.

10. Computer crimes

Computer crimes are all those that are carried out by making an illicit use of computer programs. This includes piracy and all those illegal actions carried out by hackers.

11. Crimes against the Constitution

Crimes against the Constitution are those that attack the most important institutions of a State, against the rights of citizens or against the symbols of the country. This includes rebellion, hate crime, outrages and, if there is a monarchy, crimes against the crown.

12. Crimes of falsehoods

The crimes of falsehoods are those that are based on alter, modify, simulate or falsify an official document or part of it. This includes professional trespass, usurpation of marital status, forgery of permits and forgery of currency.

13. Crimes against privacy

Crimes against privacy are those that consist of revealing a person's secrets without their consent. These are illegal acts that occur when we invade the privacy of a third party, thus violating their rights and violating their privacy. This includes the discovery and revealing of secrets.

14. Crimes against the inviolability of the home

Crimes against the inviolability of the home are those that violate the fundamental right that no one can enter or register a home without the consent of the owner thereof. The breaking and entering is the clearest example.

15. Crimes against public order

Crimes against public order are those that threaten the tranquility and peace of a society. This includes, in addition to the attacks, which would be the most serious form, sedition, disobedience, public disorder, the glorification of terrorism and the illegal possession of weapons.

16. Crimes of omission

The crimes of omission are all those that do not consist of actions, but of inactions. That is, they are crimes that are based on not doing something that, in a context, is stipulated by law that we must do. The crime of omission of the duty to help is the clearest example.

17. Crimes against moral integrity

Crimes against moral integrity are those that consist of carrying out actions that violate the dignity of a person, infringing degrading treatment. Workplace harassment, gender violence and domestic violence are the main examples.

18. Crimes against family rights and duties

Crimes against family rights and duties are all those that consist of the breaking of the obligations that we have towards the members of our family. The abandonment of the family and the removal of less are the clearest examples.

19. Crimes against the Public Treasury and against Social Security

Crimes against the Public Treasury and against Social Security are all those illegal acts that are carried out with the aim of evading taxes, thus constituting tax crimes.

20. Crimes against workers' rights

Crimes against workers' rights are those that consist of imposing illegal conditions in the labor context, illegal labor trafficking, labor discrimination, the prohibition of the right to strike and freedom of association, putting the health of workers at risk. workers, not entering into social security or favoring illegal migration.

21. Simple crimes

We understand by simple crimes those in which "only" a legal good is violated, such as murder.

22. Complex crimes

In contrast, we understand by complex crimes those in which more than one legal asset is violated, such as those cases in which there is a rape and then a murder of the same victim.

23. Formal crimes

Formal crimes are those that are punished for the behavior of a person, such as public disorder, workplace harassment, disclosure of secrets or false testimony.

24. Material crimes

Material crimes are those that are punished according to a visible result rather than conduct, such as theft or the crime of injury.