The Law Dictionary

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OFFENSE Definition & Legal Meaning

Definition & Citations:

A crime or misdemeanor; a breach of the criminal laws. Moore v. Illinois, 14 How. 13, 14 L. Ed. 306; lilies v. Knight, 3 Tex. 312; People v. French. 102 N. Y. 583, 7 N. E. 913; State v. West, 42 Minn. 147, 43 N. W. 845. It is used as a genus, comprehending every crime and misdemeanor, or as a species, signifying a crime not indictable, but punishable summarily or by the forfeiture of a penalty. In re Terry (C. C.) 37 Fed. 649.

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