Statutory Criminal Law is best described as

• A. Establishes penalties for crimes.
• B. Determines how trials are conducted.
• C. Prohibits or requires certain acts.
• D. Defines evidence admissibility.

Answer: (C)

Statutory Criminal Law centers on prohibiting or mandating conduct. It creates offenses by listing acts that are illegal and actions that individuals must perform, thereby defining what counts as a crime. While penalties are often attached to these prohibitions or requirements, the essential purpose is to draw the line around criminal behavior—what the law says you cannot do and what you must do. The other areas—how trials proceed and what evidence is admissible—belong to procedural and evidentiary law, not the substantive rules that define crimes. For example, a statute might say it is illegal to steal or to possess controlled substances, and it may specify the penalties, but the core function is establishing prohibited or mandatory conduct.