This course gives high school students a rigorous, structured introduction to criminal law — the same subject taught in every accredited law school in the United States — delivered at a level that challenges without overwhelming.
What makes something a crime? When does the law excuse harmful conduct? And what’s the difference between murder, manslaughter, and a tragic accident?
This class answers all of those questions — and dozens more — by teaching criminal law the way law school does it: through real legal analysis, not memorization.
Working through all five major areas of criminal law, students build the kind of legal thinking skills that transfer far beyond the classroom.
We cover what makes an act criminal in the first place, the mental states that determine how seriously the law treats a defendant, and the inchoate crimes that can land someone in prison before a crime is even finished.
From there we move through crimes against the person — the full homicide spectrum, assault, battery, and kidnapping — before turning to property crimes, where students discover that “stealing” is actually a half-dozen different crimes depending on how it was done.
We then step into the world of white collar crime, where the most expensive offenses in America are committed not with weapons but with spreadsheets and wire transfers.
The course closes with criminal defenses — self-defense, insanity, necessity, duress, entrapment, and more — where students learn that being charged is not the same as being guilty.
Every topic is taught through fact patterns that require students to spot legal issues, identify the crime or defense, and argue both sides.
No textbooks. No passive listening. Just real legal analysis applied to real-world scenarios.
Taught by a lawyer and high school teacher with 15+ years of combined experience making complex legal concepts accessible to teen learners.
