Crime violates the laws of a community, or nation. It is punishable in accordance with these . The definition of crime varies according to time and place, but the laws of most consider as crimes such as arson, , burglary, , murder, and .
Not all offences against the law are . The laws that set down the punishments for crimes form the . This law defines as crimes those offences considered most harmful to the . On the other hand, a may wrong someone else in some other way that offends the law.
The common law recognizes three of crime: treason, , and misdemeanor.
Death or is the usual for treason. Laws in the United States, for example, define a felony as a crime that is punishable by a of one year or more in a state or federal . A person who commits a may be punished by a or a jail term of less than one year.