Abduction means the taking of a person against their will, generally by means of persuasion, fraud, or force. Some jurisdictions also require that the abductee (the person who is abducted) be a child or that that the abductor intend to marry...
human rights
abuse
Abuse is an action that intentionally causes harm or injures another person. This can refer to physical abuse, psychological abuse, mental abuse, or child abuse (see below).
Abuse is also to misuse something - e.g., abuse...
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an organization founded in 1920, with the mission of defending and preserving the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in the U.S. Constitution. The ACLU currently has more than...
Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA)
Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA) was passed by the 107th Congress “to deter terrorism, provide justice for victims, provide for an effective death penalty, and for other purposes.” To accomplish this goal, some of...
biological experiments
Generally, biological experiments are experiments conducted on people without their consent; however, they defined contextually based on what is occurring in the present situation. For instance, in Perez v. Sharp, the forced sterilization of...
border patrol
See Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
[Last updated in December of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team]
capital punishment
Capital punishment, which is also known as the death penalty, is criminal punishment that takes the defendant’s life as the punishment for the defendant’s crime. The sentence ordering capital punishment is called the death sentence, and the...
child pornography (CP)
Child pornography (CP) is any sexual depiction of a minor. Title 18, Section 2256 of the U.S. Code defines child pornography as “any visual depiction, including any photograph, film, video, picture, or computer or computer-generated image or...
civil liberties
Civil liberties are freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution (primarily from the First Amendment). They are natural rights which are inherent to each person. While they are commonly referred to as "rights," civil liberties actually...
colonialism
The word colony comes from the Latin word colonus, which means farmer - indicating the transfer of people to land. Colonialism is the act of power and domination of one nation, by acquiring or maintaining full or partial political control...