Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It regulates social conduct and proscribes whatever is threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people. It includes the punishment of people who violate these laws. Criminal law varies according to jurisdiction, and differs from civil law, where emphasis is more on dispute resolution and victim compensation than on punishment.

Criminal law is distinctive for the uniquely serious potential consequences or sanctions for failure to abide by its rules. Every crime is composed of criminal elements. Capital punishment may be imposed in some jurisdictions for the most serious crimes. Physical or corporal punishment may be imposed such as whipping or caning, although these punishments are prohibited in much of the world. Individuals may be incarcerated in prison or jail in a variety of conditions depending on the jurisdiction. Confinement may be solitary. Length of incarceration may vary from a day to life. Government supervision may be imposed, including house arrest, and convicts may be required to conform to particularized guidelines as part of a parole or probation regimen. Fines also may be imposed, seizing money or property from a person convicted of a crime.

Five objectives are widely accepted for enforcement of the criminal law by punishments: retribution, deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation and restoration. Jurisdictions differ on the value to be placed on each.

• Retribution – Criminals ought to be punished in some way. This is     the most widely seen goal. Criminals have taken improper advantage, or     inflicted unfair detriment, upon others and consequently, the criminal law     will put criminals at some unpleasant disadvantage to "balance the     scales." People submit to the law to receive the right not to be     murdered and if people contravene these laws, they surrender the rights     granted to them by the law. Thus, one who murders may be executed himself.     A related theory includes the idea of "righting the balance."

• Deterrence – Individual deterrence is aimed toward the specific     offender. The aim is to impose a sufficient penalty to discourage the     offender from criminal behavior. General     deterrence aims at society at large. By imposing a penalty on those who     commit offenses, other individuals are discouraged from committing those     offenses.

• Incapacitation – Designed simply to keep     criminals away from     society so that the public is protected from their misconduct. This is     often achieved through prison sentences today. The death penalty or banishment     have served the same purpose.

• Rehabilitation – Aims at transforming an     offender into a valuable member of society. Its primary goal is to prevent     further offense by convincing the offender that their conduct was wrong.

• Restoration – This is a victim-oriented     theory of punishment. The goal is to repair, through state authority, any     injury inflicted upon the victim by the offender. For example, one who embezzles     will be required to repay the amount improperly acquired. Restoration is     commonly combined with other main goals of criminal justice and is closely     related to concepts in the civil law, i.e., returning the victim to his or     her original position before the injury.