Statutes are laws that apply within a single state rather than federal law, while the census regularly counts the population to gather demographic statistics. When a criminal sentence is commuted, it is reduced from the maximum possible, and parole allows for the early release of prisoners, similar to a commuted sentence. Civil cases concern private disputes, misdemeanors are less serious crimes than felonies, and defendants are those accused of crimes in court, unlike plaintiffs.

1. Civics and Economics Vocabulary
Chapter 13 - Section One
Statute- Laws applying statewide
Difference: Federal Law
Sentence: Statutes are laws of the state rather than federal law.
Census- Population count
Similarity: Statistics
Sentence: The census is taken regularly to run statistics and gather data about the
population.
Chapter 13 - Section Two
Commute- Reduce criminal sentencing
Similarity: Parole
Sentence: When a commute takes place a criminal sentence is reduced from the max it
could have been.
Parole- Early release of a prisoner
Similarity: Commute
Sentence: A sentence may be for 60 years but the prisoner can become eligible for
parole earlier.
Chapter 13 - Section Three
Civil Case- Case concerning civil disputes
Similarity/Difference: None
Sentence: Civil cases are smaller cases.
Misdemeanor- Minor crimes
Difference: Felony
Sentence: Misdemeanors are crimes committed that arenʼt as major and have lesser
punishments.
Defendant- The accused
Difference: Plaintiff
Sentence: In a court room, the defendant is the one who is accused of a crime.
Tara Pawlyk Friday, May 17, 2013 7:24:58 AM ET 04:0c:ce:d3:10:88