A crime is an act specifically prohibited by law, or failure to perform an act specifically required by law, for which punishment is prescribed.
Felonies are serious crimes for which the offender can be sentenced to state prison.
Misdemeanors are less serious crimes for which the offender can be sentenced to various combinations of fines, probation, or county jail time. Infractions are the least serious offenses, usually punishable by a fine. It provides criminal statistics for use in law enforcement administration, operation, and management. Offenses reported are classified by UCR definitions designed to eliminate differences among various states in penal code definitions of crimes. The FBI Crime Index Offenses, selected by UCR because of their seriousness, frequency of occurrence, and likelihood of being reported to the police are willful homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson.