misdemeanor

Etymology

mis- + demeanor

noun

1. (law, historical in UK) A crime usually punishable upon conviction by a small fine or by a short term of imprisonment. In the USA, misdemeanants usually are incarcerated in county jail for less than one year, but felons usually are incarcerated in state or federal prison for more than one year. Crimes which are punishable by large fines or by longer imprisonment are sometimes called felonies.
2. Any act of misbehavior.
   Because of the mother's lack of affection and the judgments made by everybody around her, the child is in opposition to everybody. Her misdemeanors may be partly the expression of her inner revolt. Quoted in 2002, The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler (page 32)