What are the chances of a first time felony offender going to jail?
It is going to depend on a number of things: the type of crime, the way in which the crime was committed, the circumstances of the crime, and the offender's past criminal history. Let's say you broke into someone's home and stole over $250 worth of their belongings (that makes it a felony). If you did it because a bully said he would hurt your mother if you didn't get him the stuff is a more compelling reason than if you did it to get money to buy more video games for yourself and some good weed. If this was your 3rd time getting caught doing this type of thing, that ups your chances at serving time. If you broke into someone's home and found there were some kids in it with a babysitter and you terrorized everyone, that's not going to go well in court. So you see your intentions and your actions, along with your past criminal history, will be the deciding factor on whether the judge sees jail in your future. You get points on a sentencing sheet for all these different things. Rack up so many points and it's off to the slammer for you. A sentence of under a year is served in the county jail. A sentence of over a year is served in a state prison. Generally. Every state has their own rules, but that's the way it usually goes. Some crimes have a jail sentence no matter what. Gun laws in Massachusetts for example have an automatic, no getting out of it, jail sentence if the crime was committed with a gun. First time offenders that committed a non violent crime and have no past criminal history will most likely get a suspended sentence, probation and fines. Suspended means you don't have to serve the jail time as long as you do your probation and pay the fines. If you screw up, you will be put in jail to serve the original sentence.
Is wiping a booger on someone's shirt illegal?
I agree with Brian G -- it's a civil battery, which is the intentional unwanted touching of another person. (Further, it's probably a criminal battery in most jurisdictions.) A person is entitled to use reasonable force to resist a battery. The victim could probably punch you in the face to prevent you from wiping a booger on them. They could probably punch you in the face immediately after you wiped the booger on them (under the auspices that they didn't know whether you would continue), but if they persisted after that, they themselves would be liable for battery. (The law doesn't permit you to use physical force for vengeance, but only for defense.) Practically speaking, the big issue is whether or not they can prove that you either did or attempted to wipe the booger on them. If they have a witness that establishes that for the police, then they won't be arrested even if they knocked the **** out of you. If they tolerated the booger-wiping and sued you in court, they would be entitled to damages for the shirt-cleaning, etc. They could also get damages for intentional infliction of emotional distress, which might be more substantial. Finally, since civil battery and IIED are both intentional torts, they could seek punitive damages. I'm not a plaintiff's lawyer, but I think that $1000 or so for the punitive damages alone would not be unreasonable, depending on the circumstances. However, this is still not enough to justify hiring a lawyer, so suing would probably not be worth it.
Are some martial arts exams and classes examples of hazing?
I think there are lines drawn between what takes place in Martial Arts exams vs Hazing. Hazing is referring to educational institutions and the frats or sororities, and other campus clubs. It does not apply to athletic exams or competitions. While there are practices among martial arts exams I personal do not agree. I know of schools that still have practice like these: 5 mile run, followed by extreme exercises, 100 kicks, punches, etc on each side, followed by every kata, followed by sparring the 10 or more students and for the finally sparring through multiple black belts. (Sparring is full contact). I don't think this is necessary to tell me if a student is deserving of a black belt. Furthermore it is taking advantage of the students when the student are completely exhausted the black belt get to beat up on the students too. I also know another place that after the sparring they do bare knuckle fighting. Again it serves no real purpose and the black belts are the last one to enter into the fighting. In the bare knuckle fighting there are no punches to the head or face. I've seen point sparring to but the point only counts if you kiai. I don't get that. NJ: a. A person is guilty of hazing, a disorderly persons offense, if, in Connection with initiation of applicants to or members of a Student or Fraternal organization, he knowingly or recklessly organizes, promotes, facilitates or engages in any conduct, OTHER than Competitive Athletic Events, which places or may place another person in danger of bodily injury. They specifically list educational and fraternal institutions and exempt athletics. It is known that in athletic activites you always run the risks of injuries.