Actus Reus

Question 1

Elements of a Crime

Answer 1

(1) Actus Reus, (2) mens rea, (3) concurrence, and (4) proximate cause for result.

Question 2

Actus Reus

Answer 2

Either (1) a voluntary act or (2) an omission to perform an act required by law.
See MPC § 2.01(1)

Question 3

Voluntary Act CL

Answer 3

a bodily movement over which the actor has control

Question 4

Voluntary Act MPC

Answer 4

See MPC § 1.13(2), 2.01(2)…the following are NOT voluntary acts

i. A reflex
ii. A movement during unconsciousness or sleep (automatism)
iii. Conduct during hypnosis or resulting from hypnotic suggestion
iv. Any other bodily movement that is not the product of the habitual or conscious effort.

Question 5

Automatism

Answer 5

Involuntary conduct, usually while the person is unconscious. Defense to criminal liability. A person who has acted unconsciously has not committed a voluntary act so there is no actus reus.

Question 6

Possession

Answer 6

Possession is a voluntary act if the defendant was aware of the possession and had the opportunity to terminate the possession. See MPC 2.01(4)

Question 7

Martin v. State

Answer 7

Drunk in a parked car. Criminal Law does not punish mere thought.

Question 8

State v. Utter

Answer 8

Man with PTSD stabs and kills son, says it was conditioned response. Judge held there wasn’t enough evidence to prove it was conditioned.
Without the consent of the will, human actions aren’t culpable.

Question 9

Omission

Answer 9

A failure to act where there was an affirmative legal duty to do so. There is no general duty to act. A defendant is not liable for omission if they are physically incapable of acting See 1.13(4), 2.01(2)

Question 10

Sources of a Duty to Act

Answer 10

(1) A statute or regulation imposing a duty to act
(2) A special relationship between people
-Parent and child, Husband and wife, and
Employer and employee
(3) Assumption of contractual duty
(4) Voluntary assumption of the duty
(5) When the person creates the harm or risk
-Hitting someone with a car

Compare to MPC 2.01(2)

Question 11

People v. Beardsley

Answer 11

Drunk people having an affair, woman overdoses on morphine. A moral duty does not equate to a legal duty.

It is a criminal omission to save someone if you have a legal duty, and it’s within your power to do so. The fact that this woman was in his house did not create a legal duty

Question 12

Barber v. Superior Ct.

Answer 12

With permission, doctor stopped treatment of man with brain damage. A doctor has no duty to continue treatment once it has proved to be ineffective.