Chapter 5 Terms Flashcards
there must be a connection between an act and the resulting prohibited harm
causation
the defendant must be shown to be the “but for” cause of the harm or injury
cause in fact
evidence that indirectly establishes that the defendant possessed a criminal intent or committed a criminal act
circumstantial evidence
a defendant’s criminal act results in the victim being at a particular time and being impacted by an independent intervening act. The defendant is responsible for foreseeable coincidental intervening acts
coincidental intervening act
a criminal intent must trigger and coincide with a criminal act
concurrence
individuals who act in a gross and wantonly reckless fashion are considered to intend the natural consequences of their actions and are guilty of willful and intentional battery or homicide
constructive intent
the intent to achieve a specific result
crimes of cause and result
an intent to commit an actus reus
general intent
a cause that occurs between the defendant’s criminal act and a social harm
intervening cause
awareness that conduct is practically certain to cause a result
knowingly
the mental element of a crime
mens rea
a failure to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk that constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would observe in the actor’s situation
negligently
the legally responsible cause of a criminal harm; may involve policy considerations
proximate cause
regulatory offenses carrying fines that typically do not require a criminal intent
public welfare offense
a conscious intent to cause a particular result
purposely
conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk that constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of conduct that law abiding person would observe in the defendant’s situation
recklessly
a defendant’s criminal act leads to an act undertaken by the victim in reaction to the threat. An unforeseeable and abnormal responsive act limits the defendant’s criminal liability
responsive intervening act
guilty knowledge
scienter
a mental determination to accomplish a specific result
specific intent
a crime that does not require a criminal intent
strict liability
what occurs when the intent to harm one individual is transferred to another
transferred intent
knowledge is imputed to individuals who consciously avoid awareness in order to avoid criminal responsibility
willful blindless
common law requirement, being abandoned by many states, that limits liability for homicide to a year and a day
year-and-a-day rule
