crim and crim pro Flashcards
bigamy
strict liability crime: the act of marrying while legally married to another.
mistake of fact defense
strict liability - never a defense
specific intent - honest mistake negates specific intent
general intent - honest and reasonable mistake negates mens rea
Felony Murder Agency Theory vs. Proximate Cause Theory
Agency theory (majority) - D responsible for deaths caused by co-felons
proximate cause theory (minority rule) - D responsible for deaths caused by any person.
defense to attempt crime - impossibility
legal - intended act would not be criminal if completed
factual - unknown condition prevent the completion of intended crime - NOT A DEFENSE
Burglary
unlawful entry
of a structure or building
with a specific intent to
commit a crime
accomplice liability
- aids or abets another before or during a crime;
- with the specific intent that encouraged the crime be completed
- slight aid or encouragement suffice, even when such assistance is not ultimately necessary to commit the crime.
Larceny
- Trespassory taking and carrying away of
- the personal property of another
- with the specific intent to
- permanently deprive the person of the property
false pretense
- obtains title to another’s property by
- knowingly misrepresenting a material fact
- with the specific intent to defraud
Forgery
- the making of a false writing of apparent legal significance with
- the specific intent to defraud
common law conspiracy
bilateral approach - meeting of the minds
Fourth Amendment
The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.
What is a search?
search occurs when the government:
- physically intrudes upon a constitutionally protected area to obtain information or
- invades a person’s subjective expectation of privacy that society would deem reasonable.
Exceptions to Warrant Requirement
**SAD SPACES
**1. search incident to arrest
2. administrative search
3. stop and frisk
4. plain view
5. automobile exception
6. consent
7. exigent circumstance
8. special government purpose
Racial Discrimination in Grand Jury Selection
- A defendant indicted by a grand jury that excluded members of a racial group may raise an equal protection challenge—even if the defendant is not a member of the excluded group.
- If the appellate court finds that there was deliberate discrimination in the selection of grand jurors, automatic reversal of the conviction is required.
When is Sixth Amendment right to counsel triggered?
- automatically attaches when formal judicial proceedings have commenced (e.g., indictment, preliminary hearing, arraignment) and
- guarantees that criminal defendants will have the assistance of counsel during all **critical stages **of prosecution—i.e., any event where the absence of counsel may prejudice the defendant’s right to a fair trial.
What are the critical stages that require the presence of an attorney under the 6th Amendment?
- Post-indictment: lineups, in-person identifications, interrogations
- arraignments, preliminary hearings, bail hearings, pretrial motions
- plea negotiations and hearings
- trial and sentencing
What are the noncritical stages that do not require the presence of an attorney?
- precharge lineups
- photo-array ID
- fingerprinting, handwriting, blood samples
- initial appearances, hearings to determine probable cause to detain D
- discretionary appeals
- post-conviction proceedings (parole or probation hearing)
Imposing death penalty on a felony-murder accomplice
curtilage
a constitutionally protected area since it immediately surrounds and is closely associated with a person’s home.
Police have an implied license to briefly intrude upon a person’s front curtilage in the same manner as an ordinary visitor (e.g., to knock on the front door to speak with the homeowner).
However, entering the curtilage in an unusual manner for an uncommon purpose (e.g., to conduct a dog sniff for drugs) constitutes a Fourth Amendment search and must be supported by a warrant.
When is a warrantless search incident to arrest permitted?
General Rule: person has been lawfully arrested and search limited to person’s body & areas within immediate reach.
Vehicle search: if it is reasonable to believe that evidence relevant to crime of arrest may be found therein, even if vehicle is outside of person’s immediate control.
Search warrant requirements
(1) be issued by a neutral and detached magistrate based on probable cause, (2) be supported by a sworn oath or affidavit, and (3) describe the place to be searched and the items to be seized with particularity.
Mandatory presumptions - compel the fact finder to reach a conclusion
Mandatory presumptions cannot be used against a criminal defendant to establish an element of the charged crime.
“plain view” doctrine
officer properly executing a warrant has authority to seize the evidence not particularly described if:
1. the officer is lawfully on the premises; and
2. the incriminating character of the item is immediately apparent; and
3. the officer has lawful access to the item.
admissibility of in-court identification testimony