Criminal Flashcards
CRIMINAL - 1-General Principles - B-Mens Rea - 4-Model Penal Code
1. Define the four MPC intents.
1. PURPOSELY = CONSCIOUS DESIRE RESULT
- conscious desire to engage in conduct or cause a certain result
2. KNOWINGLY = PRACTICALLY CERTAIN RESULT
- practical certainty that conduct will cause a certain result; eg, Shafia: bomb on plane, don’t desire to kill each person, but know it probably will
3. RECKLESSLY = CONSCIOUS DISREGARD HIGH RISK
- conscious disregard of substantial and unjustified risk that conduct will cause a certain result
4. NEGLIGENTLY = SHOULD KNOW HIGH RISK
- should know of substantial and unjustified risk that conduct will cause a certain result
CRIMINAL - 1-General Principles - E-Responsibility - 2-Intoxication
1. When is involuntary intoxication a defense?
2. When is voluntary intoxication a defense?
1. INVOLUNTARY INTOXICATION = COMPLETE DEFENSE
- Involuntary intoxication is a complete defense
- Either ingested unknowingly, under duress, or unknown unusual susceptibility
- Rendered “insane” per insanity definition
2. VOLUNTARY INTOXICATION = ONLY DEFENSE TO SPECIFIC INTENT
-
Voluntary intoxication is only a defense where intoxication negated requisite intent
- eg, for larceny, lack intent to permanently deprive another of their property
CRIMINAL - 2-Homicide - B-Types of Homicide - 3-Voluntary Manslaughter
1. How does unreasonable self-defense aeffect a murder?
1. IMPERFECT SELF-DEFENSE = VOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER
- murder may be reduced to voluntary manslaughter for imperfect self-defense where D contends deadly force was needed, but D either:
- started the altercation or
- unreasonably but truly believed that deadly force was necessary
CRIMINAL - 3-Other Crimes - A-Crimes Against Property - 6-Robbery
1. What is required for the crime of robbery?
1. ROBBERY = LARCENY + FROM PERSON + FORCE OR THREAT
- robbery is the trespassory taking and carrying away of the personal property of another from their person or presence by force or threat with the intent to permanently deprive them
- larceny + assault or battery = merge into robbery
- more force than necessary to effectuate the taking and carrying away
- threat of serious injury to person or close person
CRIMINAL - 4-Inchoate Crimes - D-Attempt - 0-Attempt
1. What is required for the crime of attempt?
1. ATTEMPT = SPECIFIC INTENT + SUBSTANTIAL STEP
-
Attempt requires:
- specific intent to commit the crime
- a substantial step toward commission of the crime
CRIMINAL - 4-Inchoate Crimes - D-Attempt - 1-Substantial Step Test
1. What is a substantial step in the crime of attempt?
1. SUBSTANTIAL STEP AEFFECTS COMMISSION OF CRIME
- For attempt, a substantial step test is conduct that tends to aeffect the commission of a crime
- subjective
- more than mere preparation
- could be in dangerous proximity to completion of the crime
CRIMINAL - 4-Inchoate Crimes - D-Attempt - 2-Specific Intent
1. What is required for specific intent?
1. SPECIFIC INTENT TO PERFORM ACT OR OBTAIN RESULT
- specific intent requires either:
- intent to engage in certain conduct or
- intent to obtain a certain result
CRIMINAL - 5-Defense - A-Generally - 2-Mistake of Fact
1. When is mistake of fact a defense?
1. MISTAKE OF FACT CAN NEGATE SPECIFIC INTENT
- a mistake of fact may negate the specific intent required for guilt
CRIMINAL - 6-4th Amendment – Search & Seizure - A-General 4th Amendment - 2-The Exclusionary Rule
1. What is the exclusionary rule and when does it not apply?
1. EXCLUSIONARY RULE
- Exclusionary rule prohibits introduction of evidence at trial that was seized unlawfully in violation of 4thAm protection against unreasonable searches and seizures
- doesn’t apply to grand jury, preliminary, bail, sentencing, or parole hearings
CRIMINAL - 6-4th Amendment – Search & Seizure - C-Search & Seizure - 4-Consent Searches
1. Does a child have an expectation of privacy in parent’s house?
1. PARENT CAN CONSENT TO CHILD’S ROOM, NOT LOCKED CONTAINER INSIDE
- a parent may consent to the search of a child’s room, even if an adult; cannot consent to search of a locked container in an older child’s room
CRIMINAL - 6-4th Amendment – Search & Seizure - C-Search & Seizure - 4-Exceptions to the Warrant Requirement
1. What are the 8 exceptions to the warrant requirement?
PACE - WAIT 🥫➰🫸
1. WARRANT EXCEPTIONS
- Plain-view doctrine
- Automobile exception
- Consent searches
- Exigent circumstances
- Wiretapping
- Administrative searches
- Incident to lawful arrest
- Terry stop and frisk
CRIMINAL - 9-Pretrial - A-Eyewitness Identification - 3-Impermissibly Suggestive Identification Procedures – Due Process Rights
1. When will an identification be suppressed for being improper?
1. IMPERMISSIBLY SUGGESTIVE ID + IRREPARABLE MISIDENTIFICATION = SUPPRESSION
An ID is improper and will be suppressed if:
Isioat
1. it was impermissibly suggestive and
2. there is a very substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification, which is determined by
- During Crime: opportunity to view and degree of attention
- After Crime: accuracy of description and certainty of ID
- In Between: elapsed time
- Even if an impermissibly suggestive pre-trial ID is suppressed, an in-trial ID may be allowed
Impermissibly suggestive
Irreparable misidentification
Substantial likelihood
Opportunity & degree during
Accuracy & certainty after
Time elapsed between
CRIMINAL - 10-Trial - A-Jury Trial - 3-Compliance
1. What is required to show a jury isn’t a fair cross-section?
1. VENIRE CAN’T EXCLUDE DISTINCT COMMUNITY GROUP
- to prove jury wasn’t a fair cross-section of the community, D must show that there was a systematic exclusion of a distinct and numerically significant community in the venire
CRIMINAL - 11-Post-Trial - A-Double Jeopardy - 2-Attachment of Jeopardy
1. When does jeopardy attach?
2. When does jeopardy terminate?
1. JEOPARDY ATTACHES WHEN JURY SWORN IN
-
Jury Trial: jeopardy attaches when
- jury is sworn in
-
Bench Trial: jeopardy attaches when
- 1st witness is sworn in
2. JEOPARDY TERMINATES UPON CONVICTION, ACQUITTAL, OR MISTRIAL WITHOUT MANIFEST NECESSITY
-
Jeopardy is Terminated by:
- a conviction, acquittal, or a mistrial
- mistrial must be without manifest necessity
- eg, deadlocked jury
- not terminated if D moves for a mistrial
- unless P was cause
Rape
Rape
__________
Common Law – Rape is the
- unlawful sexual intercourse
- of a woman by a man (not her husband)
- without her consent
- The burden of proving that the victim did not consent must rest on the prosecution.
-
Modern definition →
- includes marital rape
- makes gender irrelevant
__________
MPC
A male who has sex with a female (not his wife) is guilty of rape if:
- he compels her by force/threat of imminent death, serious bodily injury, extreme pain, or kidnapping;
- he secretly drugs her;
- female is unconscious; OR
- female is less than 10 years old.
-
Deviate Sexual Intercourse →
- has same elements as above, but is gender neutral
__________
Statutory Rape
- unlawful sexual intercourse,
- with a person,
- under the age of consent (as defined by statute).
Burden of Proof – Criminal Cases
Burden of Proof – Criminal Cases
Burden of Proof → Prosecution MUST prove every element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
- Burden of proof CANNOT be shifted to D
- Shifting the burden to D is UNCNST under DP, irrespective of the level of proof required
- Making D prove affirmative defenses is allowed
MBE Question Provides a Statute – Knowingly
When an MBE question provides a statute, a stringent application of the statute is necessary over common law.
Here, this question provides a statute and asks which of the following, if found by the jury, would be of the most help to the bartender. The bartender is charged with “knowingly violating” a regulation prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages to any person under the age of 18 and prohibiting the sale of any alcoholic beverage to a person over the age of 17 and under the age of 22 without the presentation of such person’s driver’s license or other identification.
The key to successfully answering this question is the word “knowingly.” When a crime requires that the defendant act knowingly, he must have been aware that his conduct was of a particular nature, or at least know that his conduct will necessarily or very likely cause a particular result.
D is correct. This answer provides the bartender’s best argument because the statute requires “knowledge,” and if the jury finds that the bartender mistakenly believed the purchaser to be 24 years-old, then he did not “knowingly” violate the regulation. Believing the purchaser was 24 would negate the possibility that he knowingly sold an alcoholic beverage to a person under the age of 18 or that he knowingly sold an alcoholic beverage between 17 and 22 without the presentation of identification.
Mens Rea – Criminal
Mens Rea – Criminal
The intent element of a crime (mens rea).
Common Law (CL):
- Specific Intent – intent or desire to engage in the conduct or cause a certain result.
- General Intent – awareness of acting in a certain way.
-
Malice – reckless disregard of a known risk that harm may occur.
- Proof of malice does not need to be proof of an actual specific intent to kill or harm another; it can be implied from a defendant’s gross recklessness with regard to human life shown.
- Strict Liability – no mental state required; only the act is required.
Model Penal Code (MPC):
- Purposefully – conscious object to engage in conduct or cause a certain result.
- Knowingly – aware that conduct is of a particular nature or will cause a certain result.
-
Recklessly – consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk + act is a gross deviation from how a reasonable person would act.
- OR when a person creates such a risk, but is unaware of it solely by reason of voluntary intoxication.
- Criminal Negligence – should have been aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk + that failure is a gross deviation from the standard of care.
Willful Blindness Standard (majority of states) – A person is deemed to act knowingly when he is:
a) Aware that certain facts are highly probable; OR
b) Intentionally ignorant to certain facts.
- Knowledge may be proved by circumstantial evidence.
Accomplice Liability
Accomplice Liability – an accomplice is one who:
1. aids, abets, or facilitates the commission of the crime
- may be mere encouragement
2. intent to assist the primary party, -AND-
3. intent that the crime be committed
- An accomplice is liable for all crimes he committed and all foreseeable crimes committed by the primary party.
- Merely being present or knowing a crime will result DOES NOT create accomplice liability.
- Urging a criminal perpetrator to flee the scene of a crime is not sufficient to constitute aiding, abetting, or facilitating the perpetrator’s commission of that crime.
- Cannot be convicted if D is a member of a class protected by the criminal law.
- Minority of states DO NOT allow accomplice liability for involuntary manslaughter.
Withdrawal – is a defense if D withdraws before the crime becomes unstoppable, and requires:
- repudiating the encouragement given; AND
- neutralizing any assistance.
- Under modern accomplice liability theory, an accomplice may be convicted even if the principal is not convicted, or is not charged, or even if the principal’s identity is unknown. (Otherwise, members of criminal syndicates could avoid incurring accomplice liability simply by not revealing their identities to each other.) The prosecution must prove that someone committed the underlying crime, and then may pursue accomplice liability for one who aided, abetted, or facilitated that commission of that crime.
- Innocent Agent – Whena person uses someone else to commit a crime on the first person’s behalf, and the person being used is unaware of the criminal nature of her acts, that second person is an innocent instrumentality or innocent agent. An innocent agent may complete the actus reus of a crime, but she does not possess the necessary mens rea and therefore, is not guilty of that crime. The person who used her, however, is liable as the principal, regardless of whether that person is present at the scene of the crime.
Automobile Exception
Automobile Exception – allows a warrantless search if probable cause exists that contraband/evidence of a crime will be found in the vehicle.
- An automobile stop constitutes a seizure not only of the automobile’s driver, but also of any current passengers.
- If the passenger exits the car before the stop, and there is otherwise no probable cause as to that passenger, they may not be searched.
- Police can search entire vehicle, PLUS packages, luggage, containers that may reasonably contain the items for which there is probable cause.
- In order to search after a traffic stop → police need probable cause prior to the search.
Search & Seizure – Government Action & Standing
Search & Seizure – Government Action & Standing
Govt. Action – 4th Amend. grants a person protection from unlawful government searches and seizures.
- Acts by private individuals are NOT protected.
Standing – Is required to challenge a search. Person MUST have a reasonable expectation of privacy regarding the place or item searched.
-
Reasonable Expectation of Privacy = that which they own or possess
- applies to overnight guest spaces
- Supreme Court has held NO privacy rights for objects held out to public:
- paint scrapings taken from a car;
- bank account records;
- anything visible from public airspace;
- garbage left on the curb;
- the sound of one’s voice;
- odors;
- handwriting; and
- anything that can be seen in or across areas outside one’s home.
- Open Fields Doctrine – areas outside the curtilage (house, attached garage) are subject to entry and search
4th Amendment
4th Amendment
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Exceptions to Warrant Requirement
Exceptions to Warrant Requirement
- Plain View Doctrine
- Exigent Circumstances
- Automobile Exception
- Search Incident to Arrest
- Consent
- Inventory Search
- Stop & Frisk
- Good Faith
- Special Need
Consent to Search
Consent to Search – must be given freely, voluntarily, and intelligently.
- Voluntary: not due to duress or coercion – express or implied
- if person has condition unknown to police - it’s voluntary - eg, 48 hour memory loss
- A third-person with authority MAY consent.
- If 2 or more people share authority → any one of them may consent, but police cannot search private areas (that only the non-consenting person has authority to give [i.e. private bedroom]).
