Criminal Flashcards
Principles of Crime - Actus Reus
D must have either performed a voluntary physical act or failed to act under circumstances imposing a legal duty to act. An act is a bodily movement.
The following do not qualify as Acts:
1. Conduct that is not the product of one’s own volition (someone pushed you)
2. Reflexive or convulsive act (you had a seizure)
3. Act performed while unconscious or asleep.
Omission: generally there is no legal duty to rescue except where created by statute, relationship between parties, voluntary assumption of care, or where D’s conduct created the peril.
Accomplice Liability - Elements
Mental State: Must aid, abet, or counsel the crime with the intent to encourage the crim. Mere presence is not enough even if by his presence he seems to be consenting to the crime or even if he did not notify the police.
D is liable for the crime itself and all other foreseeable crimes.
Accomplice Liability - Defenses
Withdrawal:
1. If merely encouraged the commission of the crime, D must repudiate his encouragement.
2. If D provided material, must do everything possible to retrieve it.
3. If D notified the authorities or took some action to prevent the commission of the crime.
4. Must be before the chain of events leading to the commission of the crime becomes unstoppable.
Accomplice Liability - Accessory after the Fact
Helping someone escape. Not liable for Crime itself. Liable for separate lesser charge.
Inchoate Offenses - Specific Intent - Solicitation
Asking someone to commit a crime with the intent that the person solicited does commit that crime.
Merges with the other crime if it happened.
Defenses: the refusal of the solicitee is no defense.
Inchoate Offenses - Specific Intent - Conspiracy
(1) An agreement between 2 or more people, (2) an intent to agree, (2) an intent to achieve the unlawful purpose or objective of the agreement.
Overt Act: Majority rule is that there must be an agreement plus some overt act in furtherance of the conspiracy, in reality any act qualifies that isn’t making the agreement.
Liability: Each conspirator is liable for all crimes of other conspirators if foreseeable and in furtherance of the conspiracy.
Defenses: (1) impossibility is not a defense, (2) no withdrawal from liability for conspiracy itself, (3) can only withdraw from liability for future crimes by performing an affirmative act that notifies all members of the conspiracy of withdrawal.
No merger.
Inchoate Offenses - Specific Intent - Attempt
Requires (1) Specific Intent to commit the crime and (2) a substantial step in the direction of the commission of the crime (mere preparation is not enough).
merges with other crime.
Defenses:
1. Factual impossibility is not a defense.
2. legal Impossibility is a defense.
3. Abandonment is not a defense if D had the intent and committed an overt act.
Homicide - Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought. Malice exists if there are no facts reducing the killing to voluntary manslaughter or excusing it and it was committed with one of the following mind states:
- Intent to Kill
- Intent to inflict Great Bodily Injury
- Reckless Indifference to an unjustifiably high risk to human life.
- Intent to commit an inherently dangerous felony.
Homicide - Felony Murder
Any death caused in the commission of or in an attempted commission of an inherently dangerous felony.
Limitations on Liability:
1. D must be guilty of the underlying felony, If D has defense to underlying felony then that defense applies
2. Felony committed has to be something other than killing
3. Death must have been foreseeable result of the felony
4. Deaths caused while fleeing are Felony Murder but once D reaches relative point of safety liability ceases.
Redline View: D is not liable for death of a co-felon as a result of resistance by Victim or Police.
Homicide - Degrees of Murder
A murder will be 2nd degree unless it comes under the following circumstances, in which case it will be 1st degree:
- Deliberate and Premeditated (D made decision to kill in cool dispassionate manner and reflected on decision to kill)
- Felony Murder
Homicide - Voluntary Manslaughter
A killing that would be murder but for the existence of adequate provocation. Provocation is only adequate if:
- Provocation is the type that would arose sudden and intense passion in mind of an ordinary person causing him to lose self-control,
- D was in fact provoked,
- There was insufficient time between provocation and the killing for D to cool off, and
- D in fact did not cool off.
Homicide - Involuntary manslaughter
A killing committed with criminal negligence (D was grossly negligent) or during the commission of an unlawful act constituting a misdemeanor.
Battery
An unlawful application of force to the person of another resulting in either bodily injury or an offensive touching. Must be either intentional, reckless, or criminally negligent. Simple battery may give rise to aggravated battery where D caused serious bodily injury, D uses a deadly weapon, or V is a protected class (woman, child, popo).
Assault
Two Types:
- “Attempted Battery” Assault - D intended to commit battery but did not complete.
- “Fear of Battery” Assault - D intentionally put V in reasonable apprehension of imminent bodily harm.
Simple assault may rise to aggravated assault where D acts with intent to commit a violent crime (rape or murder), D uses a dangerous weapon, or V is specially protected.
Rape
Modernly, rape is the unlawful carnal knowledge of a person by another without effective consent. Slightest penetration is sufficient.
Lack of effective consent means intercourse is by force or by threat of force, V is incapable of consenting (mental condition, unconscious, intoxicated) or V is fraudulently caused to believe that it is not intercourse.
Kidnapping
Unlawful confinement of V w/o consent via movement of V or concealment of V in a “secret” place
Confinement: V is compelled to go where he doesn’t wish to go or remain where he doesn’t wish to remain
Children and the mentally disabled lack legal capacity to consent, so their consent is irrelevant
False Imprisonment
Unlawful confinement of a person without consent. Confinement must “interfere substantially” with V’s liberty.
Not confinement (or FI) to prevent a person from going somewhere, if alternate route is available
Theft - Larceny
(1) A taking [obtaining control], (2) and carrying away, (3) of tangible personal prop., (4) of another with possession, (5) by trespass [without consent or with consent obtained via fraud], (6) with intent to permanently deprive the person of her interest in the prop.
Specific Intent Crime - Any mistake [reasonable or unreasonable] is a defense. Voluntary Intoxication is a defense.
Theft - Embezzlement
(1) The fraudulent, (2) conversion [dealing with the property in a manner inconsistent with arrangement by which D had possession], (3) of personal prop., (4) of another, (5) by a person in legal possession of that prop.
Theft - False Pretenses
(1) Obtaining title, (2) to personal prop. of another, (3) by intentional false statement of past or existing fact, (4) with intent to defraud the other.
Distinguish Larceny by Trick - If V is tricked by misrepresentation of fact into giving up mere possession of property, larceny by trick. If V is trick into giving up title to prop. then false pretenses.
Theft - Receiving Stolen Prop.
(1) Receiving possession and control, (2) of stolen personal prop., (3) known to have been obtained in a manner constituting a criminal offense, (4) by another person, (5) with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of his interest in the prop.
Prop must be be stolen at the time D received it. If police and real owner are in on the gig, then D can’t be convicted for receipt of stolen prop [only attempt if D intended to receive the prop. believing it was stolen].
Robbery
Larceny and Assault Combined
(1) a taking, (2) of personal prop. of another, (3) from the other’s person or presence, (4) by force or threats of immediate death or physical injury to V, a member of their family, or some person in V’s presence, (5) with the intent to permanently deprive that person of the prop.
V must have given up prop. because they felt threatened, any small amount of violence will usually suffice.
Extortion
Obtaining property by threat of harm or exposing information (need not be immediate or in V’s presence)
Claim of right is NOT a defense
Burglary
(1) A breaking [creating or enlarging an opening by at least minimal force, fraud, intimidation]
(2) An Entering [placing any portion of the body or an instrument used to commit the crime into the structure]
(3) Of a Dwelling [structure regularly used for sleeping]
(4) Of Another [ownership is irrelevant, only need occupancy by other than D]
(6) With intent to commit a felony therein [felony need not be carried out]
Arson
(1) the malicious [i.e. intentional or with reckless disregard of an obvious risk]
(2) burning [requires damage be done]
(3) of the dwelling
(4) of another
Not enough if you accidentally or negligently cause fire to start but if you do, then you have a duty to take reasonable steps to prevent it from spreading.
Defenses -Self Defense - Non Deadly Force
V may use proportional non-deadly force in self-defense anytime V reasonably believes it is necessary to protect herself from the imminent use of unlawful force on her.
Defenses -Self Defense - Deadly Force
Majority rule is that D may use deadly force in self-defense if (1) D is without fault, (2) D is confronted with unlawful force and (3) D is threatened with imminent death or grate bodily harm.
Minority rule is that D may not use deadly force if there is an opportunity to safely retreat [unless the attack occurs in D’s home, a police officer is making a lawful arrest, or if D is being raped/robbed].
Imperfect Self-Defense to murder [where D was unreasonable in their belief as to necessary force] can mitigate murder to manslaughter.
Defenses -Self Defense - Defense of Others
If D reasonably believes another person is being unlawfully attacked, D is entitled to defend that person from attack to the same extent that person would be entitled to defend himself.
Deadly force allowed only if threatened with death or great bodily harm.
Defenses -Self Defense - Prop. Defense
Nondeadly force may be used to prevent or terminate what is reasonably regarded as an unlawful entry into or attack on the defender’s dwelling.
Deadly force may be used only to prevent a violent entry made w/ the intent to commit a personal attack on an inhabitant or to prevent an entry to commit a felony in the dwelling.
Defenses - Insanity
M’Naughten - Mental disease caused D to either (1) not know that his act would be wrong OR (2) not understand the nature and quality of his actions.
Irresistible Impulse - Because of mental illness, D was unable to control his actions or conform his conduct to the law.
MPC - As a result of D’s mental disease, D lacked the substantial capacity to either (1) appreciate the criminality of his conduct or (2) conform his conduct to the requirements of the law.
Durham Product - Crime would not have been committed but for disease.
Defenses - Voluntary Intoxication
Defense to specific intent crimes. Only if crime requires purpose (intent) or knowledge and intoxication prevent D from formulating the purpose or obtaining the knowledge.
No defense to crimes involving malice, recklessness, negligence, or strict liability.
Defenses - Involuntary Intoxication
Involuntary only if results from taking an intoxicating substance without knowledge of its nature, under direct duress imposed by another, or pursuant to medical advice while unaware of intoxicating affect. Treated as insanity.
Defenses - Entrapment
Requires that (1) the criminal design originated with law enforcement officers AND (2) the D was not predisposed to commit the crime prior to contact by the government.
Very narrow defense, merely providing the opportunity for predisposed person to commit a crime is not entrapment.
Defenses - Mistake of Fact
Mistake or ignorance of fact where D lacked the state of mind required for the crime
SI crimes: any mistake (reasonable/unreasonable). GI crimes: reasonable mistakes only
For strict liability, mistake is not a defense (does not matter if Δ lacked the required state of mind)
Defenses - Mistake of Law
Generally, ignorance of law is no defense. May be a defense to crimes requiring knowledge.
Defenses - Necessity
D reasonably believed (objectively—good-faith belief is insufficient) that commission of the crime was necessary to avoid an imminent and greater injury to society than that involved in the crime.
Not a defense to killing a person or if D created the situation requiring the necessity.
Defenses - Duress
D reasonably believed that the only way to avoid threat of imminent death or great bodily harm by a human (cf. necessity where threat may be non-human) on him or family member is to commit the crime.
Not a defense to killing a person
Defenses - Consent
Consent usually not a defense unless crime requires lack of consent of V (rape) or minor assaults and batteries.
Applicable only if (1) consent is freely given, (2) the party is capable of consenting, and (3) no fraud was used to obtain consent.
