Criminal Law Flashcards
Homicide
- Murder
- Manslaughter
CL Murder
- Intent to kill (premeditated, specific intent)
- intentionally inflicted bodily harm (no specific intent)
- Felony (death occurs while in the course of dangerous felony.
- Dangerous felony: burglary, arson, rape, robbery, kidnapping)
- Depraved heart (reckless disregard of human life - knew or should’ve known of the consequences. People present.)
Degrees are defined by statute
Manslaughter
Voluntary:
a. Adequate provocation
b. heat of passion
c. No time to cool off
Involuntary: Negligent conduct causing death (no people. Didn’t know of consequences)
(NOT INTENT)
Imperfect self-defense
- Use of excessive force
- Honest belief that it’s necessary
= Voluntary manslaughter
Parent neglecting a child
- Parent does not give care to child and child dies
= Involuntary manslaughter
Specific intent crimes
Students Can Always Fake A Laugh, Even for Ridiculous Bar Facts.
□ Solicitation, conspiracy, attempt, first degree premeditated murder, assault, larceny, embezzlement, false pretenses, robbery, burglary, forgery
Larceny
(even if puts it back. Larceny merges into robbery)
a. Trespassory taking (moving)
b. Carrying away
c. Personal property of another
d. With intent to permanently deprive
- Exceptions to larceny:
Continuing trespass: wrongful taking without permission. Later decides to steal
Burglary
a. Breaking and entering (may be by fraud or force)
b. Dwelling of another
c. At night
d. With intent to commit a felony
i. Intent must be present at the moment of breaking
Felony does NOT have to be actually committed
Robbery
(larceny merges into robbery)
a. Trespassory taking
b. Carrying away
c. Property of another
d. By force, intimidation, or fear
Assault
- intent to commit battery
- Intent to place another in imminent fear of a harmful or offensive contact
Words are NOT enough
Larceny by trick
(one-way. Default, and then false pretense)
Obtain POSSESSION to property by false statement
False pretense
(two-way transaction)
Obtain TITLE to property by false statement
Embezzlement
- Lawful possession of person property
- Converted for own use
Receiving stolen property
- Physical possession of stolen property
- Knowledge it was stolen
- Intent to keep
Forgery
(i.e., money)
1. Fraudulent making of false document
2. With legal significance
3. Intended wrongful use
Accomplice liability
- Specific intent to achieve crime
- Aid or abet in the completion of the crime
Also guilty of ALL crimes completed
Accessory before the fact
like accomplice liability but not present at the scene of crime
Accessory after the fact
- felony was completed
- Knowledge of the completed crime
- Aids to avoid arrest or conviction
General Intent Crimes
(unless statute says otherwise)
- No specific intent required, the act itself is enough
1. Battery: unlawful application of force
2. Arson: malicious/reckless burning of the dwelling of another
- Statute will provide modern trend (non-CL) arson
3. Rape
1. Unlawful sexual intercourse
2. By a male with a female
3. Without consent
4. Kidnapping: unlawful restraint of a person’s freedom by force
Inchoate crimes
attempt, conspiracy, solicitation
incomplete crimes
attempt
(i.e. attempted murder is NOT about murder it’s about ATTEMPT)
1. Intent to commit the crime
2. Overt act/substantial step
- Attempt merges into the completed crime and you are only guilty of underlying crime
- You cannot withdraw after substantial step
Conspiracy
- Two or more people
- Specific intent to commit crime
- Agreement
- MPC - unilateral theory of conspiracy: only one person has to agree
- Co-conspirator liability: liable for all crimes committed in furtherance of conspiracy
- Does not merge. Guilty of both conspiracy and underlying crime
- Withdrawal:
§ cannot withdraw from conspiracy
§ can withdraw from other crimes by timely notice before crime to co-conspirator
Solicitation
Encourage, urge, entice another to commit a crime
Merges into the completed crime
Cannot withdraw
Defenses
insanity, intoxication, mistake, impossibility, entrapment, duress, self-defense, defense of property, defense of opthers
insanity
M’Naghten test:
1. mental disease
2. Cannot appreciate “nature and quality” of action
3. Cannot understand what you are doing is wrong
Insanity - MPC: D lacked “substantial capacity” to appreciate criminal conduct
Insanity defense - standard of proof in fed court: clear and convincing evidence
Intoxication
- Voluntary
§ Voluntarily getting drunk
§ Defense to specific intent crime - Involuntary
§ Intoxication without knowledge/consent
Defense to ALL crimes
Mistake
- specific intent crime
§ Reasonable AND unreasonable mistake is a defense - general intent crime
§ Reasonable mistake ONLY is a defense
(will use word mistake)
Impossibility
- Legal: ALWAYS a defense. Elements for crime were not met.
- Factual: NEVER a defense. Elements of the crime were met.
Entrapment
- Law enforcement creates criminal activity
- D is not predisposed (not familiar) to commit crime
Duress
Reasonable belief of threat of great bodily harm or death
NEVER defense to MURDER
Self-defense
- reasonable belief of imminent danger of bodily harm
- Return the same level of force
- Deadly force only allowed for deadly force
Defense of others
- Reasonable belief a third party is in imminent danger
- Return the same level of force
Defense of property
- Reasonable force to defend property
- Never deadly force unless fear of being killed
