Criminal Law - Introduction and Overview

Question 1

Sources of Law

Answer 1

1. Common Law
2. Modern Penal Code (MPC)
3. Modern Statutory Rules

Question 2

Essential Elements of a Crime

Answer 2

1. Physical Act
2. Mental State
3. Causation
4. Concurrence

Question 3

Specific Crimes (against 2 situations)

Answer 3

1. Against Persons
2. Against Property Owners

Question 4

Liability for the Conduct of Others

Answer 4

Accomplice Liability

Question 5

Inchoate (incomplete) Offenses

Answer 5

1. Solicitation
2. Conspiracy
3. Attempt

Question 6

Defenses (8)

Answer 6

1. Insanity
2. Voluntary Intoxication
3. Infancy
4. Mistake
5. Self-Defense
6. Necessity
7. Duress
8. Entrapment

Question 7

Jurisdiction

Answer 7

A crime may be prosecuted in any state where:
1. an ACT that was part of the crime took place; or
2. the result took place

Question 8

Burden of Proof - Elements of a Crime

Answer 8

In a criminal case, the prosecution must prove each element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt

Question 9

Burden of Proof - Defenses and an Exception

Answer 9

Generally, be disproved BARD

Exception: Insanity (in most states this must only be proved by a preponderance of the evidence

Question 10

Classification of Crimes

Answer 10

1. Felony: a crime that may be punished by death or imprisonment for more than a year
2. Misdemeanor: a crime punishable by a fine and/or imprisonment for NO more than a year

Question 11

The Act Requirement - Physical Acts (Commissions)

Answer 11

1. All bodily movements are physical acts that can be the basis for criminal liability, provided they are voluntary
2. Involuntary movements that are NOT considered acts:

a. one that is not the product of the actors’ volution (being pushed)
b. Sleep walking or otherwise non-voluntary conduct
c. a reflex or something else

Question 12

The Act Requirement - Omissions (3 Requirements)

Answer 12

A failure to act can also be the basis for criminal liability, provided you:

1. have a legal duty to act
2. have knowledge of the facts giving rise to the duty; and
3. You have the ability to help

Question 13

The Act Requirement - Omissions (5 ways to create a legal duty to act)

Answer 13

1. By statute (ex. filing taxes)
2. By contract of Agreement (ex. lifeguard)
3. By the status relationship between the D and the Victim (spouse/spouse or parent/child)
4. By the voluntary assumption of care (ex. continuing care once you start it)
5. By creation made peril (if D cause problem initially, D has duty to help)

Question 14

Common Law Mental States

Answer 14

1. Specific Intent
2. Malice
3. General Intent
4. Strict Liability

Question 15

Common Law Mental States - Specific Intent (Definition)

Answer 15

When the crime requires not just the desire to do the act but also to achieve a specific result

Question 16

Common Law Mental States - 11 Specific Intent Crimes

Answer 16

1. Assault
2. 1st Premeditated Murder
3. Larceny
4. Embezzlement
5. False Pretenses
6. Robbery
7. Forgery
8. Burglary
9. Solicitation
10. Conspiracy
11. Attempt

Question 17

Common Law Mental States - Specific Intent (2 Defenses)

Answer 17

1. Voluntary Intoxication; and
2. An Unreasonable Mistake of Fact

Question 18

Common Law Mental States - Malice (Definition)

Answer 18

When a defendant acts intentionally or with reckless disregard of an obvious or known risk

Question 19

Common Law Mental States - 2 Malice Crimes

Answer 19

1. Murder
2. Arson

Question 20

Common Law Mental States - General Intent (Definition)

Answer 20

The D need only be generally aware of the factors constituting the crime; he need NOT intend a specific result

Note: Easy to prove –> jury can usually infer the general intent simply from the doing of the act

Question 21

Common Law Mental States - General Intent Crimes (4)

Answer 21

1. Battery
2. Forcible Rape
3. False Imprisonment
4. Kidnapping

Question 22

Common Law Mental States - Strict Liability (Definition)

Answer 22

When the crime requires simply doing the act; no mental state is needed

Question 23

Common Law Mental States - 2 Types of Strict Liability Crimes

Answer 23

1. Public Welfare Offenses: Regulatory offenses that implicate public health or safety and typically carry small penalties
2. Statutory Rape: Sex with someone under the age of consent –> R.Kelly looking ass

Question 24

MPC Mental States (5)

Answer 24

1. Intent
2. Knowledge
3. Recklessness
4. Negligence
5. Strict Liability

Question 25

MPC Mental States - Intent (Definition)

Answer 25

The D acts INTENTIONALLY when it is his conscious desire to achieve a particularly result. (what the D wants to happen)

Question 26

MPC Mental States - Knowledge (Definition)

Answer 26

the D acts KNOWINGLY when he is aware of what he is doing. With respect to a result, the D acts knowingly when he is aware that it is practically certain that his conduct will cause the result

Question 27

MPC Mental States - Recklessness (Definition)

Answer 27

D acts RECKLESSLY when he is creating a substantial and unjustifiable risk AND consciously disregards that risk

Question 28

MPC Mental States - Negligence (Definition)

Answer 28

D acts negligently when he should have been aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk

Question 29

MPC Mental States - Strict Liability

Answer 29

No mental state required (similar to common law)

Question 30

Causation - the Two Types

Answer 30

1. Actual (But-For) 2. Proximate (Legal)

Question 31

Causation - Actual Causation Rule

Answer 31

D is an actual cause ("cause-in-fact") if the bad result would not have happened but=for the D's conduct

Question 32

Causation - Actual Causation Rule Exception

Answer 32

An accelerating cause IS an actual cause

Question 33

Causation - Proximate Cause (Rule)

Answer 33

D is a proximate cause if the bad result is a natural and probable consequence of the D's conduct

Question 34

Causation - Proximate Cause (2 Applications)

Answer 34

1. Intervening Cause 2. Eggshell Victims

Question 35

Causation - Proximate Cause (Intervening Cause)

Answer 35

D will NOT be considered a proximate cause if an unforeseeable intervening event causes the bad result

Question 36

Causation - Proximate Cause (Eggshell Rule)

Answer 36

D WILL be considered a proximate cause even if the victim's pre-existing weakness contributed to the bad result

Question 37

The Concurrence Principle (Rule)

Answer 37

D must have required the requisite mental state at the same time he engages in the act

Question 38

The Concurrence Principle (Application - 2 Most Common)

Answer 38

1. Larceny 2. Burglary