Fundamentals Flashcards
What is the burdenof prooffor eachelement of a crime?
Each element must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.
In order to be convicted of a crime, what must be proven about a defendant?
That the defendant is guilty of each element beyond a reasonable doubt.
When is the actus reus element met?
- An act that is voluntary
Or
- An omission to act when there is a legal duty to act
* More Info:* Actus Reus
What are the elements that must be proven in each crime?
- Actus Resu: act requirement.
- Mens Rea: mental state.
- Concurrence: mens rea drove the actus reus
- Actual cause
- Proximate Cause
What are examples of involuntary acts?
Acts while
- Sleepwalking
- Under hypnosis
Or
- During an epileptic seizure.
Are habitual acts (conditioned reactions) voluntary acts?
Yes
Are acts performed under duress voluntary acts?
Yes
When are there legal duties to act, such that an omission to do so would fulfill the actus reus?
- Statutory duties, such as those of a law enforcement officer
- Legal duty by contract; such as a life guard
- Status relationship, such as husband/wife; parent/child
- Voluntary undertakings to rescue that are abandoned, such as telling others to stay back so you can rescue someone, and then abandoning the effort
- Failing to help after creating the risk of peril, such as a hit and run
What are the main categories of mens rea?
- Purposeful
- Knowledge
- Intentional
- Willful
- Recklessness
- Criminal Negligence
And
- Malice
* More Info:* Mens Rea
Define purposeful mens rea?
It is the person’s conscious objective to produce a result
Define knowledge mens rea?
A person knows a course of action will almost certainly produce a specific result.
Define intent mens rea?
Acting with purpose or knowledge
What is the applicable mens rea for inchoate crimes?
Only purposeful mens rea.
Define willful mens rea?
- Actus reus
- Mens rea
- Concurrence, Mens rea drove the actus reus
- Actual cause
- Proximate cause
Define criminal negligence mens rea?
A person:
- Creates an unjustifiable risk
- They are subjectively unaware of the risk
And
- A reasonable person would have been aware of the risk.
Differentiate between
criminal negligence and civil negligence
Criminal negligence is a gross deviation from the normal standard of care.
Civil negligence is only a deviation from the normal standard of care.
What do specific intent crimes require?
Proof that the defendant intended to produce the specific result.
What is type of crime requires the defendant to act “with the intent to?
Specific intent crimes.
What does general intent require?
The defendant desired to do the prescribed act.
Includes: reckless and negligent acts
More Info: General Intent
How can the specific intent element of a crime can be nullified?
- Defendant’s honest but unreasonable mistake of fact
Or
- Voluntary intoxication
How can a general intent element of a crime can be nullified?
An honest and reasonable mistake of fact.
What are the types of malice?
- Express malice
And
- Implied malice
What is the essential mens rea element for murder?
Malice
When can express malice for murder be established?
- The defendant’s purpose was to kill another person
- The defendant acted with knowledge that conduct would kill
Or
- The defendant acted with intent to inflict serious bodily injury
When can implied malice for murder be established?
- The defendant caused a death as the result of extreme reckless or criminally negligent conduct
And
- The defendant’s conduct manifested a wanton disregard for the value of human life
Implied malice may be established in what types of killings?
- Unintentional killings
And
- Felony murders
What is the mens rea in strict liability crimes?
There is none. Any act that brings about the prohibited effect results in guilt.
What type of crimes will mistake of fact never be a defense?
Strict liability crimes
Unlawful killing + Malice =
Murder
When does transferred intent occur?
When the defendant intends to produce harm against one party but inadvertently harms another party.
The intent transfers to the unintended victim and the defendant cannot use as a defense that they harmed the wrong person.
More Info: Transferred Intent
What is the relationship between mens rea and actus reus?
In order to prove guilt, the prosecution must prove that the act that causes the criminal result was set in motion by the requisite criminal state of mind. There must be a concurrence between the act and the intention.
What does the causation element of a crime require?
The defendant must be the actual and proximate cause of the criminal result.
A defendent cannot be a proximate cause without also being what?
The actual cause.
What are the actual cause tests?
But for causation: criminal result would not have occurred but for the defendant’s act
Substantial Factor: when there are multiple causes, or other parties, responsible for the same criminal result, the defendant is the cause if the defendant’s acts were a substantial factor in causing the criminal result.
Acceleration: when the defendant’s conduct speeds up the inevitable death of someone (even by a matter of seconds).
What is the test for satisfying the proximate cause element?
- If the harm was a foreseeable consequence of the defendant’s conduct, then the defendant is the proximate cause
- If the harm was an unforeseeable result of the defendant’s conduct, the the defendant is not the proximate cause.
When is proximate cause analysis required?
When an intervening event comes between the defendant’s actual cause and the criminal result.
When will an intervening event supercede the defendant’s criminal responsibility?
If the intervening event is foreseeable, then it does not supersede; if it is unforeseeable, then it normally will supersede.
More Info: Intervening Events
What type of conduct is:
Foreseeable v. Unforeseeable?
Unforeseeable: gross negligence or reckless conduct of another party
Foreseeable: simple negligence of another or special sensitivities of the victim
What is the analysis when determining if there is an intervening cause?
If it was responsive to the defendant’s initial act, then it is not superseding
Or
If the intervening cause is independent of the defendant’s act or a mere coincidence, then it is superseding
