Homicide

Question 1

Criminal Homicide MPC 210.1

Answer 1

(1) A person is guilty of criminal homicide if he purposely, knowingly, recklessly or negligently causes the death of another human being.
(2) Criminal homicide is murder, manslaughter or negligent homicide.

Question 2

Manslaughter MPC 210.3

Answer 2

(1) Criminal homicide constitutes manslaughter when:

(a) it is committed recklessly;

Question 3

Murder (CL)

Answer 3

An unlawful killing WITH malice aforethought

Question 4

Manslaughter (CL)

Answer 4

Unlawful killing WITHOUT malice aforethought. Usually mitigated down from murder when there was provocation or depraved heart killing

Question 5

Malice Aforethought (CL)

Answer 5

Killing with any of the following CMS’s:

• Intent to kill
• Intent to cause grievous bodily harm
• Depraved Heart or Depraved indifference
• Intent to commit a felony and a muder occurs (Felony Murder)

Question 6

First Degree Murder (common law)

Answer 6

Committed by an intentional killing

Intentional defined as willful, deliberate and premeditated

Question 7

Premeditation

Answer 7

Intent to kill needs to be established through

• words, conduct (he took a second shot, pointing deadly weapon at vital body part
• Planning activity
• Motive
• Preconceived design

Question 8

Adequate Provocation

Answer 8

• inflame the passion;
• of a reasonable man; and
• tend to cause him to act for the moment from passion rather than reason
• Words are never provocation at CL
• no time to cool off
• extreme assault of battery upon the defendant
• mutual combat
• defendant’s illegal arrest
• injury or serious abuse of a close relative
• the sudden discovery of a spouse’s adultery

Jury will decide if provocation is adequate

Question 9

MPC Manslaughter

Answer 9

• EED
• Reasonableness to be determined from the viewpoint of a person in similar situation
• NO PROVOCATION NEEDED

Casassa

Question 10

3 routes to murder

Answer 10

1-Willful, deliberate, premeditated
2- Extreme recklessness
3- Felony Murder

Question 11

EED (MPC)

Answer 11

Two components:

1: the particular defendant must have acted under influence of EED (this is wholly subjective)
2: there must have been a reasonable explanation for the EED, the reasonableness of which is to be determined from the viewpoint of a person in the defendant’s situation under the circumstances as the defendant believed them to be (subjective and objective)

• reasonable= adequate provocation*
• doesn’t mean conduct is reasonable*

Question 12

Mitigating Murder to Manslaughter

Answer 12

Welansky

A failure to act which is reckless and

Question 13

Common law Recklessness

Answer 13

Where actor is aware of the grave danger his conduct poses yet nonetheless chooses to risk the harm (AWARENESS of risk PLUS DISREGARD of likelihood of substantial harm)

many jurisdictions don’t actually require actual knowledge of the risk so long as the actor’s lack of care shows a disregard for human life and safety

Question 14

Recklessness v. Negligence

Answer 14

Recklessness involves a greater degree of risk AND a decision to take the risk, i.e. Voluntarily taking the risk with awareness
OR
Where D is not actually aware of the risk but where a reasonable person would have been aware of the GRAVE danger

Question 15

Reckless Manslaughter

Answer 15

Hall
recklessly causing the death of another person

Key terms: CONSCIOUSLY DISREGARD a SUBSTANTIAL and UNJUSTIFIABLE risk that death could result
And
Is a gross deviation from the standard of conduct

Question 16

Ordinary Negligence

Answer 16

A defendant, regardless of his ignorance, good intentions and good faith, fails to measure up to the conduct required of a man of reasonable prudence, he is guilty of ordinary negligence because of his failure to use ordinary caution

Question 17

Depraved Heart Murder (MPC’s recklessness)

Answer 17

Reckless criminal homicide under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life. (Malone, Fleming)

Circumstances so extreme as to give rise to the inference that D acted with a
-wicked disposition
-depraved and malignant hear
-callous disregard for the likely consequence of an intentional act
so deficient in a sense of concern and so devoid of regard for the lives of others
-extreme indifference to the value of human life

CONSCIOUS OBJECTIVE WAS NOT TO KILL

Question 18

Depraved heart hypo

Answer 18

D lives on the 5th floor of west side apartment building (lots of foot traffic) and throws a tv out the window

–> no regard for other’s lives. Gross deviation from how others would act but also a disregard for the safety of others.

Question 19

Felony murder

Answer 19

1) Any act done with intent to commit a felony and which causes death amounts to murder

OR

2) Any act known to be dangerous to life and likely in itself to cause death, done for the purpose of committing a felonywhich causes death

Definition: guilty of FM if a death results from his conduct during the commission or attempted commission of a felony.

Causation:
Majority: but-for + proximate
Minority: but-for only
MS does not matter. Purposely, knowingly, recklessly, negligently or accidentally. Only intent is needed to commit the felony.

Why?: Deterrence

Question 20

Critiques of FM

Answer 20

• it doesn’t deter
• it’s grossly unfair
• it imposes harsh punishment disconnected from moral blameworthiness

Question 21

Limitations on FM

Answer 21

• Inherently dangerous felony
• Merger limitation
• Res Gestae
• Killing by a non-felon

Question 22

Inherently Dangerous Felony Limitation

Answer 22

Two Approaches:
1- ID in the abstract?
2- ID in the abstract and/or the manner in which it was committed

There is always a risk that violence could escalate which creates a high probability that death will result.
includes: arson, rape, armed robbery, kidnapping

Hines- in the abstract, possession of a gun is probably not more dangerous than regular citizen possessing a gun. CT looked at the felony in the abstract but also the manner in which the felony was committed–he was drunk and hunting at dusk in an area where visibility was minimal.

Question 23

Independent Felony or Merger Doctrine

Answer 23

Chun (shoots into car and kills passenger). FM does not apply if the predicate felony is an integral part of the homicide, and when it is included in fact within the offense charged.
-if death is committed with a collateral and independent felonious design, felony does not merge. This would undermine the legislative intent of creating CMS’s.

When does this apply?
1- same act causes death
2-purpose in committing the felony is independent of homicide
3- underlying felony includes an assaultive element
4- is the underlying felony one of the specific enumerated felonies in the statute?

Question 24

Killings by a non-felon

Answer 24

• Agency approach

- Proximate cause approach

Question 25

Agency Approach to killings by a non-felon

Answer 25

The Felony Murder rule does not extend to a killing, even if it grows out of a felony, if the act is committed by one other than the D and his agents (i.e., his accomplices)

Question 26

Proximate cause Approach to killings by non-felon

Answer 26

-One who commits a felony is liable for any killing during the felony, so long as the killing is the proximate result of the felony.
s

-This means the felony must not only be the “but-for” cause, it must also be the proximate cause – i.e., the result must have been reasonably foreseeable.

Canola- O of store and co-D both die. Co-D gets charged with felony murder

NY uses this approach.

Question 27

Res Gestae

Answer 27

Some states say that FM only applies if the homicide is relatively close in proximity in terms of distance and time to the underlying felony.

Death also must be natural and probable consequence of his conduct.

Question 28

Voluntary Manslaughter (CL)

Answer 28

intentionally killing another person in the heat of passion and in response to adequate provocation.

Question 29

Involuntary Manslaughter (CL)

Answer 29

negligently causing the death of another person.

Question 30

Murder (MPC)

Answer 30

2.10

Purposely, knowingly or reckless under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life. Mitigated to manslaughter if under the influence of EED or there is a reasonable explanation or excuse (self-defense or insanity)