LEGL Test 3 Review Flashcards
Crime
Wrong against Society
Elements of Crime
Mens Rea
Actus Reus
Mens Rea
All about the guilty mind; person’s mental state at the time crime was committed
Actus Reus
Physical act of committing a crime; voluntary and person must be conscious
- Sleeping walking is not conscious Crime not committed
General Intent
Intention to do the act that constitutes the crime
Specfic Intent
Intention to achieve the harmful result
Examples: Willful, Knowingly (voluntary and intentional)
Reckless Conduct
Some states say: reckless is enough to statisy as a crime to be responabile
Felony
i. Commenced by a Grand Jury Indictment (met before trial and discuss if there is probable cause to go to trial)
ii. Fine or Imprisonment 1 year or more
Misdemeanor
i. Commenced when the government files a charge called an information (written accusation by prosecutor presented in court charging the accused person of a crime)
ii. Fine or imprisonment less than 1 year
Pleas
a. Not Guilty
b. Guilty
c. Nolo Contendere
i. Stands for no contest
ii. Allows for sentencing as if there had been a guilty plea
iii. Allows you to avoid the cost of trial
White Collar Crime
a. Any illegal offense that occurs in a business or professional setting that is committed to harm the business or for personal gain
*Most major corporations have ethical codes and extensive compliance programs to combat these types of crimes
Fraud
- Defendant made a false statement.
- Defendant knew the statement was reckless or showed indifference to its truth.
- Defendant intended for the other party to rely on the false statement.
Criminal v. Civil Fraud
Civil have to show reliance; Criminal don’t need to show
Scheme to defraud
Plan designed to take from a person the tangible right of honest services
Theft by Deception
- Creating or reinforcing a false impression.
- Failing to correct a false impression in a fiduciary relationship.
- Preventing access to relevant information in a transaction.
- Failing to disclose a known lien or legal impediment to a property transfer.
Mail Fraud
Unlawful to use the U.S. Postal Service (or other any interstate carrier like FedEx or UPS) to defraud someone
EX: People fake invoices and send it to people and pretend that you owe money
Wire Fraud
Unlawful to use any electronic means of interstate communication (e.g., radio, tv, phone call, text message, fax, internet, email) to defraud someone
EX: Telemarketers reach out and claim to sell and give their credit card info or social and negatively impacts them
Securities Fraud
Rule 10b of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 make fraud in the purchase or sale of a security a federal crime
Health Care Fraud
- Governed by the False Claims Act.
- Whistleblower suits aid investigations.
Ex of Health Care Fraud
- Billing for services not actually performed
- Falsifying a patient’s diagnosis to justify tests, surgery, or other procedures that are not medically necessary.
- Uncoding or billing for a more costly procedure than the one actually performed.
- Unbundling or billing each stage of a procedure as if it were a separate procedure
- Accepting kickbacks for patient referrals
- Billing a patient more than the copay amount
Counterfeiting
i. Use of counterfeit access devices including bank cards, plates, codes, account numbers, or other means to initiate a transfer of funds is outlawed
ii. The use of an unauthorized access device is prohibited
1. Lost, stolen, expired, revoked, cancelled, or fraudulently obtained bank card
iii. Must result in at least $1000 being fraudulently obtained within a 1 year period
iv. No communication
Bankruptcy Fraud
Certain conduct by the debtors, creditors, and others that are said to be a federal crime as per the U.S Code
Examples: Falsifying information in a bankruptcy proceeding, presenting a false claim in any bankruptcy proceeding, bribing a trustee, Concealment (intentional misrepresentation or withholding of a material fact that occurs dur to a silence of a party)
Conspiracy
Two or more individuals knowingly agree on a plan or scheme or method for carrying out an illegal act (separte from underlying charge)
i. Have to intend to accomplish the objective of the conspiracy
a. Defendant willfully became a member of such conspiracy (can join at any point in time)
b. Requires an overt act (ex: one person from the group buys mask for a robbery)
i. Any act knowingly committed by at least one of the conspirators in an effort to carry out or accomplish some objective of the conspiracy
c. A person can be charged with conspiracy even if they don’t know all the details of the unlawful scheme
EX: Suits(pretenfin to be a lawyer), Home Alone(breaking into the house)
Obstruction of Justice
Commission of an act with the intent to obstruct or interfere with the legislative or judicial process
b. Laws are designed to protect the integrity of: Legislative and judicial proceedings
and
Proceedings before federal departments or agencies
Examples: Changing records of phone calls that show you are guilty, altering/shredding documents that show guilty, testifying falsely, tampering with evidence, lying to a police officer
False Statement to a Bank
a. Law aims to protect banks and ensure the accuracuy of finanical information
b. A statement or report is false if it:
-Relates to a material fact and is untrue
-Is known to be untrue by the person making it
False Statement to a Federal Agency
a. Federal crime for anyone to wilfully and knowingly make a false or fraudulent statement to a department or agency of the United States.
b. Must be related to material fact
Larceny
Unlawful taking of personal property with the intendent to deprive the rightful owner of it permanently (shoplifting)
Commonly referred to as theft or stealing
Larceny Ex
Robbery
i. Larceny by violence or threat (using a gun
Burglary
i. Breaking or entering with the intent to commit a felony (most common form is larceny)
Embezzlement
i. Entrusted someone with access to money and abuse trust for their own personal gain
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO)
a. Aimed at preventing organized crime (take down the entire group at once)
b. Imposes criminal and civil liability
c. A RICO violation occurs when a person, in connection with an enterprise, engages in a pattern of racketeering activity
i. must have engaged in at least 2 racketeering activities
Examples of Racketeering activities: Murder, kidnapping, gambling, arson, robbery, bribery, extortion, dealing in obscene material or controlled substances, counterfeiting, mail and wire fraud, obstruction of justice, tampering with a witness, victim or informant
Ex: Cases in GA: Donald trump, young thug
Cyber Crime
Person who intentionally accesses (or attempts to access) a computer without authorization or exceeds authorized access to obtain classified, restricted, or protected data
Electronic Theft - cyber crime
Hackers steal money, trade secrets, personnel records, customer lists, and company plans.
- Issuing corporate stock to yourself