Misc. Crimes Stuff Flashcards
Physical Act
The D must have either performed a voluntary physical act or failed to act under circumstances imposing a legal duty to act. If the D was unconscious when the act occurred, it was not voluntary.
Mental State
The D must have had the requisite mental state for the crime. When a statute establishes a culpable state of mind w/out indicating to which material elements of the offense it is to apply, the statute will be interpreted as requiring that state of mind for every material element of the offense.
Specific Intent
A crime may require not only the doing of an act, but also the doing of it w/a specific intent or objective. The existence of a specific intent cannot be conclusively imputed from the mere doing of the act, but the manner in which the crime was committed may provide circumstantial evidence of intent.
Specific Intent Crimes-SAC FALB FFE
Solicitation: Intent to have the person solicited commit the crime
Attempt: Intent to complete the crime
Conspiracy: Intent to have the crime completed
First Degree Premeditated Murder: premeditation
Assault: Intent to commit a battery
Larceny and Robbery: Intent to permanently deprive the other of interest in property
Burglary: Intent to commit a felony in the dwelling
Forgery: Intent to defraud
False Pretenses: Intent to defraud
Embezzlement: Intent to Defraud.
Malice-Common Law Murder and Arson:
Less restrictive than specific intent; it requires only a reckless disregard of an obvious or high risk that the particular harmful result will occur. Defenses to specific intent crimes don’t apply to malice crimes.
General Intent-Awareness of Factors Constituting Crime
D must be aware that she is acting in the proscribed way and that any required attendant circumstances exist. D need not be certain that all the circumstances exist; it is sufficient that she is aware of a high likelihood that they will occur.
Causation
Some crimes require result and causation
Concurrence of Mental Fault w/Act
The D must have had the intent necessary for the crime at the time he committed the act constituting the crime, and the intent must have actuated the act.
Vagueness
Due process requires that a criminal statute not be vague. There must be:
- Fair warning and
- Arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement
Merger
Solicitation: One who solicits another to commit a crime may not be convicted of both the solicitation and the completed crime.
Attempt: A person who completes a crime after attempting it may not be convicted of both the attempt and the complete crime.
Conspiracy: Conspiracy doesn’t merge w/the completed offense.
Grand Juries
Grand juries are secret, and D has no right to notice, no right to be present and confront witnesses. No right to counsel or to miranda warnings.
Right to an Unbiased Judge
Due process is violated if the judge is shown to have actual malice against the D or to have had a financial interest in having the rial result in a guilty verdict.
