Penal Law Flashcards
While on uniformed patrol, P.O. Mullins comes across a crying woman on the street. When questioned, the woman says, “A man wearing a blue sweatshirt grabbed my pocketbook and ran away with it. I think I sprained my wrist when I tried to hold onto it. He pulled hard and I pulled back, but he was stronger then I was.” As P.O. Mullins was taking information for a report, the woman looked up and said, “Officer, that’s him across the street. He’s not dressed the same as he was, but I’ll never forget his face.”
Based on the above, evaluate the following statements.
1. If P.O. Mullins arrests the suspect, the arrest would be authorized.
- The most appropriate charge against the suspect is Grand Larceny 4th Degree since he stole “from the person.”
- If P.O. Mullins approached the suspect to arrest him and the suspect fled, according to Article 35 P.L., P.O. Mullins would be justified, if necessary, in using D.P.F. to arrest the suspect.
A: All 3 are correct
B: Only #1 and #3 are correct
C: Only #1 is correct
D: Only #3 is correct
B: Re: #2, the most appropriate charge is Robbery. And if the woman suffered a physical injury, it would be Robbery 2nd Degree.
Roger and Tondelayo, desperate for transportation out of the New York area, approach a motor vehicle stopped at a traffic light and forcibly eject the passenger. They steal the motor vehicle and head for the New Jersey Turnpike. At the time, Roger was armed with a metal-knuckle knife which he neither used nor displayed. An alert police officer arrests Roger and Tondelayo while they are still inside New York State.
Based on the above, evaluate the following statements.
1. A metal-knuckle knife is a deadly weapon.
- Roger and Tondelayo committed Robbery 1st Degree.
- If the police officer closely pursued Roger and Tondelayo into New Jersey, he would have been authorized under law to do so.
A: All 3 are correct
B: Only #1 is correct
C: Only #1 and #3 are correct
D: Only #1 and #2 are correct
A: Re: #1, it is in the list of 10.
Re: #2, Roger was armed with a DEADLY WEAPON.
Re: #3, for CRIMES, close pursuit to another state is authorized.
If, in the last question, Roger was not armed with a deadly weapon nor was any injury caused to the victim, then the most appropriate charge against Roger and Tondelayo would be
A: Grand Larceny Auto.
B: Robbery 3rd Degree.
C: Robbery 2nd Degree.
D: Attempted Robbery 1st Degree.
SHOW ANSWER
C: This would satisfy the “M” and the “A” in the code word: M-A-I-D.
If Roger engages in the forcible stealing of property accompanied by an aggravating factor, the robbery could escalate from 3rd Degree to 2nd Degree. Consider the following aggravating factors:
- He was aided by another person.
- He caused a physical injury to a non-participant.
- He displayed what appeared to be a pistol.
Which of the above would raise the forcible stealing of property to Robbery 2nd Degree?
A: All 3
B: Only #2
C: Only #1 and #2
D: Only #2 and #3
D: Re: #1, must have been ACTUALLY present.
Re: #2, an easy one.
Re: #3, a problem one because it satisfies both Robbery 2nd Degree and Robbery 1st Degree.
During an armed robbery attempt, Roger caused a SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY to the victim. In addition to a charge of Attempted Robbery 1st Degree, Roger has also committed
A: Assault 1st Degree.
B: Assault 2nd Degree.
C: Assault 3rd Degree.
D: Criminal Possession of a Weapon 3rd Degree.
A: When S.P.I. is inflicted in connection with any felony IT IS ASSAULT 1ST DEGREE.
During an armed robbery of a bank, Roger shouts to all the customers, “Everybody lie on the floor and do it NOW!” An old woman in the bank doesn’t understand Roger and Roger shouts at her specifically, “You, Old Woman, lie down or I’ll shoot you.” With that Roger fires a shot into the air. The bullet passes through the ceiling and kills a man on the floor above. Roger gathers all the money from the tellers and as he is about to flee from the scene, an off-duty police officer tackles him, removes the gun from him, and places Roger under arrest.
Based on the above, evaluate the following statements.
- Roger committed Robbery 1st Degree.
- Roger committed Felony Murder.
- Since Roger didn’t intend to kill, he committed Manslaughter 1st Degree.
A: Only #1 is correct
B: Only #1 and #2 are correct
C: Only #1 and #3 are correct
D: Only #2 is correct
B: When a DEATH is caused in connection with certain felonies (Robbery is one of them), it is a FELONY MURDER and no INTENT TO KILL is required.
Roger approaches Tondelayo on the street and says, “Give me your money.” Tondelayo refuses and Roger punches her in the stomach, knocks her down, and removes her money from her pocketbook.
Under these circumstances, Roger has committed
A: Robbery 3rd Degree.
B: Robbery 2nd Degree and Assault 2nd Degree.
C: Robbery 1st Degree and Assault 2nd Degree.
D: Robbery 3rd Degree and Assault 2nd Degree.
A: This was a BASIC robbery. A punch doesn’t necessarily cause a physical injury, but there is no doubt it satisfies the FORCE requirement for Robbery.
The offense below for which a 14 or 15 year old is not criminally responsible is
A: Forcibly Stealing a Motor Vehicle.
B: Forcibly Stealing While Armed with a Dagger.
C: Forcibly Stealing While Displaying What Appears to be a Pistol.
D: Forcibly Stealing and Causing Physical Injury to a non-participant.
A: A 14 or 15 year old is responsible as a J.O. for:
– Robbery 1st Degree = A-I-D-S
– Robbery 2nd Degree = I-D but not M-A
NOTE: Be careful re: theft of a motor vehicle. It is Robbery 2nd Degree unless a 1st Degree aggravating factor is also present.
P.O. Mullins stops Roger for going through a red light. When P.O. Mullins asks Roger for his license Roger says, “Isn’t there some way we can straighten this out? I’m known as a very generous person.” P.O. Mullins replies, “On a scale of 1 to 50, how generous are you?” Roger answers, “Top of the scale.” P.O. Mullins then says, “Anybody that generous can’t be all bad.” When Roger hands his license to P.O. Mullins a FIFTY DOLLAR BILL is attached to it. P.O. Mullins keeps the FIFTY and gives Roger back his license saying, “I’m only going to give you a warning this time, but I am going to keep looking for other offenses committed by you in the future.”
Based on the above, evaluate the following statements.
- P.O. Mullins committed a Class D Felony.
- Roger committed a Class D Felony.
A: Both are correct
B: Both are incorrect
C: Only #1 is correct
D: Only #2 is correct
A: P.O. Mullins did BRIBE RECEIVING 3RD DEGREE and Roger did BRIBERY 3RD DEGREE.
The element which separates Bribery 3rd Degree from Bribery 2nd Degree is
A: whether or not a public servant is involved.
B: the offense which is the subject of the bribe.
C: the dollar amount of the benefit.
D: the conviction record of the briber.
C: Bribery 3rd Degree would go to Bribery 2nd Degree if the benefit exceeds $10,000.
P.O. Mullins, while on patrol again, stops Roger. This time it is for speeding – 36 in a 35 mile zone. Roger says, “Come on, give me a break. No one can cut it that close.” P.O. Mullins says, “If you are not the same generous man you were the other day, I’m going to throw the book at you. By the time I’m finished I can probably come up with enough to get your license suspended.” Roger says, “What’s the scale this time?” P.O. Mullins says, “A scale of 1 to 100 sounds nice.” Roger hands P.O. Mullins two $50 bills and says, “Maybe I better move out of this neighborhood. The rent is too high.” At this moment, a team of I.A.D.officers swoops down on Officer Mullins and Roger and places both of them under arrest.
Based on the above, evaluate the following statements.
- P.O. Mullins committed Bribe Receiving 3rd Degree.
- P.O. Mullins committed Grand Larceny 2nd Degree.
- Bribe Receiving and Larceny by Extortion are not mutually exclusive.
- Roger has an affirmative defense against a charge of Bribery 3rd Degree.
A: All 4 are correct
B: Only #1, #2 and #3 are correct
C: Only #1 and #3 are correct
D: #1 and #2 are correct
B: A TOUGH QUESTION. Roger has a DEFENSE. See 200.05 P.L. Also see Article 200.15 P.L.
Roger is the owner/operator of a private garbage hauling truck. On occasion he handles material which is not permitted to be dumped at a landfill. An E.P.A. employee is approached by Roger and Roger says, “If you will look the other way when I dump this stuff, there will be a nice vacation in it for you.” The agent turns his back and says, “I don’t have eyes in the back of my head.” Roger successfully dumps the prohibited material and then pays the agent.
Based on the above, the most appropriate charge against Roger should be
A: Bribery 1st Degree.
B: Bribery 2nd Degree.
C: Giving Unlawful Gratuities.
D: Rewarding Official Misconduct.
D: ANOTHER TOUGH QUESTION. Did Roger CONFER a benefit on the public servant for having violated his duty? It seems so. Does it also seem to satisfy Bribery 3rd Degree? It sure does! Unfortunately, we didn’t give you a choice of Bribery 3rd Degree.
While on foot patrol, a reformed P.O. Mullins is approached by a storekeeper on his post who says, “You are the best cop we’ve ever had on this post. I want to show you how much I appreciate your efforts. Here are two tickets to the Barber Shop Quartet show for this weekend.” P.O. Mullins graciously accepts the tickets since, in his younger days, he was top tenor in a competitive quartet.
Based on the above, evaluate the following statements.
1. P.O. Mullins committed Receiving Reward for Official Misconduct 2nd Degree.
- The storekeeper committed the crime of Giving Unlawful Gratuities.
- Both P.O. Mullins and the storekeeper committed Class A Misdemeanors.
A: All 3 are correct
B: Only #2 and #3 are correct
C: Only #2 is correct
D: Only #1 is correct
B: P.O. Mullins did NOT accept a benefit for having violated his duty.
According to Article 205 of the Penal Law, the crime of ESCAPE is based on the concept of CUSTODY. If there is no custody there can be no escape. Custody is defined as RESTRAINT BY A PUBLIC SERVANT pursuant to an AUTHORIZED ARREST or an ORDER OF COURT. If Roger is lawfully arrested for the crime of ABSCONDING FROM TEMPORARY RELEASE 1ST DEGREE and he escapes from the custody of the arresting police officer, the most appropriate charge against Roger for this conduct should be
A: Escape 1st Degree.
B: Escape 2nd Degree.
C: Escape 3rd Degree.
D: Resisting Arrest.
B: He escaped from custody for a Class E Felony. We made this a tough question on purpose. The ABSCONDING we described is a Class E Felony contained in the code word: S-A-B-E-R.
Tondelayo has been arrested for UNLAWFULLY CONCEALING A WILL. Upon conviction of this offense she is sentenced to a detention facility from which she immediately escapes.
Based on the above, Tondelayo should be charged with
A: Escape 1st Degree.
B: Escape 2nd Degree.
C: Escape 3rd Degree.
D: Obstructing Governmental Administration.
A: She escaped from a DETENTION FACILITY where she was confined for a FELONY.
