Criminal Law & Punishment
Crimes punishable by death or confinement in the state's prison for one year to life without parole
What are "felonies"?
The criminal intent, the mental element of a crime.
What is "mens rea"?
Something that causes a person to act.
What is "motive"?
A criminal act triggered by criminal intent.
What is "criminal conduct"?
Intentionally inflicting pain or other unpleasant consequences on another person.
To have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt "every fact necessary to constitute the crime charged".
What is the "burden of proof"
Imposes a legal duty to help or call for help for imperiled strangers.
What is the "Good Samaritan" doctirine?
The intent to commit the criminal act forbidden by statute.
What is "general intent"?
Special hearing to determine if defendants who have used the insanity excuse defense are still insane
What are "competency hearings"?
Offenses that require some level of criminal intent
What is "mala in se"?
The right of law-abiding, responsible citizens to use arms in defense of heath and home.
What is the Second Amendment?
Items you possess but you don't know what they are.
The general intent to commit the actus reus of a crime plus the intent to cause a criminally harmful result.
What is "specific intent"?
A mental disorder that develops in victims of domestic violence as a result of serious, long-term abuse.
What is "battered woman's syndrome"?
Offenses that are crimes only because of a specific stature or ordinance prohibits them.
What is "mala prohibita" offenses?
Intended to make sure that offenders who are convicted of a third felony get locked up for a very long time.
What is the "three-strikes law"?
There is no legal duty to rescue or summon help for someone who's in danger, even if the bystander risk nothing by helping.
Some mental fault has to trigger the criminal act in conduct crimes and the cause in result crimes.
What is the "principle of concurrence"?
Consent that was the product of free will, not of force, threat of force, promise, or trickery.
What is "voluntary consent"?
Proposed criminal code drafted by the American Law Institute and used to reform criminal codes.
What is the Model Penal Code?
Punishments considered no longer acceptable to civilized society.
What are "barbaric punishments"?
Latin for "body of the crime"
The presumption that defendant knew the law they were breaking.
What is "ignorance maxim"?
An element of self-defense requiring the danger to be "right now"
What is the "imminence requirement"?