Chapter 6
What is civil commitment?
a noncriminal (civil) proceeding in which courts have the power to decide if defendants who were insane when they committed their crimes are still insane.
What is Complicity?
establishes when you can be criminally liable for someone else’s conduct; applies criminal liability to accomplices and accessories.
What is inchoate offenses?
crimes that satisfy the mens rea of purpose or specific intent and the actus reus of taking some steps toward accomplishing the criminal purpose—but not enough steps to complete the intended crime.
What is born-alive rule?
the rule that to be a person, and therefore a homicide victim, a baby had to be “born alive” and capable of breathing and maintaining a heartbeat on its own.
What is right–wrong test?
(also called the McNaughtan rule) the defendant suffered a defect of reason caused by a disease of the mind, and, consequently, at the time of the act didn’t know what she was doing or that the act was wrong.
What is Vicarious liability?
establishes when a party can be criminally liable for someone else’s conduct because of a relationship; transfers the criminal conduct of one party to another because of their relationship.
What is dangerous act rationale?
looks at how close defendants came to completing their crimes.
What is murder?
killing a person with “malice aforethought”.
What is Diminished capacity?
a failure-of-proof defense in which the defendant attempts to prove that the defendant, incapable of the requisite intent of the crime charged, is innocent of that crime but may well be guilty of a lesser one.
What is accessory?
accessory after the fact; usually a misdemeanor.
What is dangerous person rationale?
concentrates on how fully defendants have developed their intent to commit their crime.
What is manslaughter?
killing a person without malice aforethought.
What is Diminished responsibility?
an excuse defense in which the defendant argues, “What I did was wrong, but under the circumstances I’m less responsible”.
What is respondeat superior?
a doctrine in tort law that makes a master liable for the wrong of a servant; in modern terms, an employer may be liable for the wrong of an employee.
What is solicitation?
the crime of trying to get someone else to commit a crime.
What is first-degree murder?
consisting of (1) premeditated, deliberate intent to kill murders and (2) felony murders.
What is premenstrual syndrome (PMS)?
excuse that PMS led to the defendant committing the criminal acts.
What is accomplice liability?
liability that attaches for participation before and during a crime (prosecution for the crime itself).
What is solicitation mens rea?
requires words that convey that their purpose is to get someone to commit a specific crime.
What is presumption of bodily integrity?
a state can’t exercise power over individual members of society except to prevent harm to others.