Voluntary Acts
- actus Reus
- mens Rea
- causation
- concurrence
Elements of a Crime
Purposeful
a person acts purposefully when it is their conscious objective to intend a specific result
Mistake of Law
Rarely an excusable defense
may only work in rare occasions when D had a GF reason to detrimentally rely on an official's interpretation of the law
Plain error v. Harmless Error
plain error:
no preservation required
errors not raised at trial but are so
1. obvious
2. affect substantial rights
3. seriously affect fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings
that the court must address the error to make it fair
harmless error:
preservation required
technically errors that have no adverse effects on the outcome of the case
- the issue will be in favor of the D
- the appealing party couldn't have won if the error didn't occur
Rehabilitation
punishment intended to make the person better for their release
Involuntary Acts
Establish no criminal liability under MPC
- drinking
- epilepsy
- unconscious
- convulsions
Knowingly
a person acts knowingly when they are consciously aware their action is practically certain to cause a specific result or when they are aware of a high probability of a fact's existence and deliberately choose to ignore the truth
Mistake of Fact
A reasonable or unintentional mistake of the facts of the situation that negate intent
->specific intent crimes: mistake of fact may be reasonable OR unreasonable
->general intent crimes: mistake of fact MUST be honest AND reasonable
Voluntary Intoxication
at CL voluntary intoxication may be a defense to negate intent
according to MPC, it does not
statutes vary and are specific
Deterance
punishment intended to keep them from committing further crime
may be general (a celebrity committed the crime so we will punish them so everyone knows the consequences of this action) or specific (a nobody committed this crime and we will punish them for the sake of preventing them alone from committing further crime)
Direct v. Circumstantial Evidence
Direct: "I saw the wreck"
Circumstantial: "I saw two dented cars after I heard a loud crash"
Recklessly
a person acts recklessly when the consciously disregard a substantial and unjustifiable risk that a result will occur and their disregard is a gross deviation from the standard law abiding person
D's actions were a direct and necessary factor in causing P's harm
1. "BUT FOR" test
-> but for my actions the victim's harm would not have been caused
2. multiple factors test
->if there was more than 1 person that is responsible for the harm done did they substantially contribute?
Cause in Fact (actual)
Depraved Heart Murder
1) must cause a death
2) death must result from a person's act that was imminently dangerous to others
3) act is done without regard for human life
Restraint
punishment intended to keep the person incapacitated so they cannot keep running around and committing more various crimes
A continuing, chronic offense
Status
Negligently
a person acts negligently when they fail to perceive the actions will cause a substantial and unjustifiable risk and that failure to perceive the risk is a gross deviation from the standard law abiding person
a policy issue
was the harm suffered a foreseeable consequence of the D's actions?
Test:
were the victim's response or intervening factors foreseeable? or are the D's actions too remote?
Proximate (legal) Cause
Transferred Intent
if you purposely intended to kill someone and then the victim accidentally changes you still purposefully intended to kill
Retribution
punishment intended to make the person pay back the public for their harm done
to commit a voluntary act by not doing something you have a legal duty to do
Omission
Specific v. General intent
Specific intent: D showed a desire to act
General intent: D showed a desire to act with a specific result in mind
for intent to be specific it must be purposeful or knowingly
all four intent types may satisfy general intent
eggshell P
you must take the victim as they come
D cannot say that had the victim not had this specific weakness my harm wouldn't have been caused
Pre-existing Weakness
1. criminal act occurs
2. a year and a day passes
3. P dies
4. legal outcome
Year and a Day Rule
Malum in Se v. Malum Prohibitum
Malum in Se: inherently wrong, universally condemned, more severe punishments, harms persons or property (REQUIRES MENS REA)
Malum Prohibitum: public policy, prohibited by statute, strict liability or reduced mens rea