Homicide
What is the definition of homicide?
A. Killing of one person by another
B. Any act that causes the death of another person with criminally culpable mens rea and without lawful justification or excuse.
C. Attempting to kill someone
D. Planning a murder
A. Killing of one person by another
What does "actus reus" mean in the context of homicide?
A. The defendant’s intent
B. The victim’s actions
C. The criminal act itself
D. The judge’s ruling
C. The criminal act itself
Which is the most serious form of criminal homicide?
A. Involuntary manslaughter
B. Voluntary manslaughter
C. Second-degree murder
D. First-degree murder
D. First-degree murder
What does “malice aforethought” imply?
A. A sudden emotional reaction
B. Reckless driving
C. Intent to kill or harm
D. Legal justification
C. Intent to kill or harm
Voluntary manslaughter involves:
A. An unintentional killing
B. A killing during a bank robbery
C. A killing in the heat of passion
D. A lawful killing
C. A killing in the heat of passion
When does life legally begin in most jurisdictions for homicide purposes?
A. At the moment of conception
B. When the baby kicks
C. When the baby is born alive
D. At 20 weeks of pregnancy
C. When the baby is born alive
Mens rea for murder typically requires:
A. Negligence
B. Specific intent or malice
C. Lack of control
D. Mistake of fact
B. Specific intent or malice
What is typically required to elevate a murder to first-degree?
A. Provocation
B. Extreme recklessness
C. Premeditation and deliberation
D. A lesser offense
C. Premeditation and deliberation
The Felony Murder Rule allows murder charges when a death occurs during:
A. Any crime
B. A nonviolent misdemeanor
C. A felony
D. A police investigation
C. A felony
Which of the following best fits involuntary manslaughter?
A. Killing with intent to cause harm
B. Reckless conduct causing death
C. Killing with malice
D. Killing during a robbery
B. Reckless conduct causing death
What legal principle supports physician-assisted suicide in some states?
A. The Castle Doctrine
B. The Good Samaritan Law
C. The Right to Die
D. The Hippocratic Oath
C. The Right to Die
What is "corpus delicti" in a homicide case?
A. The victim’s identity
B. A confession
C. The body of the crime
D. The police report
C. The body of the crime
Second-degree murder often involves:
A. Heat of passion
B. Malice without premeditation
C. A drug overdose
D. Legal justification
B. Malice without premeditation
Which of the following best reflects “reckless disregard for the value of human life”?
A. Planned poisoning
B. Driving 120 mph through a crowded street
C. Burglary of an empty home
D. Accidental discharge of a firearm while cleaning
B. Driving 120 mph through a crowded street
A person who kills after being seriously provoked might be charged with:
A. First-degree murder
B. Second-degree murder
C. Voluntary manslaughter
D. Justifiable homicide
C. Voluntary manslaughter
A(n) _____ is NOT an example of homicide.
A. suicide performed by a terminally ill patient
B. state's execution of a convicted serial killer
C. accidental death caused by an automobile driver striking a pedestrian on a rainy day
D. death intentionally caused by a serial killer
A. suicide performed by a terminally ill patient
Which best describes proximate cause in homicide cases?
A. The last act before death
B. The direct, natural cause of the victim’s death
C. Any action taken by the victim
D. The medical examiner’s report
B. The direct, natural cause of the victim’s death
What is the key distinction between voluntary and involuntary manslaughter?
A. Weapon used
B. Degree of negligence
C. Intent to kill or provoke
D. Victim’s background
C. Intent to kill or provoke
A defendant who consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk that criminal harm will occur is acting
A. recklessly.
B. negligently.
C. with implied malice.
D. with express malice.
A. recklessly.
Which of the following would most likely NOT qualify as involuntary manslaughter?
A. Death caused by drunk driving
B. Death during an illegal street race
C. Death caused during a bar fight from provocation
D. Accidental death from unsafe scaffolding a contractor built
C. Death caused during a bar fight from provocation
The legal concept that establishes when death occurs is most often linked to:
A. Brain activity
B. The absence of a pulse
C. No respiratory effort
D. A death certificate
A. Brain activity
Which of the following is NOT required to prove a criminal homicide?
A. A confession
B. An act that caused death
C. Intent or criminal negligence
D. That the act was without lawful justification
A. A confession
Which of the following is an example of constructive intent in homicide?
A. Deliberate poisoning
B. Accidental death by falling tree
C. Shooting into a crowd without targeting someone
D. Voluntary fight resulting in death
C. Shooting into a crowd without targeting someone
The determination of a defendant's mental state at the time of the killing can sometimes be difficult to establish because
A. it must be determined before the act takes place.
B. the defendant's state of mind can only be established through a personal understanding of the defendant's mind.
C. the defendant's state of mind can only be established by circumstantial evidence.
D. it must be made at the time of the crime by either a witness or by the defendant's statement or confession.
C. the defendant's state of mind can only be established by circumstantial evidence.
Which of the following is an example of an involuntary condition that would exclude an actor from criminal liability?
A. disregarding advice from doctors by driving or operating dangerous equipment knowing that he or she is subject to heart failure or epilepsy
B. deaths to others that occur while the actor is unconscious (for instance, suffering from a heart attack or epileptic seizure)
C. knowingly driving while sleepy
D. knowingly drinking to the point of passing out
B. deaths to others that occur while the actor is unconscious (for instance, suffering from a heart attack or epileptic seizure)