Caselaw

Question 1

Is necessity a legitimate or justifiable defense to murder?

Answer 1

Regina v. Dudley and Stevens; conjoined twins case; VP Cheney’s shoot-down order on 11 Sept 2001; “Touching the Void” climbers case

Question 2

Statutory mandatory minimum sentences for drug-related offenses

Answer 2

U.S. v. Bannister (Judge Weinstein of the U.S. Eastern District of New York)

Question 3

Defendant recorded obscene material involving minors in a personal journal

Answer 3

Ohio v. Dalton

Question 4

Do bystanders have a legal duty to rescue or to aid a victim under attack?

Answer 4

Kitty Genovese case

Question 5

Do physicians have a duty to administer life-sustaining treatment to a patient unlikely to recover indefinitely?

Answer 5

Barber v. Superior Court [of California]

Question 6

Is a parent subject to accomplice liability if he fails to intervene on the victim’s behalf when the victim is his child?

Answer 6

Massachussetts v. Raposo

Question 7

Do offenses that garner harsh punishment and/or are malum per se require subjective criminal intent? (absent statutory presumptions)

Answer 7

Morissette v. U.S.

Question 8

Does an element of offense that triggers harsh punishment require subjective criminal intent?

Answer 8

U.S. v. Feola

Question 9

When an element of an offense increases the punishment for an already criminal offense, the Morissette factors do not necessarily apply

Answer 9

Dean v. U.S.

Question 10

Can any mistake of fact in regard to consent (or lack thereof) be a legitimate or justifiable defense to a rape charge?

Answer 10

Massachussetts v. Sherry

Question 11

Does the attendant circumstance element of a agg assault on a LEO offense have a general or specific intent?

Answer 11

Kansas v. Farris