Essential Elements of a Crime Flashcards
The Essential Elements of a Crime are:
1) An act OR omission.
2) The attending mental state for liability.
An “act” can be
any bodily movement, so long as it is a VOLUNTARY ACT.
Bodily movements that DO NOT qualify for criminal liability are (3):
1) Conduct that is not the product of one’s own volition;
2) A reflexive or convulsive act;
3) An act performed while unconscious or asleep.
Omissions refer to a failure to act in the face of a
duty.
While there is no GENERAL duty to rescue, such a duty can arise in specific situations (5):
1) By Statute;
2) By Contract;
3) By Nature of the Relationship Between Parties;
4) By a Voluntary Assumption of a Duty of Care and a failure to reasonably perform
5) When one’s conduct created the mental state
There are Four Common Law Mental States of Crime:
1) Specific Liability;
2) Malice;
3) General Intent;
4) Strict Liability
Specific Intent Crimes are unique in that they
qualify for defenses not available to other crimes.
The main Specific Intent Crimes are
Solicitation; Conspiracy; Attempt; First Degree Murder; Assault; Larceny; Embezzlement; Robbery, Burglary, Forgery.
Students Can Always Fake A Laugh Even For Ridiculous Bar Facts
The only two Malice Crimes are
Murder and Arson
General Intent Crimes are all crimes that do not qualify as
Specific Intent/Malice/Strict Liability Crimes
Strict Liability Crimes can also be described as
“No Intent” Crimes
The relationship between Intent and Strict Liability is
NONE. No intent needed, and not an available defense, for a Strict Liability Crime.
The four Mental States under the Model Penal Code are:
1) Purposely; 2) Knowingly; 3) Recklessly; 4) Negligently.
One acts “Purposely” when
it is their conscious objective to engage in certain conduct or cause a certain result.
One acts “Knowingly” when
they are aware that their conduct will very likely cause a given result.
