EBR II - Crim Law Deck 1

Common Law Murder

• unlawful killing of another human being with malice aforethought (express or implied)

• malice aforethought exists if D has any of the following states of mind

  • intent to kill

  • intent to inflict great bodily injury

  • reckless indifference to an unjustifiably high risk to human life

  • intent to commit a felony

Deadly Weapon Rule

intentional use of a deadly weapon authorizes a permissive inference of intent to kill.

Common Law Voluntary Manslaughter

killing that would otherwise be murder but is distinguishable by the existence of adequate provocation i.e. killing in the heat of passion

Adequate Provocation

• provocation must have been one that would arouse sudden and intense passion in the mind of an ordinary persons such as to cause him to lose his self-control

• D must have in fact been provoked

• there must have not been sufficient time btw provocation and killing for the passions of a rxbl person to cool

• D in fact did not cool off btw provocation and killing

mere words typically inadequate provocation

Common Law Involuntary Manslaughter

• criminal negligence (or recklessness): substantial and unjustifiable risk

• unlawful act MS: misdemeanor-MS rule, or felonies not included in felony murder

1st Degree Murder

• deliberate and premeditated killing: D made decision to kill in cool and dispassionate manner, and reflected on the idea of killing if only for a brief period

• 1st degree felony murder: burglary, arson, rape, robbery, kidnapping

Liability Limitations in Felony Murder

• death must have been a foreseeable result of the commission of the felony

• death must have been caused during the commission or attempted commission of the felony, INCLUDES deaths caused while fleeing from the crime; once felon has reached a place of temporary safety, felony murder rule ceases to apply

• killing of co-felon by victims or pursuing officers: majority rule is no liability for death of co-felon; compare agency rule that felon is liable for killings done by co-conspirator

Causation

• cause in fact: the result would not have occurred but for D’s conduct

  • common law Year and a Day rule: death of victim must occur within one year and one day from infliction of injury or wound

• proximate causation: D is responsible for all results that occur as a natural and probable consequence of his conduct, even if he did not anticipate the precise manner in which they would occur; chain of causation broken only by intervention of superseding factor (mere coincidence or outside foreseeable sphere of risk)

Rules of Causation

• hastening inevitable result: nevertheless legal cause of that result

• simultaneous acts: may be considered independently sufficient causes of a single result

• preexisting condition: does not break chain of causation; D takes victim as he finds him

Solicitation

• inciting, counseling, advising, inducing, urging, or commanding another to commit a crime with the specific intent that the person solicited commit the crime

• offense is complete at the time the solicitation is made

• not necessary that the person solicited agree to commit the crime or do anything in response

Solicitation Defenses

• factual impossibility is no defense, culpability is measured by circumstances as she believed them to be

• withdrawal or renunciation is no defense; MPC recognizes renunciation as defense if D prevents commission of the crime

• exemption from intended crime is defense, if solicitor could not be guilty of the intended crime bc of a legislative intent to exempt her

Conspiracy

• agreement btw 2 or more persons

• an intent to enter into an agreement: inferred from consent

• intent to achieve the objective of the agreement: established as to each D

modern view requires an overt act in furtherance of the conspiracy, but mere preparation will usually suffice

Conspiracy Party Requirement

• modern trend - unilateral approach: requires only one party have genuine criminal intent

• traditional rule - bilateral approach: conspiracy requires at least 2 guilty minds i.e. persons who are actually committed to the illicit plan

Conspiracy Defenses

• factual impossibility is no defense

• withdrawal is no defense; MPC recognizes voluntary withdrawal as defense if D thwarts success of the conspiracy

• withdrawal as defense to subsequent crimes of co-conspirators: must perform an affirmative act that notifies all members of the conspiracy, and such notice must be given in time for them to have the opportunity to abandon their plans