Criminal Law Barbri Charts

4 Requisite Intents at COMMON LAW for Major Crimes

1. Specific Intent

2. General Intent

3. Malice

4. Strict Liability

10 Specific Intent Crimes at Common Law

1. Solicitation

2. Attempt

3. Conspiracy

4. 1st Degree Premeditated Murder

5. Assault (Attempted Battery)

6. Larceny, Robbery

7. Burglary

8. Forgery

9. False Pretenses

10. Embezzlement

4 General Intent Crimes at Common Law

1. Battery

2. Rape

3. Kidnapping

4. False Imprisonment

2 Malice Crimes at Common Law

1. Common Law Murder

2. Arson

3 Strict Liability Crimes at Common Law

1. Statutory Rape

2. Selling Liquor to Minors

3. Bigamy (some jurisdictions)

Specific Intent - Common Law State of Mind

Intent to engage in proscribed conduct

Subjective

General Intent - Common Law State of Mind

Awareness of acting in proscribed manner Subjective

Malice - Common Law State of Mind

Reckless disregard of a known risk

Subjective

Strict Liability - Common Law State of Mind

Conscious commission of proscribed act

Objective

Purposely - MPC State of Mind

Conscious object to engage in proscribed conduct Subjective

Knowingly - MPC State of Mind

Awareness that conduct is of a particular nature or will cause a particular result

Subjective

Recklessly - MPC State of Mind

Consciously disregarding a substantial known risk Subjective

Negligently - MPC State of Mind

Failure to be aware of a substantial risk

Objective

Principal - Modern Accomplice Liability

Person who commits the illegal act or who causes an innocent agent to do so.

Liable for principal crime

Accomplice (includes common law accessory BEFORE THE FACT)- Modern Accomplice Liability

Person who aids or encourages principal to commit the illegal conduct

Liable for principal crime if accomplice intended to aid or encourage crime

Accessory After the Fact - Modern Accomplice Liability

Person who aids another to escape KNOWING that he has committed a FELONY

Liable for separate, less serious crime of being an accessory after the fact

Solicitation - Inchoate Crime

Culpable Conduct

- Solicitation of another to commit a felony

Mental State

- Specific intent that person solicited commit the crime

Overt Act

- No act (other than the solicitation)

Merger into Substantive Offense?

- Yes

Withdrawal a Defense?

- Generally no

Conspiracy - Inchoate Crime

Culpable Conduct

- Agreement between two or more people to commit a crime

Mental State

- Specific intent to : (1) enter into agreement; and (2) achieve objective

Overt Act

- Act in furtherance of the conspiracy

Merger into Substantive Offense?

- No

Withdrawal a Defense?

- No, except for further crimes of co-conspirators

Attempt - Inchoate Crime

Culpable Conduct

- Performance of an act that would be a crime if successful

Mental State

- Specific intent to commit the particular crime attempted

Overt Act

- Act dangerously close to success (MPC - substantial step test)

Merger into Substantive Offense?

- Yes

Withdrawal a Defense?

- Generally no

Defenses Negating Criminal Capacity (P. 19 Conviser Mini Review)

Insanity

Intoxication

Voluntary

Involuntary

Infancy

Diminished Capacity (some states)

Insanity Defense

Meet applicable insanity test (M'Naghten, irresistible impulse, Durham, or MPC)

Defense to ALL crimes

Intoxication Defense - Voluntary and Involuntary

• Voluntary, intentional taking of a substance known to be intoxicating.

• Involuntary - Taking intoxicating substance without knowledge of its nature, under duress, or pursuant to medical advice

VOLUNTARY

• Defense to SPECIFIC crime if intoxication prevents formation of REQUIRED INTENT.

INVOLUNTARY

• Treated as MENTAL ILLNESS (i.e., apply appropriate insanity test); MAY BE A DEFENSE TO ALL CRIMES.

Infancy Defense

Defendant under age 14 at COMMON LAW; under MODERN STATUTES, defendant under age 13 or 14

COMMON LAW: Under age seven, absolute defense to ALL crimes; under 14 REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION of defense.

MODERN STATUTES: Defense to ADULT CRIMES but MAY STILL BE DELINQUENT.

Diminished Capacity Defense (recognized in some states)

As a result of mental defect SHORT OF INSANITY, defendant did not have the required mental state to commit the crime.

Most states with this defense limit it to SPECIFIC crimes.

8 Justification Defenses

1. Self-Defense

2. Defense of Others

3. Defense of Dwelling

4. Defense of Other Property

5. Crime Prevention

6. Effectuate Arrest

Police

Private Person

7. Resisting Arrest

8. Necessity

Justification Defense - Self Defense

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- If person reasonably believes force is necessary to protect self

Deadly Force Allowed

- Only if person reasonably believes that he is threatened with death or great bodily harm

Justification Defense - Defense of Others

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- If person reasonably believes force is necessary to protect person

Deadly Force Allowed

- Only if person reasonably believes that other is threatened with death or great bodily harm

Justification Defense - Defense of Dwelling

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- If person reasonably believes force is necessary to prevent or end unlawful entry

Deadly Force Allowed

- Only if person inside reasonably believes he is threatened or to prevent felony inside

Justification Defense - Defense of Other Property

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- If person reasonably believes force is necessary to defend property in his possession (but if request to desist would suffice, force not allowed)

Deadly Force Allowed

- Never

Justification Defense - Crime Prevention

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- If person reasonably believes force is necessary to prevent felony or serious breach of peace

Deadly Force Allowed

- Only to extent person reasonably believes deadly force is necessary to prevent or end felony risking human life

Justification Defense - Effectuate Arrest by either Police or Private Person

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- Police

If officer reasonably believes force is necessary

to arrest

- Private Person

If crime IN FACT COMMITTED and REASONABLE

BELIEF that this person committed it

Deadly Force Allowed

- Police

Only to prevent escape of FELON, and police

officer reasonably believes that the felon

threatens death or great bodily harm

- Private Person

Only to prevent escape of person who

ACTUALLY COMMITTED FELONY, and person

REASONABLY BELIEVES that the felon threatens

death or great bodily harm

Justification Defense - Resisting Arrest

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- If improper arrest

Deadly Force Allowed

- Only if improper arrest and defendant DOES NOT KNOW arrester is a police officer

Justification Defense - Necessity

Nondeadly Force Allowed

- If reasonably necessary to avoid greater harm

Deadly Force Allowed

- Never

6 Exculpatory Defenses (P. 25 Conviser Mini Review)

1. Justification (self-defense, defense of others, defense of property, necessity, etc.)

2. Duress

3. Mistake of Fact

4. Mistake of Law

5. Consent

6. Entrapment

Exculpatory Defense - Justification (self-defense, defense of others, defense of property, necessity, etc.)

Applicable To

- Usually CRIMES OF FORCE (i.e., battery, homicide)

When Available

- Nondeadly force may usually be used if reasonably necessary to avoid imminent injury or to retain property; deadly force may be used only to prevent serious bodily harm

Exculpatory Defense - Duress

Applicable To

- ALL crimes EXCEPT homicide

When Available

- Defendant reasonably believed that another would imminently harm him or a family member if he did not commit the crime

Exculpatory Defense - Mistake of Fact

Applicable To

- Crimes with a mental state element (i.e., all crimes EXCEPT strict liability)

When Available

- For SPECIFIC INTENT crimes, ANY MISTAKE that negates intent; for other crimes, only REASONABLE MISTAKE.

Exculpatory Defense - Mistake of Law

Applicable To

- Crimes with a mental state element and statutory crimes

When Available

- Mistake must negate awareness of some aspect of law regarding the elements of the crime requires or must be due to statute not being reasonably available, reasonable reliance on statue or judicial interpretation, or (in some states) reasonable reliance on official advice

Exculpatory Defense - Consent

Applicable To

- Crimes requiring lack of consent (i.e., rape) and minor assaults and batteries

When Available

- Applicable only if: consent is freely given, the party is capable of consenting, and no fraud was used to obtain consent

Exculpatory Defense - Entrapment

Applicable To

- Most crimes, but not available if the police merely provide the opportunity to commit the crime

When Available

- Criminal design originated with the police and the defendant was not predisposed to commit the crime before contact with police.

4 Property Crimes (P. 36 Conviser Mini Review)

1. Larceny

2. Embezzlement

3. False Pretenses

4. Robbery

Property Crime - Larceny

Activity

- Taking and asportation of property from possession of another person

Method

- Without consent or with consent obtained by fraud

Intent

- With intent to steal

Title

- Title does not pass

Property Crime - Embezzlement

Activity

- Conversion of property held pursuant to a trust agreement

Method

- Use of property in a way inconsistent with terms of trust

Intent

- With intent to defraud

Title

- Title does not pass

Property Crime - False Pretenses

Activity

- Obtaining TITLE to property

Method

- By consent induced by fraudulent misrepresentation

Intent

- With intent to defraud

Title

- Title Passes

Property Crime - Robbery

Activity

- Taking of property from another's presence

Method

- By force or threat of force

Intent

- With intent to steal

Title

- Title does not pass