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Criminal Law Notes

Battery

  • Unlawful application of force to another resulting in bodily injury or offensive touching.
  • Intent: No specific intent is required.
  • Two different types: Simple or Aggravated.

Aggravated Battery

  • Unlawful application of force resulting in serious bodily injury or use of a deadly weapon.
  • Also applies if the victim is a child, woman, or police officer.

Assault

  • An attempt to commit a battery.
  • Creating reasonable apprehension in the victim's mind of imminent bodily harm.

Simple Assault

  • Intentionally attempts to cause or recklessly causes bodily injury to another person, or puts another person in fear of imminent harm.

Mayhem

  • Felony with malicious intent.
  • Cutting or maiming of another.
  • Punishable by imprisonment for more than one year.

Misdemeanors

  • Examples: disorderly conduct, underage sex, disrupting funeral services, pornography-related crimes.

Felonies

  • Include murder, rape, manslaughter, sodomy, mayhem, robbery, larceny, arson, burglary (9 felonies, 10 with tax evasion).

Murder

  • Unlawful killing of another with malice aforethought.
  • Malice aforethought can be expressed or implied and includes:
    • Intent to kill.
    • Intent to inflict great bodily injury.
    • Reckless indifference to an unjustifiable high risk to human life.

First Degree Murder

  • Intent to cause the death of another with malice aforethought without justification.
  • Intentional homicide with premeditation.
  • Malice requires premeditation and deliberation.

Second Degree Murder

  • Killing of another with malice but without willfulness, premeditation, or deliberation.
  • An intentional homicide without premeditation or homicide resulting from extreme recklessness (depraved heart).

Manslaughter

Involuntary Manslaughter

  • An unintentional homicide that does not result from criminal negligence or from a level of recklessness that does not meet the depraved heart standard.

Voluntary Manslaughter

  • Intentionally killing in the heat of passion as a result of severe provocation.
  • Unlawful killing of another without malice upon a sudden quarrel or heat of passion, not motivated by revenge.
  • Sudden and intense passion in the mind of an ordinary person.
  • The defendant must have in fact been provoked.

Defenses for Murder

Extenuation Elements

  • Extreme mental or emotional disturbance.
  • Diminished capacity: Abnormal mental condition that does not amount to legal insanity.
  • Extreme emotional disturbance: Individual has no mental disease/defect that rises to level of penal law, exposed to extreme unusual and overwhelming stress.

Negligence

  • A person acts negligently to a result or circumstance if they consciously disregard a risk resulting which they should have been aware certain results would occur and involves gross deviation.

Castle Rule

  • Permits individuals to use force, even deadly force, to defend themselves and others within their home without a duty to retreat.

Retreat Rule

  • Requires individuals to try to retreat from a dangerous situation before resorting to deadly force ('duty to retreat').

Rape

  • Can only be a man on women.
  • Requires penetration, completion of the act not required, without consent (simple no is enough), requires force.

Defense for Rape

  • Consent.

Rules of Consent

  • Willfully, capacity.

Rape Shield Law

  • Prohibits the use of a victim's past history in rape or sexual assault cases.

Domestic Violence

  • Use of force to control and maintain power over a spouse in the home; includes blood relations, marriage, those who share a child, ex-spouses, ex-lovers, and people who live together.
  • Includes physical violence, mental/emotional abuse, financial abuse (withholding child support).

209A Restraining Order

  • Court-ordered protection against abuse.

Stalking

  • Whoever willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly follows or harasses another person and who makes a threat with intent to place in imminent fear of death or serious bodily injury.

Harassment

  • One must engage repeatedly in a pattern of conduct or series of acts over a period of time.

Larceny

  • A taking, carrying away of tangible property of another by trespass with the intent to permanently deprive that person of his interest in the property.

Embezzlement

  • The fraudulent conversion of property (title) of another by a person in lawful possession of that property (custody).

Larceny by Trick

  • Obtaining custody to the property of another by use of trickery with the intent to defraud.

False Pretenses

  • Obtaining title to the property of another by knowing or intentional false statement of past or existing facts with intent to defraud another.

Robbery

  • A taking of personal property of another from the other person's person or presence by force or intimidation with the intent to deprive them of their property.

Extortion

  • Corrupt collection of an unlawful fee by an officer under the color of his office (must be done by someone in an official position of authority).

Forgery

  • The making or altering of a false writing with the intent to defraud.

Arson (House Burning)

  • The malicious burning or charring of one's own dwelling.

Malicious Mischief

  • Malicious destruction of or damage to the property of another.

Burglary

  • A breaking and entry of a dwelling of another at night with the intent to commit a felony.

Constructive Break

  • Using something else to commit the crime (a person or object).

Case Briefing

  • 10 parts:
    • Caption
    • Citation
    • Procedural history
    • Facts
    • Issue
    • Judgement
    • Holding
    • Reasoning
    • Rule of law
    • Concurring/dissenting opinion

IRAC

  • Issue, Rule, Analysis, Conclusion – used in law essays.

Hub and Spoke

  • Student brief chase while professor asks questions.

Binding Authority

  • Lower courts must follow decisions from higher courts in the same jurisdiction.

Secondary Authority

  • Explain or comment on areas of laws: law review articles.

Ex Post Facto Law

  • Law that would allow a person to be punished for an action that was not against the law when it was first committed.
    • Make an act criminal when it was first done, make the crime worse or increase the punishment, change the rules of evidence, change the law procedure which will deprive the criminal substantive rights.

Bill of Attainder

  • A law that punishes a person accused of a crime without a trial or a fair hearing in court.

Stages of Criminal Justice

  • Charges filed, initial appearance, preliminary hearing, bail/detention hearing, grand jury, information.

Judge vs. Jury

  • Judge acts to ensure the trial follows legal procedures and rules.
  • Jury is responsible for determining the facts of the case and deciding the verdict.

Juvenile Stages

  • Under 7: No capacity to commit crimes.
  • 7-14: Little understanding but no culpability.
  • 14+: Courts decide whether to try as an adult or juvenile.

Drug Laws

  • Drug crimes can violate both federal and state laws.
  • Involve possession, manufacture, distribution, and use of drugs.
  • Federal punishments are very harsh and vary based on:
    • Drug type, quantity, purpose of possession (distribution or personal use), prior conviction, probation or parole status.
  • Private recreational drug use can lead to:
    • Imprisonment
    • Probation/parole
    • Loss of custody of children
    • Fines
    • Loss of residency
    • Deportation

Drug Schedules

  • Schedule 1: No medical use, high potential for addiction.
  • Schedule 2: High potential for abuse, medical use.
  • Schedule 3: Accepted medical use, low potential for abuse.

Illegal Firearms

  • Potential requirements: license, registration, background check, magazine limits, age, mental health checks.

Internet Crimes

  • Phishing, harassment, ransomware, prostitution, child pornography and solicitation, intellectual property theft, account hacking, drug trafficking, credit card fraud.

Attempt

Proximity Test

  • Measure the steps the person took to complete the crime; if it wasn't for an outside force they would've completed the crime (how many steps they have left).

Substantial Step Test

  • How much did they do to prepare for the crime.

Res Ipsa Loquitur

  • "The thing speaks for itself," the doctrine that suggests negligence can be presumed if an event happens that would not ordinarily happen unless someone was negligent.

Probable Distance Test

  • Determines if defendants have gone far enough toward completing the crime that it's unlikely they'll turn back (how many steps they've taken).

Affirmative Defenses

  • The defendant raises a new issue that must be proved to a preponderance of evidence; must be done the first time they are in court (cannot use for appeal).

Factually Impossible

  • Not a defense; the completion of the crime is unable to occur because of some physical or factual condition unknown to defendant.

Legally Impossible

  • Defense; if the defendant having completed all the act he intended to do has committed no crime then he is not guilty of attempt.

Wharton's Rule

  • Need at least two participants to be committed of conspiracy.

Elements of a Crime

  • Mens rea, actus reus, concurrence/causation.

Causation

  • Factual causation (but for test).
  • Legal causation (proximate cause): whether defendant's conduct was a substantial cause of the harm, if there were any intervening events that broke the chain of causation.

Strict Liability

  • Offender intent is irrelevant, doesn't matter if they know or should have known; regulated public welfare.

Model Penal Code

  • Criminal law principles and guidelines.

Culpability

  • Purposefully, knowingly, willingly, recklessly, negligently, etc.

Knowingly

  • Awareness that results are practically certain to occur.

Willingly

  • Deliberately disregarding the rules.

Vicarious Liability

  • When a person without fault may still be liable for a criminal conduct of another in the court of employment: employer/employee, principle/agent, parent/child.

Frolic

  • A major departure from the scope of employment undertaken for that employee's own benefit.

Dram Shop Law

  • Legal concept that holds bars, restaurants, and other alcohol-serving establishments accountable if they provide alcohol to a person who is obviously drunk or to a juvenile who goes on to hurt themselves or others.

Parties to a Crime

Principal in the First Degree

  • A person whose acts directly resulted in the criminal misconduct in question.

Principal in the Second Degree

  • A person who was present at the crime scene and who aided, commanded, or encouraged the principal.

Accessory

  • Before the fact: One who aids, abets, or encourages but is not present at the crime scene.
  • After the fact: Person who assists the principal after the crime has been committed.

Joint Venture

  • Intentional participation, intentionally and meaningfully participate in criminal mindset.

Felony Murder

  • Killing that occurs during the commission of a felony.

Solicitation

  • Ask another to commit a felony or act that would breach the peace or obstruct justice.

Conspiracy

  • An agreement between two or more persons with the specific intent of achieving an unlawful objective or achieving a lawful objective in an unlawful manner and to act in furtherance.

Exceptions to Conspiracy

  • Husband/wife, corporation/agent, protected parties (adolescents).

Crimes Against Government

  • Treason, sedition, sabotage, espionage/spying.

Treason

  • Levying war or aiding the enemy.

Sedition

  • Advocating overthrow of the government.
    • Criminal act: advocating, aiding, teaching, organizing, or publishing material advocating the violent overthrow of the government.
    • Criminal intent: general intent (knowingly) to advocate, aid, teach, organize, or specific intent (purposely) to publish/circulate such material.
    • Attending circumstances: certain conduct must take place during war or a national emergency.

Espionage/Spying

  • General intent (knowingly) or specific intent (purposely) that information will be transmitted to the enemy.
    • Attending circumstances: certain conduct must take place during war.

Sabotage

  • Destroying, damaging, or defectively producing property.Intent can be specific, general, or negligent to impede national defense and war efforts.

Changes After 9/11

  • Patriot Act, Department of Homeland Security (created in 2002 to enforce federal laws against terrorism).

Patriot Act

  • Enacted post-9/11.
    • Stands for: Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2002.
    • Strengthens terrorist laws.
    • Increases federal jurisdiction outside the USA.
    • Creates new crimes for financial support to terrorists.
    • Provides civil forfeiture for terrorist assistance.

Victimless Crimes

  • Crimes that are illegal but cause no direct harm to anyone involved as participation is usually voluntary.
    • Prostitution, drug use, trespassing, traffic citations, public drunkenness, suicide, gambling, various sex acts such as adultery, bigamy, incest, sodomy.

Time, Place, and Manner Restrictions

  • Regulations that limit the exercise of free speech based on when, where, and how speech is expressed rather than the content of the message.
    • They are narrowly tailored and serve government interest so they are constitutional.

Constitutional Amendments

  • The transcript lists the first 10 amendments.

Substantive Rights

  • Rights individuals possess and which government cannot infringe.
    • Life, liberty, property.