Criminal Law
Prof. Jose Anderson
University of Baltimore School of Law
Criminal Law: Cases, Commentary And Questions (Carolina Academic Press Law Casebook)
I. General Elements
A. Basic elements of a crime:
1. voluntary act
2. culpable intent
3. causation of harm
ACT
I. Generally
A. Look for “act” issue whenever:
1. D does an involuntary act
2. D has a failure to act
3. D has not committed physical acts (just words, states of possession or status)
Bouknight – wants you to think that the system is messed up, can’t be forced to incriminate yourself & need to know when you have a criminal case
II. Possession
A. Possession can sometimes constitute necessary criminal act
1. Ex: possession of narcotics (State v. Gary and Cline Fox)
a) Gary controlled the pot in the greenhouse and Clive didn’t
2. Must prove:
a) Possession must be conscious
b) Nexus/connection to illegal contraband
c) D had control (exercise dominon over the drug)
d) Distance between physical distance between D and contraband?
e) NOTE: Actual possession not necessary for drug charge, only constructive possession (where evidence connects D and contraband, but isn’t physically on person)
f) You need to show how each individual is guilty of each element.
III. Voluntary Act (“Actus Reus”)
A. Act MUST be voluntary
1. Can a medical condition make your conduct involuntary (People v. Decina)
2. Things that don’t count
a) Reflex or convulsion
b) Unconciousness
c) Hypnosis
(1) BUT self-induced state with knowledge may still be criminally liable (if you know about your condition prior to the incident and still partake in an activity anyway)
d) Habit
IV. Inaction/Omissions – IMPORTANT
A. Common law = NO criminal liability for failure to act
B. EXCEPTION: Special legal obligation to act
1. Statutory requirement
2. Relationships
a) Presence of close blood relationship
(1) Child/parent relationship – highest duty (ex: parent can be liable for failing to stop abuse by other parent)
(2) Spouse (especially when one spouse has incapacity)
(3) Common carriers – bus driver, airline pilot
(4) Contractual – lifeguard/swimmer
(5) Strangers – no duty
3. Contractual obligation to take affirmative action (ex: lifeguard)
4. D caused danger (even innocently) and put that person in peril then you have a duty
5. Undertaking – if D undertakes to help someone
a) ESPECIALLY if D leaves victim worse off than before OR dissuades other potential rescuers (ex: telling people I’ll save V from drowning but then I don’t even try)
6. Voluntary assumption of care – can be held responsible if they try to help but are unable to do so (ex: doing CPR when you don’t know how) à You must finish what you started
7. Vulnerable Adult Law- MD has this – everyone who is regularly present in the home is responsible to come to the aid of any senior citizen or mentally challenged person residing there.
C. Defenses to voluntary act
1. Infancy (min. age 7)
2. Insanity
3. Reflex, convulsion, spasm
INTENT
I. Mens Rea = “culpable state of mind”
A. Not all crimes require a true “mens rea” – can be “neg
ent must be proved by either direct or circumstantial evidence
4. Needs to be the exclusive thing on D’s mind when crime was attempted/committed
5. Types
a) Attempted crimes are always specific
(1) For attempted crime, state must prove:
(a) intent to commit crime AND
(b) direct, ineffectual act done towards its commission. Act must reach far enough towards accomplishment of desired effect to amount to commencement of consummation.
(c) Ex: the firing of a shot into the head of the victim’s bed was done toward the commission of the charged offense, but the evidence falls short of proving that it was fired with the intent to murder. Especially since the specific intent was to shoot a light out.
b) 1st Murder
c) Larceny
d) Robbery
e) Burglary
f) False Pretenses / Embezzlement
6. Defenses
a) Voluntary intoxication
b) Reasonable/unreasonable mistake of fact
c) z
D. No Intent (strict liability)
1. D performed act in question regardless of mental state
a) Ex: statutory rape, mislabeling bottle of medicine
b) Ex: Olshefski – broken truck scale
2. Look at legislative intent (even if no intent requirement in statute language) to determine strict liability
a) Complex statute that is easy to violate (probably not strict liability)
