Exam 2: What Is a Crime

Ten years after she was violently assaulted, Judy passes away from a blood infection acquired while receiving follow-up care for pain associated with the assault. Judy also suffered from ovarian cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy for the cancer at the time she died. You represent the original assailant, who has now been charged with murder. What is your best argument for dropping the charges?

MATCHING. -Vicarious liability

Which of the following would constitute a criminal conspiracy?

Under the law, a person who acts under the influence of the devil is said to have actual possession.

Joe Josey has a hot temper and has been drinking heavily at the Circle K bar. He believes that the young man occupying the bar stool next to his is trying to make a pass at the bartender, who happens to be Joe's girlfriend. Joe stands up and tries to punch the young man, but instead stumbles and smacks the little old lady on the next bar stool over. She falls and suffers a concussion. The concept that best explains why Joe may be criminally liable for the harm the old lady suffers is:

Corpus dilecti requires both harm and a criminal act.

Willful acts are _________ -degree offenses.

Planning a crime in one's head can be a crime in and of itself because it establishes mens rea.

One's status (i.e. homelessness, alcoholism) is not a crime.

MATCHING. -Corporate liability

Some acts are crimes even if they cause no harm.

The elements of corpus dilecti are:

MATCHING. -Objective intent

A homeless person is sleeping on a park bench after the park is officially closed. The sleeping man may be charged with the crime of homelessness.

If a person commits an act with the intent of causing a particular criminal result, the person is said to have general intent.

A man and a woman are joking around near a swift moving creek while on a date. The man, thinking the woman could swim, pushes her into the water. She starts flailing and yelling, "I can't swim." Why does the law require him to try to save her?

Jack and Jill are computer experts who have come up with a way to break into their college registrar's office via the Internet. They discuss which grades they will change once they launch their cyber attack. Jill's stepbrother overhears the conversation and calls a friend at the local police department. Just as Jack and Jill enter the code that will allow them onto the registrar's server from their computer in the family room, police offices storm their quiet suburban home and yell, "Freeze. Drop that mouse." They comply. What are the likely charges?

For an act to be a crime, it must:

Explain Mens rea and actus reus.

A young boy aged five years finds his father's loaded gun on his parents' nightstand and he puts the gun in his kindergarten backpack. During recess, he shows his best friend the gun and pulls the trigger. The bullet misses his friend, but kills a custodian who was emptying a trashcan on the playground. Can the boy be charged with a crime?