Criminal Law
rename
Updated
2007-04-04 08:11
Heading
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Beyond a Reasonable Doubt | Reasonable doubt is the that state of the case which, after the entire comparison and consideration of all the evidence, leaves the minds of the jurors in that condition that they can't say they feel an abiding conviction, to a moral certainty, of the truth of the charge. |
| Legal Sufficiency | Reasonable doubt as to a matter of law |
| Factual Sufficiency | Explaining reasonable doubt |
| Burden of Production | Allocating the burden of coming forward with enough evidence to put a certain fact in issue |
| Burden of Persuasion | Allocating the burden of convincing the trier of fact |
| Actus Reus | Physical part of a crime; a voluntary act or failure to act which causes harm |
| Involuntary Act | An act which is done by the muscles without any control by the mind such as a spasm, a reflex action or convulsion, or an act done by a person who isn't conscious of what he is doing such as an act done while suffering from a concussion or sleepwalking. |
| Mens Rea | State of mind |
| Malice | Requires either (1) an actual intention to do the particular kind of harm that in fact was done, or (2) recklessness as wo whether such harm should occur or not. |
| Purposely | Actor's conscious object to engage in the conduct or to cause the result, or with respect to attendant circumstances, he's aware of such circumstances or he believes or hopes that they exist. |
| Knowingly | Aware that conduct is virtually certain to cause result, or with regards to "conduct" and "attendant circumstances" elements, D acts knowingly if he is aware that his conduct is of the nature or that such attendant circumstances exist. |
| Recklessly | Actor consciously takes substantial and unjustifiable risk of causing harm |
| Negligently | Inadvertently creates a substantial and unjustifiable risk of which he ought to be aware |
| Moral Wrong Doctrine | One can make a reasonable mistake and yet manifest a bad character or otherwise demonstrate worthiness of punishment. |
| Malum in se | wrong in itself; inherently evil |
| Malum prohibitum | wrong because it's prohibited; not inherently immoral |
| Actus Reus of Rape | Forcible sexual assault without consent |
| Homicide | The killing of a human being by another human being |
| Mens Rea of Murder | Unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought (common law) |
| Mens Rea of Manslaughter | The unlawful killing of a human being without malice aforethought |
| Malice aforethought | Intention to cause death or serious bodily harm, to commit a felony, to oppose by force a law enforcement officer in the execution of his duty, or knowledge that an act will probably cause death or serious bodily harm |
