Criminal Law and the Georgia Code of Offenses
How Georgia defines a crime
Offenses sit in O.C.G.A. Title 16. Section 16-2-1 supplies the four mental states exam writers rely on: intentionally (conscious objective to cause the result), knowingly (aware that conduct is practically certain to cause the result), recklessly (conscious disregard of a substantial unjustifiable risk), and negligently (failure to perceive a risk a reasonable person would see). The mental state is an element - a fact pattern that omits it is missing an element, and a report that omits it is weak.
Offenses a security officer meets most
- Simple assault (§ 16-5-20) - an attempt to commit a violent injury, or an act placing another in reasonable apprehension of immediate violent injury. No contact required.
- Simple battery (§ 16-5-23) - intentional physical harm, or insulting/provoking physical contact.
- Aggravated assault (§ 16-5-21) - assault with a deadly weapon or with intent to rob, rape, or murder.
- Robbery (§ 16-8-40) - property taken from a person by force, intimidation, or sudden snatching.
- Burglary (§ 16-7-1) - entering or remaining in a dwelling, building, vehicle, or rail car with intent to commit a felony or theft.
- Theft by shoplifting (§ 16-8-14) - concealing, carrying away, or altering price with intent to deprive; felony when the value exceeds $500.
- Criminal trespass (§ 16-7-21) - entering or remaining on property after notice, or damaging property.
- Terroristic threats (§ 16-5-37), disorderly conduct (§ 16-11-39), public drunkenness (§ 16-11-41), loitering or prowling (§ 16-11-36).
Justification
O.C.G.A. § 16-3-20 lists defenses including justification, accident, and mistake of fact. Self-defense, defense of others, and defense of habitation live in §§ 16-3-21 and 16-3-24.
Worked example
You watch a man place two bottles of liquor inside his jacket and walk past the last point of sale without paying. Shoplifting elements: selection, concealment, intent, and passing the point of sale. Value drives the charge - under $500 is a misdemeanor, over $500 a felony. Because the offense occurred in your presence, § 17-4-60 permits a citizen's arrest. Reasoning: articulate each element in your report rather than writing that he stole.
Traps that cost marks
Thinking assault requires a hit; thinking battery requires injury; missing the $500 threshold; treating burglary as residential only; ignoring the mental state; writing conclusions instead of the facts that prove each element.