Criminal Law and Procedure
What the exam tests
Criminal Law and Procedure tests common-law crimes, mens rea, homicide, inchoate offenses, defenses, and constitutional rules governing police investigations and prosecutions.
Core rules
- Elements. Actus reus, mens rea, concurrence, and causation. Common-law mens rea categories are purpose, knowledge, recklessness, and negligence. Mistake of fact can negate specific intent; mistake of law generally does not excuse.
- Homicide. Murder requires malice aforethought: intent to kill, intent to inflict serious bodily harm, reckless indifference, or felony murder. Voluntary manslaughter requires adequate provocation; involuntary manslaughter requires recklessness or criminal negligence. Felony murder is limited by the underlying felony and the merger doctrine.
- Inchoate offenses. Attempt requires specific intent and a substantial step. Conspiracy requires agreement and intent; common law requires at least two guilty minds, while modern statutes may allow unilateral conspiracy.
- Defenses. Self-defense requires reasonable belief in imminent unlawful force and proportional force; deadly force requires imminent death or serious bodily harm. Duress is not a defense to homicide. Insanity: M’Naghten (cognitive) and MPC (cognitive or volitional).
- Procedure. Fourth Amendment: warrant, probable cause, and exceptions (search incident to arrest, automobile, plain view, consent, exigency). Fifth Amendment: Miranda custody plus interrogation; double jeopardy. Sixth Amendment: right to counsel at critical stages and confrontation.
Worked example
Officers stop a car for a broken taillight. They see a firearm in plain view and arrest the driver. A search of the passenger compartment is permitted as a search incident to arrest if the arrestee is within reaching distance or the vehicle contains evidence of the offense. The firearm is admissible.
Traps
Do not conflate reasonable suspicion with probable cause; do not apply Miranda to nontestimonial evidence; do not assume felony murder applies to every felony; do not forget the merger doctrine; do not treat duress as a defense to murder.