LLM Criminal Law & Procedure 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under the MPC's definition of recklessness, what mental state must a defendant have?
- Conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk (Correct answer)
- Knowledge that harm is practically certain to result
- Negligent failure to perceive a risk
- Purposeful desire to cause the prohibited result
Correct answer: Conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk
MPC § 2.02(2)(c) defines recklessness as consciously disregarding a substantial and unjustifiable risk that a material element of an offense exists or will result.
Question 2: Which doctrine allows a defendant's voluntary intoxication to negate specific intent but not general intent crimes?
- Diminished capacity doctrine
- Voluntary intoxication defense (Correct answer)
- Settled insanity rule
- MPC extreme emotional disturbance
Correct answer: Voluntary intoxication defense
The voluntary intoxication defense permits evidence of intoxication to negate the specific intent element of a crime but is generally unavailable for general intent offenses.
Question 3: A grand jury in federal court operates under which evidentiary standard to return an indictment?
- Beyond a reasonable doubt
- Clear and convincing evidence
- Probable cause (Correct answer)
- Preponderance of the evidence
Correct answer: Probable cause
A federal grand jury must find probable cause to believe the accused committed the charged offense before returning a true bill of indictment.
Question 4: Under Batson v. Kentucky, if a defendant makes a prima facie showing of racially discriminatory use of peremptory challenges, the burden shifts to whom?
- The trial judge to conduct an independent inquiry
- The defendant to prove discriminatory intent by clear evidence
- The prosecution to provide a race-neutral explanation (Correct answer)
- The appellate court to review the record de novo
Correct answer: The prosecution to provide a race-neutral explanation
After a Batson prima facie showing, the prosecution must articulate a race-neutral justification for each challenged strike, which the court then evaluates for pretext.
Question 5: The corpus delicti rule requires which of the following before a defendant's confession may be used?
- Independent corroborating evidence that a crime occurred (Correct answer)
- Two eyewitness accounts of the crime
- A Miranda-compliant interrogation
- Judicial approval of the confession's reliability
Correct answer: Independent corroborating evidence that a crime occurred
The corpus delicti rule prohibits conviction based solely on a confession; the prosecution must independently establish that the crime actually occurred.
Question 6: Which exception to the Fourth Amendment's warrant requirement permits a warrantless search of a vehicle based on probable cause alone?
- Plain view doctrine
- Automobile exception (Correct answer)
- Exigent circumstances doctrine
- Search incident to arrest
Correct answer: Automobile exception
The automobile exception, established in Carroll v. United States, allows warrantless vehicle searches when officers have probable cause to believe it contains contraband or evidence.
Question 7: Felony murder liability for a co-felon is generally cut off when:
- The victim files a civil lawsuit against the defendant
- The defendant withdraws from the conspiracy before any harm
- The felony has reached a point of immediate flight and the killing occurs after the felon reaches temporary safety (Correct answer)
- The killing is unforeseeable as a matter of law
Correct answer: The felony has reached a point of immediate flight and the killing occurs after the felon reaches temporary safety
Under the res gestae rule, felony murder liability ends once the felon has reached a place of temporary safety following the underlying felony, breaking the causal chain.
LLM Criminal Law & Procedure 2
Under the MPC's definition of recklessness, what mental state must a defendant have?