Criminal Law

The Four Elements

• The Four Key Elements
• Corpus Delecti (This is the starting point)
• -the body of the crime
• -proof that an actual crime has been committed by someone
• -ex1: in a murder, the body is the corpus delecti
• -ex2: in a bicycle theft, the bicycle is gone
• Actus Reus
• -the guilty act (must be voluntary)
• -ex1: in a murder, the actus reus is homicide
• -ex2: if a vehicle is stolen, the actus reus is motor vehicle theft

The Four Elements

• Mens Rea
• -the guilty intent
• -person must intentionally, knowingly and willingly commit the criminal act
• -ex1: homicide, the person committing the homicide must understand that it is wrong and is a crime
• -in order to have a guilty mental state, elements are required:
• 1) purpose: X commits Y for Outcome Z
• 2) knowingly: X commits Y and knows that Y is wrong
• 3) negligence: X commits Y without using a standard of care that a reasonable person would use
• 4) recklessness: X commits Y with a conscious disregard of Outcome Z
• Concurrence
• -the joining together of both the criminal act and the guilty mind
• -the criminal act must be the result of the offender’s intention to commit a particular criminal act