Criminal Intent

1. There are two basic mental states with respect to criminal liability. First, there is specific intent, which means that the defendant intended to the commit a specific act prohibited by law. In many state laws and the Model Penal Code, specific intent is often referred to as "purposeful" and "knowing" intent (Model Penal Code �� 1.13, 2.02). Roughly, in these mental states, the defendant intends to commit a prohibited act or knows with certainty that the prohibited act will occur. Second, there is general intent, by which the defendant either intends to commit a bad act, though not necessarily the act that is eventually committed, or the defendant causes a prohibited act. In state laws and the Model Penal Code, this mental state is often defined as recklessness or criminal negligence and refers to conduct that the defendant should have known would result in the prohibited conduct (Model Penal Code �� 1.13, 2.02).

a. Johnny's mental state with regard to his actions concerning Dave is almost certainly the specific intent to commit the prohibited act. Johnny takes the gun to Dave with the specific intention of having Dave put it to his head and pull the trigger. Johnny does not know whether the gun is loaded, which means that it could be. In addition, his statement that "[h]opefully, [Dave]'ll wound himself" demonstrates his belief that the gun may be loaded. When he puts the gun to Dave's head and pulls the trigger, therefore, he is acting with

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Category: Government - C