Criminal Law Blog

Do the best you can to answer the following question.  I want to see what you know about Criminal Law.  Make your best guess.  Later we will revisit these scenarios and I will ask you to give me the correct answer.

Scenarios:

1.  John is binging on some Netflix and is making some pizza in his bachelor pad apartment.  While he is lying on his couch, he falls asleep.  When John wakes up, his kitchen is on fire which spreads to the neighboring apartment quickly.  By the end of the night, several apartments are burnt and most have smoke damage.  Is John "criminally" responsible?  If not, how is he responsible for the fire?

2.  Jeb and Marci decide to burglarize a jewelry store.  Their friend Carl, an employee of the store, helps by telling them the location of the store's vault.  Marci drives the van to the store and keeps a lookout while Jeb goes inside and cracks the safe.  After Jeb and Marci make their getaway, Jeb meets a friend, Shawn, who was not involved in the actual burglary.  Jeb tells Shawn about the burglary, and Shawn helps Jeb get a train out of town.  David, a former classmate of Jeb and Marci, witnesses the crime but does not tell the police, even though he recognizes both of them.  How will each person be charged?  Why is this a burglary and not a robbery?

3.  You are out getting the new Grand Theft Auto and the rest of your family decided to go to the movies.  When you get home ready to spend a ridiculous time shooting up the streets and stealing cars, you find your front door open.  Upon further inspection, you find your Xbox, games, family nicknacks, and several other expensive items gone.  Have you been "robbed" or "burglarized"?  What is the difference?

4.  You have been sick for weeks.  You go to the doctor and get a prescription pill.  The doctor, as well as the bottle clearly state that you should not use heavy machinery or drive a vehicle while taking the drug because it could cause drowsiness and fatigue.  You decide to ignore the warnings and take your prescription as you leave the pharmacy just to get some relief you haven't had in weeks.  On the way home, you start to feel groggy and you fall asleep at the wheel.  When you wake up, you are surrounded by sirens and find out you ran off the road and hit a pregnant woman and her husband, killing them both.  Will you be charged with murder or is it just an accident?  If it is murder, what kind of murder would you be charged with?  How many count of that type of murder would you face in South Dakota?  What is the penalty for that crime?

5.  You and a friend get into an altercation or fight with each other.  Your friend gets more angry than you have ever seen and grabs a scissors from a desk and say they are going to stab you with them.  What is your friend guilty of- Assault, Battery, or Both?  Why?

6.  Same scenario as last time but instead of your friend getting mad, you grab the scissors, threaten your friend, and then tackle your friend trying to cut and stab them.  What are you guilty of- Assault, Battery, or Both?  Why?

7.  Same scenario as above but your friend fights back and ends up stabbing you with the scissors in order to get away.  Is your friend guilty of Assault, Battery, or Both?  Why or Why not?