Any Intentional Act Plus Death Equals Felony Murder
This trap appears as a wrong-answer choice in 1 active question. Spotting how it is built is the repair: read each example's “why it's attractive” before the “why it's wrong.”
Subject distribution
- CRIMINAL1
Example wrong choices
19572_gideon-oxen-stampede · CRIMINAL · Choice AFirst-degree murder, because intentionally startling animals into a crowd constitutes felony murder
Why it's attractive
Invents a felony murder predicate. Goading animals into a crowd does not constitute a qualifying predicate felony. Depraved-heart murder is the better-supported and cleaner charge.
Why it's wrong
Invents a felony murder predicate. Goading animals into a crowd does not constitute a qualifying predicate felony. Depraved-heart murder is the better-supported and cleaner charge.
19572_gideon-oxen-stampede · CRIMINAL · Choice BInvoluntary manslaughter only, because Gideon did not intend to hit anyone
Why it's attractive
Focuses on lack of intent-to-kill as the limiting element. Depraved-heart murder does not require intent to kill — conscious disregard of extreme risk with extreme indifference is sufficient. Defeated by GK-CRIMINAL-DEPRAVED-HEART-01.
Why it's wrong
Focuses on lack of intent-to-kill as the limiting element. Depraved-heart murder does not require intent to kill — conscious disregard of extreme risk with extreme indifference is sufficient. Defeated by GK-CRIMINAL-DEPRAVED-HEART-01.
19572_gideon-oxen-stampede · CRIMINAL · Choice CNo homicide liability, because the workers could have stepped aside
Why it's attractive
Substitutes victim's ability to move (common-sense autonomy) for the legal standard (proximate causation). A victim's failure to avoid an extreme risk created by the defendant is not a superseding cause that negates liability.
Why it's wrong
Substitutes victim's ability to move (common-sense autonomy) for the legal standard (proximate causation). A victim's failure to avoid an extreme risk created by the defendant is not a superseding cause that negates liability.
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