Criminal Justice & the Law (Chapter 5) Cheat Sheet (DRAFT) by MSingleton

United States v. Thomas, 34 F.3d 44 (2nd Cir. 1994)

Ferguson, Missouri

Grand jury hears testimony about the case where Officer Darren Wilson shoots and kills Michael Brown in Aug. 2014. Eyewit­nesses testify, as does the officer and ballistics reports are received into evidence. The Grand Jury did not indict and protests resulted. Officer claimed self-d­efense as he stated Brown had charged at him.

Daniel Penny Self Defens­e/D­efense of Others

Daniel Penny, a former Marine, was charged with mansla­ughter under the laws of the State of NY for putting a subway rider, Jordan Neely, on an uptown F train, in a chokehold after Neely threatened people on the train (calls to 911 said that he’d tried to attack people or indicated he’d harm riders, and several testified at trial that they feared for their lives). One female witness testified that he made lunging movements that alarmed her enough that she shielded her 5-year-old from him. Experts on both sides testified as to the cause of death (State – the chokehold, Defense – combined effects of K2, schizo­phr­enia, his struggle and restraint and a blood condition that can lead to fatal compli­cations during exertion). Neely was unarmed. The jury was deadlocked on the mansla­ughter charge so in a somewhat unusual move dismissed that charge which left standing the charge of criminally negligent homicide causing another person’s death. This charge in NY means engaging in serious “blame­worthy conduct” while not perceiving such a risk. Penny’s defense was that he was protecting himself and other subway passengers from a volatile, mentally ill man who was making alarming remarks and gestures. Multiple witnesses testified that Neely said he did not care if he died and went to jail. Prosec­utors said Penny reacted too forcefully by holding him in the chokehold for approx­imately six minutes. The jury acquitted Penny of criminally negligent homicide.

Brock Turner Case in Palo Alto, CA

In 2016 former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner was sentenced to a 6-month jail term after being convicted of assaulting an uncons­cious woman on campus following a fraternity party that both had attended. This case led to changes in CA law which now requires affirm­ative consent (“yes means yes” law). The law goes further than the common “no means no” standard, which has been blamed for bringing ambiguity into invest­iga­tions of sexual assault cases. The law seeks to improve how univer­sities handle rape and sexual assault accusa­tions and to clarify the affirm­ative consent standard. This means that a sexual encounter should be considered assault unless each partic­ipant got a clear “yes” before every sexual act. States of NY and CT passed similar laws. ABA House of Delegates and Nat’l Assn of Crim Def Attys refuse to adopt this Affirm­ative Defense standard saying that it violated DP of the 5th and 14th A by shifting the burden of proof to the D.

a knowing, voluntary, and mutual decision among all partic­ipants to engage in sexual activity.

a form of imminent danger that is said to exist when the conduct or activity of an attacker makes the threat of danger obvious.

a person volunt­arily and willfully agrees in response to another person's propos­ition.

an act of protecting one's own interests.

police officers may not be prosecuted where lawfully exercising their authority.

a now-de­funct law enforc­ement practice that permitted officers to shoot a suspected felon who attempted to flee from a lawful arrest.

a type of defense that exempts the defendant from liability because the defend­ant's actions were justified, or not wrong.

a defense thatt results in an acquittal, making defendant innocent.

a degree of force that is approp­riate in a given situation and is not excessive; the minimum degree of force necessary to protect oneself, one's property, a third party, or the property of another in the face of a substa­ntial threat.

the use of force to protect oneself from an attempted injury by another.