Criminal Law 2.3 Crimes Against the Person

Crimes Against the Person Assault: any attempt or threat to carry out a physical attack upon another person Battery: any unlawful physical contact inflicted by one person upon another without consent. Actual injury is not necessary, the only requirement is the intention to do bodily harm Stalking: a person repeatedly follows or harasses another person and makes threats, causing the victim to fear death or bodily injury

Sexual Crimes Against the Person Rape: the act of unlawful sexual intercourse committed by a man with a woman by force and without her consent. Statutory rape is sexual intercourse by a man with a woman who has not yet reached the legal age of consent. If the victim is a male, the state of NC refers to this as a “sexual offense.”

Criminal Homicide: Murder The most serious type of criminal homicide is murder, which is done with malice: the intent to kill or seriously harm or acting in an extremely reckless manner. First-degree murder: killing that is premeditated and done with malice Second-degree murder: killing that is done with malice, but without premeditation or deliberation Felony murder: any killing that takes place during the commission of certain felonies, such as arson, rape, robbery, or burglary.

Criminal Homicide Voluntary manslaughter: a killing that would otherwise be murder, but that occurs after the victim has done something to the killer that would cause a reasonable person to lose self-control or act rashly. Involuntary manslaughter: an unintentional killing resulting from conduct so reckless that it causes extreme danger of death or bodily injury. Negligent homicide: the causing of a death through criminal negligence, or the failure to exercise a reasonable or ordinary amount of care in a situation that causes extreme harm to someone.

Noncriminal Homicide Noncriminal homicide: killing that is justifiable or excusable and for which the killer is deemed faultless. Ex: killing an enemy soldier during wartime, the killing of a condemned criminal by an executioner, killing a person in self-defense, etc.