Charge for an Incomplete Crime

1. Explain how the burden of proof defines the prosecutor’s task, and how defenses shift the burden of proof to the defendant.

2. What are the retreat rule and the castle exception, and how are they related?

3. What is considered to be a reasonable defense of habitation and property? When can deadly force be used?

Charge for an Incomplete Crime

Bob decides to rob the neighborhood store because he desperately needs money to pay his rent. He points the gun at the cashier and demands the large bills. The cashier tells Bob that he needs to reconsider his actions and that he could go to jail for a long time. She tells him that she will not call the police if he simply leaves the store. Bob decides that she is right, that he might get caught and go to jail. He immediately leaves the store but is arrested while walking to his car.

a. Has Bob committed attempted robbery?

b. Did Bob abandon his plan? Was the abandonment voluntary or involuntary

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