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Al goes to the local grocery store intending to rob it.  He approaches the store office with pistol drawn.  When he reaches the office, he discovers no one is there.  He quickly opens the unlocked door, enters the office and steals payroll checks that are lying on the manager’s desk.  He leaves without being seen. What is the most serious offense Al has committed?

The burden of proof in criminal cases is beyond a shadow of a doubt. 

Under Texas law, blowing up a building with a bomb would be classified as arson.

Billy is depressed.  He has lost his wife, his job, and his dog.  Billy also has been drinking margaritas all day.  He is seriously drunk.  While in his intoxicated state, Billy decides to solve his problems by robbing the local convenience store.  He takes his pistol and goes to the store.  Upon seeing the store clerk, Billy draws his pistol, points it at the clerk, and demands money.  As the clerk is opening the cash register, Billy feels himself becoming dizzy.  At that moment he passes out from all of the margaritas.  Billy wakes up in jail and says to himself, “How did I get here?”  At his trial for robbery, Billy argues that he does not remember committing the crime because he was so drunk.  As to the robbery charge, Billy:

Nicole just turned 20 on March 1st, and she is a student at Angelina College.  She is dating Max, a 16 year-old high school junior.  They believe they are in love, and plan to get married one day.  On April 30th, Max’s mom took his phone and looked through his social media.  After doing this, she believed that Max and Nicole have been engaging in sexual intercourse, which she is extremely upset about.   Mom confronts Max, who eventually admits that they have been having sex since his 16th birthday, about 2 months ago.  Mom immediately takes Max down to the police department to file a report.  The most serious thing Nicole can get charged with, if anything, is:

Bill, knowing his girlfriend Monica is six-months pregnant, comes home drunk one night.  He gets into an argument with Monica and strikes Monica in the abdomen several times with his fist, all the while saying “Take that you little bastard.  I don’t want any kids.”  Two days later, Monica delivers a stillborn baby.  An autopsy reveals the child died of blunt trauma wounds inflicted as a result of the beating.  What is the most serious offense, if any, Bill has committed?

Wearing a disguise, Bruce enters the local bank and approaches the teller.  Without saying a word, he hands the teller a note.  The note reads “Give me all of the hundreds, I have a gun.” The teller responds by handing Bruce twenty $100 bills.  Bruce departs without saying a word.  Police respond to the silent alarm and Bruce is apprehended about an hour later.  At Bruce’s trial, which of the following evidence would assist in establishing that his conduct constituted a robbery?

If a police officer affords a person the opportunity to commit a crime, that person could likely claim the defense of entrapment.

In Texas, the charging instrument for a misdemeanor is an indictment. 

Under the capital punishment law in Texas, one of the things the jury must determine is whether or not the defendant will be a future danger to society.