So you are equating willful negligence with intent, did you vote for Hillary?
Originally Posted by andymarksman
"Willful negligence" is an oxymoron. That's like saying I intended to kill Andy by accident. The phrase "equating willful negligence with intent" is just plain gibberish.
With some exceptions, criminal liability requires proof of intent. From FindLaw:
"Most crimes require what attorneys refer to as 'mens rea,' which is simply Latin for a 'guilty mind.' In other words, what a defendant was thinking and what the defendant intended when the crime was committed. Mens rea allows the criminal justice system to differentiate between someone who did not mean to commit a crime and someone who intentionally set out to commit a crime."
See: FindLaw,
"Mens Rea -- A Defendant's Mental State".
Mens rea ranges from willful (intending the conduct and the result) to negligent (not intending the conduct or the result -- i.e., an accident). To say someone is "willfully negligent" is nonsensical.
The Texas Penal Code states the spectrum of the possible mental states the prosecution must prove:
"
TEXAS PENAL CODE, Sec. 6.03. DEFINITIONS OF CULPABLE MENTAL STATES.
(a) A person acts
intentionally, or with intent, with respect to the nature of his conduct or to a result of his conduct when it is his conscious objective or desire to engage in the conduct or cause the result.
(b) A person acts
knowingly, or with knowledge, with respect to the nature of his conduct or to circumstances surrounding his conduct when he is aware of the nature of his conduct or that the circumstances exist. A person acts knowingly, or with knowledge, with respect to a result of his conduct when he is aware that his conduct is reasonably certain to cause the result.
(c) A person acts
recklessly, or is reckless, with respect to circumstances surrounding his conduct or the result of his conduct when he is aware of but consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the circumstances exist or the result will occur. The risk must be of such a nature and degree that its disregard constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of care that an ordinary person would exercise under all the circumstances as viewed from the actor's standpoint.
(d) A person acts with criminal
negligence, or is criminally negligent, with respect to circumstances surrounding his conduct or the result of his conduct when he ought to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the circumstances exist or the result will occur. The risk must be of such a nature and degree that the failure to perceive it constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of care that an ordinary person would exercise under all the circumstances as viewed from the actor's standpoint."
See:
Texas Penal Code sec. 6.03 (emphasis added).
In Texas, most statutes making conduct a criminal offense state the culpable mental state or states the prosecution must prove. However, if the statute doesn't state a culpable mental state, then, at least, recklessness is read into the statute. (I misspoke above when I said at least negligence must be proven.) Here's the relevant statute:
"
TEXAS PENAL CODE, Sec. 6.02. REQUIREMENT OF CULPABILITY.
(a) Except as provided in Subsection (b), a person does not commit an offense unless he intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, or with criminal negligence engages in conduct as the definition of the offense requires.
(b) If the definition of an offense does not prescribe a culpable mental state, a culpable mental state is nevertheless required unless the definition plainly dispenses with any mental element.
(c) If the definition of an offense does not prescribe a culpable mental state, but one is nevertheless required under Subsection (b), intent, knowledge, or recklessness suffices to establish criminal responsibility.
(d) Culpable mental states are classified according to relative degrees, from highest to lowest, as follows:
(1) intentional;
(2) knowing;
(3) reckless;
(4) criminal negligence.
(e) Proof of a higher degree of culpability than that charged constitutes proof of the culpability charged.
(f) An offense defined by municipal ordinance or by order of a county commissioners court may not dispense with the requirement of a culpable mental state if the offense is punishable by a fine exceeding the amount authorized by Section 12.23."
See
Texas Penal Code sec. 6.02.
