Also known as: robberies
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
2 senses
A felony consisting of a taking of personal property of another from the victim's body or immediate presence. The taking must be accomplished by force or intimidation and carried out with intent to permanently deprive the victim of the property.
A felony consisting of a taking of personal property of another from the victim's body or immediate presence. The taking must be accomplished by force or intimidation and carried out with intent to permanently deprive the victim of the property.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A crime committed when, in the course of committing a theft, the actor inflicts serious bodily injury on another, threatens another with or purposely puts another in fear of immediate serious bodily injury, or commits or threatens immediately to commit any felony of the first or second degree.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A crime committed when, in the course of committing a theft, the actor inflicts serious bodily injury on another, threatens another with or purposely puts another in fear of immediate serious bodily injury, or commits or threatens immediately to commit any felony of the first or second degree.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
Rebecca Ross approached Raphael Rivera at a bus stop and grabbed his wallet from his jacket pocket. When Rivera resisted, Ross struck him and fled with the wallet. The force used overcame Rivera's resistance and the property was taken from his immediate presence with intent to keep it permanently.
Rina Rahman was acquitted of robbing one victim when identity was the sole contested issue at trial. The state then sought to prosecute her for robbing a second victim during the same incident. The prior acquittal on identity precludes the second prosecution under double jeopardy principles.
Robbery requires that the property be taken from the victim's person or immediate presence and that the taking be accomplished by force or intimidation. These two elements distinguish robbery from simple larceny.
Supporting sources
Property taken from another room in the same house or suite counts as taken from the victim's immediate presence when the victim remains nearby. The rule focuses on reasonable proximity rather than line of sight.
Supporting sources
Robert Rivera entered a pharmacy stockroom and began loading medical devices into a bag. When the pharmacist confronted him, Rivera threatened to inject a lethal overdose into a nearby patient if stopped. The threat to commit murder occurred while Rivera was attempting the theft.
Ricardo Rojas and an accomplice committed a robbery at a convenience store. During the crime the clerk suffered a fatal heart attack triggered by the terror of the armed intrusion. The robbery supplies the extreme indifference to human life that raises the killing to murder.
Rachel Ramirez received a life sentence without parole for a seventh nonviolent felony that included a robbery conviction. The sentence was challenged as grossly disproportionate to the offense under the Eighth Amendment.
Redwood Bank was robbed by an individual who carried a firearm across state lines. Congress sought to punish the robbery under a statute resting on the Commerce Clause. The statute was examined to determine whether it regulated an activity that substantially affects interstate commerce.
A threat qualifies when it is made in the course of committing a theft and consists of threatening to commit a first or second degree felony. The threat need not be directed at the person from whom property is taken.
Supporting sources
Under the Model Penal Code the actor must purposely put the victim in fear of immediate serious bodily injury. The victim's subjective fear is not an independent element once the purposeful conduct is shown.
Supporting sources
…Westover v. United States , the defendant was arrested by local police in Kansas City as a suspect in two Kansas City robberies. He was interrogated by the local police for a number of hours. The local police then turned the defendant over to the FBI, which interrogated him for a little over two hours about a…