Also known as: robberies
Written by attorneys — see sources 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.
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.
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.
2 common questions
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.
In 1964, 1966, and 1969 Jerry Helm was convicted in South Dakota of third-degree burglary. In 1972 he was convicted of obtaining money under false pretenses, in 1973 of grand larceny, and in 1975 of third-offense driving while intoxicated. All six offenses were nonviolent and alcohol contributed to each. In 1979 Helm was charged with uttering a no-account check for $100. He told the trial court he had been drinking in Sioux Falls, ended up in Rapid City with more money than he started with, and did not remember the incident, then pleaded guilty. Because he had three prior felony convictions in addition to the principal felony, the South Dakota Circuit Court sentenced him to life imprisonment without possibility of parole under the recidivist statute. The South Dakota Supreme Court affirmed the sentence in a 3-2 decision. After Helm served two years, he asked the Governor to commute the sentence so he could become eligible for parole after serving three-fourths of a fixed term; the Governor denied the request in May 1981. Helm filed a habeas corpus petition in the United States District Court for the District of South Dakota, which denied relief. The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit reversed. The Supreme Court granted certiorari to consider the Eighth Amendment question.
View caseRedwood 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.
In March 1992, Alfonso Lopez, Jr., a twelfth-grade student at Edison High School in San Antonio, Texas, arrived at school carrying a concealed .38-caliber handgun and five bullets. Acting on an anonymous tip, school authorities confronted Lopez, who admitted possessing the weapon. Local police arrested him and charged him under Texas law with firearm possession on school premises. The following day, state charges were dismissed after federal agents charged Lopez with violating the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990. A federal grand jury indicted him on one count of knowing possession of a firearm at a school zone. Lopez moved to dismiss the indictment, arguing that the statute exceeded Congress's power to legislate control over public schools. The district court denied the motion, concluding that the statute was a constitutional exercise of Congress's power to regulate activities affecting commerce because the business of schools affects interstate commerce. After a bench trial, the court found Lopez guilty and sentenced him to six months' imprisonment and two years of supervised release. Lopez appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which reversed the conviction, holding that the statute was beyond Congress's power under the Commerce Clause. The Supreme Court granted certiorari to review the case.
2 common questions
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…