Exam 9: Theft,Fraud,and Related Offenses

The culpable mental state of the offense of theft is the intent to deprive the owner of property.

The actus reus of the unauthorized use of a vehicle statute is whether the accused ________ the vehicle.

Acts of swindling,shoplifting,extortion,and receiving stolen property are prosecuted as violations of the Texas __________ statute.

For the offense of theft by possession of stolen property,the prosecution must establish the culpable mental state that the party knew the stolen nature of the property.What are the pros and cons of the law being altered to require only that the individual receiving the property was reckless about whether the property was stolen?

If Walter is charged with issuance of a bad check,he can normally avoid a conviction by making restitution through the prosecutor's office or the court.

The crime of issuance of bad check is a strict liability offense for which proof of no culpable mental state is required.

In auto theft cases,whether an individual is charged with the offense of theft or the offense of unauthorized use of a vehicle depends primarily on whether the prosecutor can prove:

Dan writes a $50 check at the grocery store to pay for his purchases.His checkbook shows a balance of $95.Unknown to Dan,he has made an error in subtraction and his account actually contains only $15.So far,the most serious offense,if any,Dan has committed is:

Danica goes to the grocery store.She places various grocery items in the buggy,including a case of beer in the lower rack.When Danica checks out,the cashier neglects to notice the beer in the lower rack.Danica pays for her groceries,but not the beer,and pushes the cart outside to her car.She loads the groceries,including the beer,into her car and drives home.Which of the following statements is correct about this situation?

Roscoe operates Ajax Roofing Repair,a company that goes into neighborhoods after hail storms and seeks to obtain jobs repairing roofs.He uses second-rate materials and charges very high prices for the work.After one particular storm,Roscoe approaches Hazel,a 85-year-old widow who lives alone.Roscoe offers Hazel a free inspection of her roof.The roof has suffered only minor damage but Roscoe tells Hazel that it has suffered serious hail damage.Fearful that her roof will leak,Hazel signs a contract with Ajax to repair the roof.She agrees to pay $2,800,an amount that is more than double what most roofers would charge.Roscoe's crew makes the minor repairs to the roof and collects the $2,800.When Hazel's son learns of the roof repair,he calls the police.Roscoe has committed:

If Sara purposely exits a store without paying for $35 worth of cosmetics,she has violated the Texas shoplifting statute.

Late one night a deputy sheriff catches Bill and Rudy stealing Javier's cattle.When apprehended,the two had successfully loaded six calves into a trailer.The fair market value of the calves is $200 each.The most serious offense Bill and Rudy may be charged with is:

Texas is the only state that has no statute criminalizing the fraudulent use of another person's identity or identifying information.

If the value of stolen property cannot be reasonably ascertained,the penalty for theft of that property will be determined by trial jurors who must decide its value in response to a special question they answer if rendering a guilty verdict.

Under Texas law,the presumptive method of determining whether a theft is classified as a felony or misdemeanor is based on:

Dexter buys a 42-inch television set from Adam for $125.The set is still in its original packaging and retails for $650.Adam laughingly tells Dexter that the set "walked out the door and jumped into my truck" at the electronics store where he works.Dexter tells Adam,"Call me if some more walk out the store as I know some other folks that might wish to purchase a set." Dexter has committed ___________.

Tom,a student,uses his scanner and computer to print counterfeit tickets to the university's football games.He sells the tickets to his fraternity brothers for $5 each.The most serious offense Tom has committed is ___________.

Jacki sees Jill's purse on the table of the school library.Jacki removes Jill's checkbook and driver's license from the purse.The next day Jacki buys a new cellphone and some jewelry,using the checks and the driver's license for identification.Upon arrest,in addition to theft of property and forgery charges,Jacki may properly be convicted of fraudulent use of ____(two words)_.

Dale goes to Big Red's Gun Shop looking for a new pistol.The clerk shows him several different firearms but Dale decides they are all too expensive.Finally the clerk shows him a used .22 pistol priced at $150.Dale tells the clerk he will take it.The clerk says,"Let me go get the paperwork." When the clerk leaves to retrieve the appropriate forms,Dale,true to his word,takes the pistol from the top of the counter and runs out of the store.The most serious offense Dale has committed is:

Mario exits his high performance European sports car to enter the dry cleaners to drop off some laundry.He leaves the vehicle's motor running.Danny,a 17-year-old,happens by,sees the car,and decides to take it for a spin.Danny jumps behind the wheel and drives off.About six blocks from the dry cleaners Danny realizes this was probably a bad idea.He parks the car in the shopping mall parking lot.However,an off-duty police officer observes Danny and is suspicious that such a young man would own such an expensive car.He detains and questions Danny.Danny admits he took the car without permission.The most appropriate charge to file against Danny would be: