Gavin, an 18 year old sudent was eating lunch on the grounds of a school. He threw a half- eaten apple toward the outside wall of a classroom some distance way. The apple sailed through a slowly closing door and struck a teacher who was in the room. The teacher was knocked to the floor and lost consciousness. Gavin was charged with assault, defined as " intentionally causing serious physical injury to another person." Gavin stated that he did not intend to hit the teacher but only intended to see the apple splatter against the outside wall. The trial judge refused Gavin's motion to dismiss the charges. Assume your one of the judges on the appellate panel and answer the following questions:
What are the two elements of criminal liablility? Are both present in this case?
Would you affurm the trial courts decision in this case? would you reverse the decision? explain your reasoning.
The trial court convisted Gavin to "send a message" to his classmates that his actions were wrong. is this a sufficent reason in itself to convict a defendant such as gavin? why o why not?
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