Criminal Law Keyed to Dressler
United States v. Peterson
ProfessorScott Caron
CaseCast™ – "What you need to know"
Facts
The victim, Keitt, and two friends drove in Keitt’s car to the alley in the rear of the defendant’s house to remove the windshield wipers from the Defendant’s wrecked car. The Defendant came out of his house while Keitt was doing so and the two had a verbal exchange. The Defendant then when back into his house, retrieved a pistol and returned to his yard to find Keitt seated in his car and about to leave. The Defendant walked to a point in his yard and threatened to kill Keitt if he came into his yard. Keitt alighted from his vehicle and exclaimed, “What the hell do you think you are going to do with that?” Keitt then returned to his car, retrieved a lug wrench, and advanced toward the defendant with the wrench in a raised position. The Defendant warned Keitt to stop, but he continued onward. The Defendant shot Keitt in the face from a distance of about ten feet.
Only StudyBuddy Pro offers the complete Case Brief Anatomy*
Access the most important case brief elements for optimal case understanding.
*Case Brief Anatomy includes: Brief Prologue, Complete Case Brief, Brief Epilogue
- The Brief Prologue provides necessary case brief introductory information and includes:
Topic:
Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.Parties:
Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.Procedural Posture & History:
Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.:
A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.Case Doctrines, Acts, Statutes, Amendments and Treatises:
Identifies and Defines Legal Authority used in this case.
- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
Brief Facts:
A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.Rule of Law:
Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.Facts:
What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case.Issue(s):
Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.Holding:
Shares the Court's answer to the legal questions raised in the issue.Concurring / Dissenting Opinions:
Includes valuable concurring or dissenting opinions and their key points.Reasoning and Analysis:
Identifies the chain of argument(s) which led the judges to rule as they did.
- The Brief Prologue closes the case brief with important forward-looking discussion and includes:
Policy:
Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.Court Direction:
Shares where the Court went from here for this case.
Topic Resources