S. 2298 · 114th Congress
Mens Rea Reform Act of 2015
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Never voted on. It didn't reach a floor vote before the 114th Congress ended, so it expired. A bill has to be introduced again to be considered in a new Congress.
R
HatchSponsor4 cosponsors · 4 R
4 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.
This bill amends the federal criminal code to establish a default intent (state of mind)standardfor a federal criminal offense, unless the provision of law that defines such offense specifically provides otherwise.
What it does: CRS summary · Introduced in Senate · Nov 18, 2015
Mens Rea Reform Act of 2015
This bill amends the federal criminal code to establish a default intent (state of mind)standardfor a federal criminal offense, unless the provision of law that defines such offense specifically provides otherwise.
A federal criminal offense conviction under the default standard requires proof beyond a reasonable doubtthat a defendant acted intentionally and willfully with respect to each element of the offense.If a state of mind is not specified for an element of the offense, it must be shown that the defendant acted willfully. A person who acts "willfully" does so with the knowledge that the conduct is unlawful. The bill sets forth certain exceptions where the default standard shall not apply.
Additionally, the bill requires that when a provision of lawidentifies an intentstandard but does not specify which elements of the offense the standard applies to, the identified standard must apply to all elements of the offense.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov
About this bill and sources
Official title: Mens Rea Reform Act of 2015
Latest action (Jan 20, 2016): Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held.
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement · Origin: Senate · Introduced: Nov 18, 2015
Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)
No recorded floor vote found.