Criminal Law MBE Questions – Multistate Bar Examination –
2026 – Practice Questions and Study Material
An executive of an accounting firm was fired and told to immediately leave the building where
she worked. The executive went home, but she returned that night to retrieve personal items
from her office. When she discovered that her key no longer opened a door to the building, she
forced the door open and went to her former office. To avoid attract- ing attention, she did not
turn on any lights. In the dark, she knew that she was taking some items that were not hers; she
planned to sort these out later and return them. Upon arriving home, she found that she had
taken a record and some financial papers that belonged to the firm. After thinking it over and
becoming angrier over being fired, she burned book and papers in her fireplace. What crime(s)
has the executive committed? - correct answer ✔✔ Larceny, but not burglary.
A woman and her sister took a trip to the Caribbean. When they passed through U.S. Customs
inspection upon their return, the customs officials found liquid cocaine in sev- eral bottles each
of them was carrying. They were arrested. Upon separate questioning by customs officers, the
woman broke dówn and cried, "I told my sister there were too many officers at this airport."
The sister did not give a statement The woman and her sister were indicted for conspiracy to
import cocaine. They were tried separately. At the wom- an's trial, after the government
introduced the above dence and rested its case, her lawyer moved for a judgment of acquittal
on grounds insufficient evidence. Should the court grant the motion? - correct answer ✔✔ No,
because the evidence shows that both the woman and her sister agreed to import cocaine.
A man and his friend were watching a televised foothll game at the man's home. Upset by a
penalty called by the referee, the friend threw a bottle of beer at the man's tele- vision,
breaking the screen. Enraged, the man picked up nearby hammer and hit the friend the head
with it. The friend died from the blow. The crimes below are listed in descending order of
seriousness. In jurisdiction that follows common law principles, what the most serious crime of
which the man could prop- erly be convicted? - correct answer ✔✔ Murder.
man had spent the evening drinking at a local bar was weaving down the street his home,
singing Suddenly, person wearing cartoon character mask jumped out from an alley, pointed his
gun at the man, and snarled, "This loaded, buddy, and I don't mind using Hand your cash
,pronto." The man was so drunk that he failed to understand what was going on and started to
howl with laughter at sight of the cartoon mask. Surprised rattled by the man's reaction,
masked gunman fled. soon recovered his composure and staggered home safely. crimes
descending order What is the most crime of which the masked gunman may properly charged
and convicted? - correct answer ✔✔ Attempted robbery.
defendant was charged with battery, defined as com- law. At trial, an expert witness testified for
the defense performance-enhancing drug at the time he committed the battery and he would
not have done so had he not been influenced. The defendant asked for an instruction to the
offect that the jury believed that he was influenced by the drug at the time of the crime and
would not have committed otherwise, it had to acquit him. Which of the following
circumstances would most aid defendant's argument favor of such instruction? - correct answer
✔✔ Evidence that the defendant's coach, who gave him the drug, told him was only an aspirin.
A common law jurisdiction defines first-degree murder as any murder that is (1) committed by
means of poison or (2) premeditated. All other murder second-degree murder, and
manslaughter is defined as at common law. An employee was angry with her boss for denying
her a raise. Intending to cause her boss discomfort, the employee secretly dropped into his
coffee three over-the-counter_lax- ative pills. The boss drank the coffee containing the pills.
Although the pills would not have been dangerous to an ordinary person, because the boss was
already taking other medication, he suffered a seizure and died. If the employee is charged with
murder the first degree, should she be convicted? - correct answer ✔✔ No.
A man asked his girlfriend lend him something he could se to break into his neighbor's
padlocked storage shed order to steal a lawn mower. She handed him a crowbar. He inok the
crowbar but then found bolt cutter that the neigh- bor had left outside the shed. Using the bolt
cutter, he cut the padlock on the shed and took the mower, which he then used to mow his
girlfriend's lawn. She was surprised and pleased by this gesture. Burglary in this Jurisdiction
applies to any structure or building and there is no nighttime element. The girlfriend has been
charged as am accomplice to burglary and Larceny. Of which crimes if any would she guilty? -
correct answer ✔✔ Burglary and Larceny.
A defendant was tried for armed robbery. The state intro- duced evidence that a man, identified
by witnesses as the defendant, entered a convenience store 11 p.m. on March 5, threatened the
, clerk with a gun, and took $75 from the cash register. The defendant did not testify, but his
sister did. She testified that on March 5, the time of the robbery, the defendant was with her
city 300 miles away. On cross- examination, the sister admitted having given a statement to the
police in which she had said that the defendant was not with her on March 5, but she claimed
that the earlier state- ment was mistaken. The court instructed the jury that in order to convict
the defendant, they had to find all of the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. As
to the defendant's claim of alibi, which of the follow- ing additional instructions would be
proper? - correct answer ✔✔ If you have reasonable doubt as to whether the defendant was
present at the convenience store at about 11pm on March 5th you must find him not guilty.
A state statute provides: "Aggravated robbery of the elderly consists of robbery committed
against a victim who is 65 years of age or older." Another state statute provides that when a
criminal statute does not designate a necessary mental state, the mental state required is
recklessness. A third state statute provides that person acts recklessly the person "consciously
disregards a substantial and unjus- tified risk that the material element exists or will result from
the person's conduct." The evidence at criminal trial showed that the defen- dant robbed a 66-
year-old man outside a senior citizens' center. The defendant testified truthfully that the
robbery had occurred on dark night, that she had had no idea how old the victim was and had
not cared how old the vic- tim was, and that she had intended to rob whomever she
encountered. Could the defendant properly be convicted of aggra- vated robbery of the elderly?
- correct answer ✔✔ Yes, because the jury could find that there was no justifi- cation for the
defendant's conduct and that she was will- ing to take the risk that the viçtim was age 65 or
older.
While on their way home from a ball game, a driver and his passenger stopped at an all-night
gas station. The passen- ger offered to pay for the gas. While the passenger pumped gas, he was
surprised to see the driver enter the station, take money from the unattended cash drawer, and
get back in the car. The passenger paid the attendant for the gas, and the driver drove off. The
driver offered to reimburse the pas- senger for the gas, but the passenger declined. After discov-
ering the missing cash, the gas station attendant called the police, and the driver was later
stopped. The driver escaped with the stolen money, however, and was never prosecuted. If the
passenger is prosecuted for theft as an accom- plice, should he be convicted? - correct answer
✔✔ No, because he had no intent to promote the commis- sion of the offense.
2026 – Practice Questions and Study Material
An executive of an accounting firm was fired and told to immediately leave the building where
she worked. The executive went home, but she returned that night to retrieve personal items
from her office. When she discovered that her key no longer opened a door to the building, she
forced the door open and went to her former office. To avoid attract- ing attention, she did not
turn on any lights. In the dark, she knew that she was taking some items that were not hers; she
planned to sort these out later and return them. Upon arriving home, she found that she had
taken a record and some financial papers that belonged to the firm. After thinking it over and
becoming angrier over being fired, she burned book and papers in her fireplace. What crime(s)
has the executive committed? - correct answer ✔✔ Larceny, but not burglary.
A woman and her sister took a trip to the Caribbean. When they passed through U.S. Customs
inspection upon their return, the customs officials found liquid cocaine in sev- eral bottles each
of them was carrying. They were arrested. Upon separate questioning by customs officers, the
woman broke dówn and cried, "I told my sister there were too many officers at this airport."
The sister did not give a statement The woman and her sister were indicted for conspiracy to
import cocaine. They were tried separately. At the wom- an's trial, after the government
introduced the above dence and rested its case, her lawyer moved for a judgment of acquittal
on grounds insufficient evidence. Should the court grant the motion? - correct answer ✔✔ No,
because the evidence shows that both the woman and her sister agreed to import cocaine.
A man and his friend were watching a televised foothll game at the man's home. Upset by a
penalty called by the referee, the friend threw a bottle of beer at the man's tele- vision,
breaking the screen. Enraged, the man picked up nearby hammer and hit the friend the head
with it. The friend died from the blow. The crimes below are listed in descending order of
seriousness. In jurisdiction that follows common law principles, what the most serious crime of
which the man could prop- erly be convicted? - correct answer ✔✔ Murder.
man had spent the evening drinking at a local bar was weaving down the street his home,
singing Suddenly, person wearing cartoon character mask jumped out from an alley, pointed his
gun at the man, and snarled, "This loaded, buddy, and I don't mind using Hand your cash
,pronto." The man was so drunk that he failed to understand what was going on and started to
howl with laughter at sight of the cartoon mask. Surprised rattled by the man's reaction,
masked gunman fled. soon recovered his composure and staggered home safely. crimes
descending order What is the most crime of which the masked gunman may properly charged
and convicted? - correct answer ✔✔ Attempted robbery.
defendant was charged with battery, defined as com- law. At trial, an expert witness testified for
the defense performance-enhancing drug at the time he committed the battery and he would
not have done so had he not been influenced. The defendant asked for an instruction to the
offect that the jury believed that he was influenced by the drug at the time of the crime and
would not have committed otherwise, it had to acquit him. Which of the following
circumstances would most aid defendant's argument favor of such instruction? - correct answer
✔✔ Evidence that the defendant's coach, who gave him the drug, told him was only an aspirin.
A common law jurisdiction defines first-degree murder as any murder that is (1) committed by
means of poison or (2) premeditated. All other murder second-degree murder, and
manslaughter is defined as at common law. An employee was angry with her boss for denying
her a raise. Intending to cause her boss discomfort, the employee secretly dropped into his
coffee three over-the-counter_lax- ative pills. The boss drank the coffee containing the pills.
Although the pills would not have been dangerous to an ordinary person, because the boss was
already taking other medication, he suffered a seizure and died. If the employee is charged with
murder the first degree, should she be convicted? - correct answer ✔✔ No.
A man asked his girlfriend lend him something he could se to break into his neighbor's
padlocked storage shed order to steal a lawn mower. She handed him a crowbar. He inok the
crowbar but then found bolt cutter that the neigh- bor had left outside the shed. Using the bolt
cutter, he cut the padlock on the shed and took the mower, which he then used to mow his
girlfriend's lawn. She was surprised and pleased by this gesture. Burglary in this Jurisdiction
applies to any structure or building and there is no nighttime element. The girlfriend has been
charged as am accomplice to burglary and Larceny. Of which crimes if any would she guilty? -
correct answer ✔✔ Burglary and Larceny.
A defendant was tried for armed robbery. The state intro- duced evidence that a man, identified
by witnesses as the defendant, entered a convenience store 11 p.m. on March 5, threatened the
, clerk with a gun, and took $75 from the cash register. The defendant did not testify, but his
sister did. She testified that on March 5, the time of the robbery, the defendant was with her
city 300 miles away. On cross- examination, the sister admitted having given a statement to the
police in which she had said that the defendant was not with her on March 5, but she claimed
that the earlier state- ment was mistaken. The court instructed the jury that in order to convict
the defendant, they had to find all of the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. As
to the defendant's claim of alibi, which of the follow- ing additional instructions would be
proper? - correct answer ✔✔ If you have reasonable doubt as to whether the defendant was
present at the convenience store at about 11pm on March 5th you must find him not guilty.
A state statute provides: "Aggravated robbery of the elderly consists of robbery committed
against a victim who is 65 years of age or older." Another state statute provides that when a
criminal statute does not designate a necessary mental state, the mental state required is
recklessness. A third state statute provides that person acts recklessly the person "consciously
disregards a substantial and unjus- tified risk that the material element exists or will result from
the person's conduct." The evidence at criminal trial showed that the defen- dant robbed a 66-
year-old man outside a senior citizens' center. The defendant testified truthfully that the
robbery had occurred on dark night, that she had had no idea how old the victim was and had
not cared how old the vic- tim was, and that she had intended to rob whomever she
encountered. Could the defendant properly be convicted of aggra- vated robbery of the elderly?
- correct answer ✔✔ Yes, because the jury could find that there was no justifi- cation for the
defendant's conduct and that she was will- ing to take the risk that the viçtim was age 65 or
older.
While on their way home from a ball game, a driver and his passenger stopped at an all-night
gas station. The passen- ger offered to pay for the gas. While the passenger pumped gas, he was
surprised to see the driver enter the station, take money from the unattended cash drawer, and
get back in the car. The passenger paid the attendant for the gas, and the driver drove off. The
driver offered to reimburse the pas- senger for the gas, but the passenger declined. After discov-
ering the missing cash, the gas station attendant called the police, and the driver was later
stopped. The driver escaped with the stolen money, however, and was never prosecuted. If the
passenger is prosecuted for theft as an accom- plice, should he be convicted? - correct answer
✔✔ No, because he had no intent to promote the commis- sion of the offense.
