1. Criminal Law question: Your friend Patrick thinks he may have hit a parked car one night when he drove home after drinking at a local sports bar. He didn't leave a note or anything, but there are security cameras in the area where he was driving. He has heard from an accident investigator with the city police department who wants to interview him. The investigator invited him to come to her office for a chat. Patrick's car has some damage to its right front fender--so, he's asking you to drive him to the interview at the police station, in your car. You are both aware that leaving the scene of a property damage accident is a crime in Indiana. The offense is a Class B misdemeanor and is defined at IC 9-26-1-1. https://iga.in.gov/legislative/laws/2022/ic/titles/009#9-26-1 (Reference)

If you do drive Patrick to the police interview, are you committing the crime of assisting a criminal? Why or why not? Answer in just (4 -5) sentences. Here is the relevant portion of the statute defining the crime of assisting a criminal: IC 35-44.1-2-5 Assisting a criminal: (a) A person not standing in the relation of parent, child, or spouse to another person who has committed a crime or is a fugitive from justice who, with intent to hinder the apprehension or punishment of the other person, harbors, conceals, or otherwise assists the person commits assisting a criminal, a Class A misdemeanor. (b) It is not a defense to a prosecution under this section that the person assisted: (1) has not been prosecuted for the offense; (2) has not been convicted of the offense; or (3) has been acquitted of the offense by reason of insanity. However, the acquittal of the person assisted for other reasons may be a defense. As added by P.L.126-2012, SEC.54. Amended by P.L.158-2013, SEC.504; P.L.25-2016, SEC.20

2. Criminal Law Comprehension Question: Your friend Sandy just told you that she is pregnant; she and her boyfriend, Danny, have been in a serious relationship for two years, but this was unplanned and unexpected. Sandy and Danny are trying to figure out if they should get married before the baby is born, or stay single and establish paternity instead. Sandy wants help understanding the pros and cons of each choice. List 5 differences between marriage and paternity for the child and for the child's parents--the book refers to children born in this situation as "out of wedlock" or "illegitimate." For example, if they got married, Danny would legally be assumed to be the child's biological father. What rights and obligations are conferred upon each parent in a marriage vs. through the establishment of paternity? The textbook discusses this at pp. 430-436 and discusses the rights of spouses within marriage at pages 416-417. 1.

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