People v. Stark
California Court of Appeal
26 Cal. App. 4th 1179 (1994)
Relevant factsFree
Contractor Rodney Stark (defendant) was paid roughly $245,000 in construction-loan draws by two doctors to build a medical facility, but diverted about $46,000 of it to other unrelated projects while in financial trouble, leaving subcontractors unpaid; Stark claimed he always intended to repay the diverted funds. He was convicted of willful diversion of construction funds under California Penal Code Section 484b, and appealed the jury instruction that the crime required only general intent.
IssueFree
Whether a penal statute describing only a prohibited act, without requiring intent to cause a particular consequence, defines a general-intent crime.