Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Art and Bill were involved in the transportation and distribution of illegal drugs. Bill delivered the drugs to distribution points throughout the city. Art suspected, correctly, that Bill was being followed by undercover drug enforcement officers. Unbeknownst to Bill, Art hired Carl to be Bill�s bodyguard and told Carl that Bill needed protection from robbers because Bill delivered rare jewels. Carl�s assignment was to follow Bill at a distance and protect him from assault.

On his third day of work as a bodyguard, Carl saw a man, later identified as Dave, confront Bill, hold him, and begin to search him. Bill resisted Dave vigorously. Carl ran up and beat Dave severely about the head, killing him. A police officer arrived and arrested Bill and Carl. Art was arrested soon after this when Carl told police that Art had hired him to act as a bodyguard. The dead man, Dave, was an undercover drug enforcement officer who had a valid warrant for Bill�s arrest. A briefcase Bill had been carrying contained a large amount of cocaine

If Carl is charged with Dave�s murder, what legal defenses might Carl offer,

and of what degree of murder (or lesser included offense, if any) should he

be convicted if the defenses are accepted by the trier of fact?

2 Answers from Attorneys

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