What is the mens rea for false imprisonment?

• A. Specific intent
• B. General intent
• C. Malice
• D. Strict liability

Answer: (B)

The main idea being tested is the mental state needed for false imprisonment. For this crime, the required mens rea is general intent: the defendant must intend to perform the act that results in confinement. In other words, there must be a deliberate act of restraint—you intend to confine the person and you do so without lawful authority. You don’t have to intend to harm them or to achieve any particular ulterior objective beyond the confinement itself.

If someone intentionally blocks another’s exit or locks them in a space without legal justification, that satisfies the mental state for false imprisonment because the restraint was intentional. It doesn’t require a specific aim or malicious intent. Concepts like malice or strict liability don’t fit here: malice isn’t the governing mindset for this offense, and strict liability would mean no mental state at all, which false imprisonment does not.