How to determine the mental element of a crime?

Rather than compound the confusion, I propose the following two-step approach for determining the mental element of a crime: (1) identify each act or omission proscribed by statute; and (2) determine the mental state for each such act or omission. This approach flows directly from the language of section 20, which provides that: "In every crime or public offense there must exist a union, or joint operation of act and intent, or criminal negligence." Because section 20 is "an invariable element of every crime unless excluded expressly or by necessary implication" (People v. Vogel (1956) 46 Cal.2d 798, 801, 299

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P.2d 850, fn. omitted), "[t]he scienter for any crime is inextricably linked to the proscribed act or omission." (People v. Sargent (1999) 19 Cal.4th 1206, 1222, 81 Cal.Rptr.2d 835, 970 P.2d 409 (Sargent).)

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