VA · jury_instructions
Va. Model Jury Instr. Crim. No. 43.100
Maiming, Killing, or Poisoning Animals
The defendant is charged with the crime of [maiming; killing; poisoning] an animal. The
Commonwealth must prove beyond a reasonable doubt each of the following elements of that
crime:
(1) That the defendant [shot; stabbed; wounded; caused bodily injury to; administered poison to;
exposed poison with intent that it be taken by] [a horse; a mule; a pony; cattle; swine; livestock] which
belonged to another person; and
(2) That the defendant intended to [maim; disfigure; disable; kill] such animal; and
(3) That the defendant acted with malice.
If you find from the evidence that the Commonwealth has proved beyond a reasonable doubt
each of the above elements of the crime as charged, then you shall find the defendant guilty [but
you shall not fix the punishment until your verdict has been returned and further evidence has
been heard by you].
If you find that the Commonwealth has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt any one or
more of the elements of the crime, then you shall find the defendant not guilty.
History
Virginia Model Jury Instructions – Criminal, Release 26, October 2025. The unannotated set, posted by the Supreme Court of Virginia at vacourts.gov; the book states that it is made available with the permission of the publisher, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc.
Provenance
- Source
- vacourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-11
- Edition
- crim-2025-10-01
- Content hash
94945a2372ee3e2b816ece1f0de92084cbf4db7703c554e937e7fb81f4ba988f
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