Mens Rea and Actus Reus

The Louisiana murder trial of Yoshihiro Hattori illustrated both actus reus and mens rea quite vividly. Read the following news articles detailing the 1992 Halloween killing of exchange student Yoshihiro Hattori:

• Jury Acquits Man Who Shot Japanese Youth: Crime: Panel Deliberates Only 3 Hours Before Clearing Louisiana Man. Victim’s Father Will Push Drive to Limit Availability of Guns in U.S. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
• Clinton Meets Parents of Slain Japanese Student (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
• Defense Depicts Japanese Boy as ‘Scary’ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
• Japanese Angered by U.S. Acquittal of Student’s Killer (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Focusing on the conceptualization of actus reus and mens rea,

• Describe whether the court acted justly and/or legally in the acquittal of Rodney Peairs?
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• Justify your personal opinions by referencing legal concepts or by building on theories outlined in the text?

This assignment needs to be in APA  Style 750 words and 2 to 4 references.