To clarify - Mens Rea is not the intent to go against criminal code, it is the intent to commit an action which would result in an outcome the criminal code pen

To clarify - Mens Rea is not the intent to go against criminal code, it is the intent to commit an action which would result in an outcome the criminal code penalizes. You can be entirely ignorant of legal standards and still act with intent. This is to separate the following two scenarios since I think it'll be pretty clear to folks that the justification of punishment is different in the following: 1. A person pushes a button on a blank wall and someone is shot as a result. 2. A person squeezes the trigger of a firearm while that firearm is pointed at someone. Other than the classic "Don't go around pushing big red buttons" the person in the first scenario is not morally culpable for their actions due to a lack of knowledge of what might follow from their button pushing. This is also the reason why actions like trying to shoot someone and having the gun jam tend not to be distinguished under the law from actually shooting someone (when such a situation can be identified). Your intent in squeezing the trigger was to shoot someone - the fact that the universe happened to intercede and prevent your action was something you could not foresee.