The term Model Penal Code recognizes the following basic criminal mental states except?

The Model Penal Code identifies specific mental states that are essential for establishing the culpability of an individual in criminal law. These mental states include intent, negligence, and recklessness, all of which are crucial in determining an individual's degree of responsibility for a crime.

Intent refers to the purposeful desire to engage in conduct or cause a particular result, and negligence involves a failure to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk which constitutes a gross deviation from standard care. Recklessness is characterized by an awareness of a substantial risk and consciously disregarding that risk.

The term "malice," however, does not appear as a defined mental state in the Model Penal Code. Although malice may be used colloquially or in other legal systems to describe a wicked intent or a disposition to do evil, it is not explicitly listed as a separate mental state in the Model Penal Code framework. Instead, the concepts encompassed by malice are often incorporated into the analysis of intent.

Therefore, the correct answer is that malice does not serve as a recognized basic mental state in the Model Penal Code, distinguishing it from the other terms that are formally acknowledged.