WJEC/Eduqas A Level Law: Book 1 Revision Guide

General elements of criminal liability Activity 4.7 Actus reus Fill in the table below for what actus reus may consist of. Type of crime or action for actus reus Explanation Conduct This action requires a particular end result, such as murder, where the crime requires the result to be the victim dying. It also requires causation to be proved. State of affairs A ‘failure to act’. The general rule is that it is not an offence to fail to act unless under a duty to act. A person could walk past a random person drowning in a fountain and be under no legal obligation to help them out. Context A person can only be criminally liable if they have failed to act when under a legal duty to do so and the crime is capable of being committed by omission. There are recognised situations where a person is under a duty to act. 149