WJEC Eduqas A Level Law Book 1 sample

General elements of criminal liability 155 Actus reus This consists of all the elements of a crime other than the mens rea. Actus reus may consist of the following elements. Conduct The action requires a particular conduct (behaviour) but the consequence of that behaviour is insignificant. An example is perjury, where a person lies under oath. It is irrelevant whether the lie is believed or affects the case; it is the conduct of lying that is sufficient as the actus reus. Result The action requires a particular end result. An example is murder, when the crime requires the result of the victim dying. It also requires causation to be proved. State of affairs For these crimes, the actus reus consists of ‘being’ rather than ‘doing’; for example, ‘being’ in charge of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. There is a link with strict liability (see page 160). R v Larsonneur (1933) Mrs Larsonneur, a French national, was brought to the UK from Ireland in police custody, against her will: she had no desire to come to the UK. She was arrested on arrival in the UK for being an illegal alien . The fact she had not wanted to come to the UK, nor had any power over her transfer, was irrelevant as she was ‘found’ or ‘being’ illegally in the UK. She was found guilty. Another case that demonstrates a ‘state of affairs’ crime is Winzar v CC Kent (1983) . In this case, the defendant was found drunk in a hospital and slumped on a chair. The police were called and removed him to the street, where they charged him with being ‘drunk on the highway’, contrary to the Licensing Act 1872 . These crimes are also known as absolute liability offences and are considered in the section on strict liability on page 160. Omission This is a ‘failure to act’. The general rule is that it is not an offence to fail to act unless someone is 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 get out. Duty to act 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. 1. Statute If a statute requires an action, it is unlawful not to do so. For example, under s6 Road Traffic Act 1988 , failing to provide a breath sample or a specimen for analysis is an offence. 2. Contract Individuals may be contracted to act in a particular way and, if they fail to act when under this contractual duty, they may be liable for an offence. The case of R v Pitwood (1902) illustrates this. 3. Duty arising out of a special relationship Certain family relationships, such as parent-child and spouses, result in a duty to act. The case of R v Gibbins and Proctor (1918) demonstrates this. R v Pitwood (1902) A carter was killed after Pitwood, a level-crossing keeper, failed to close the crossing gate when he went on lunch. He had a contractual duty to ensure the crossing gate was closed and his failure to act led to the death of the carter. KEY CASE Gibbins and Proctor (1918) The defendant and his lover failed to feed his daughter, who was living with them. She died of starvation. The woman, despite the child not being hers, was living in the same household and had taken the defendant’s money to feed the child. She was therefore under a duty to act (to feed and care for the child). They were both found guilty of murder. KEY CASE