AATF

Question 1

Section and Elements

Answer 1

S72 CA61

• Knowing any person to have been party to an offence
• Receives, comforts, assists, tampers with any evidence against the person assisted, or actively suppresses any evidence against the person assisted
• In order to enable the person assisted to escape after K9, or escape or avoid arrest or conviction

Question 2

R V CROOKS

Answer 2

Knowledge means having actual knowledge or belief in a sense of having no real doubt that the person assisted was a party to the relevant offence. Mere suspicion of their involvement in the offence is insufficient.

Question 3

R V BRIGGS

Answer 3

Knowledge may also be inferred from wilful blindness, or a deliberate abstention from making inquiries that would confirm the suspected truth.

Question 4

R V MANE

Answer 4

To be considered an accessory the acts done by the person must be after the completion of the offence.

Question 5

SIMESTER AND BROOKBANKS

Answer 5

Knowledge means knowing or correctly believing.. the belief must be a correct one, where the belief is wrong a person cannot know something.

Question 6

R/C/A

Answer 6

The accused does a deliberate act for the purpose of assisting the person to evade justice

R - harbouring offender

C - giving food/shelter

A - keeping lookout, providing transport

Question 7

Tampers

Answer 7

To alter the evidence against the offender.

Question 8

Actively suppresses

Answer 8

Acts of concealing or destroying evidence against an offender.

Question 9

Knowing

Answer 9

Must exist ATT of the assistance, and they must know that an offence has been committed, and that the person they are assisting is party to that offence.

Question 10

Person

Answer 10

Gender neutral. Proven by judicial notice or circumstantial evidence

Question 11

Parties (s66(1) CA61)

Answer 11

Everyone is party to an offence who:

A) actually commits the offence

B) does/omits an act for the purpose of aiding any person to commit the offence

C) abets any person in the commission of an offence

D) incites, counsels, procures any person in the commission of an offence

Question 12

Offence

Answer 12

Any act or omission that is punishable on conviction under any enactment.

The accessory offender can challenge the evidence of the principal crime.

Question 13

Wilful Blindness

Answer 13

Two situations where wilful blindness can occur:

• where the person deliberately shuts their eyes and fails to enquire as they know what the answer would be
• situations where the means of knowledge are easily at hand and the person realises the likely truth of the matter but refrains from inquiring in order to not know

Question 14

In order to enable the person assisted..

Answer 14

All acts must be done by the accused with the express intention that the person assisted evades justice either by escaping after K9, or escaping or avoiding K9 or conviction.

Question 15

Actus Reus

Answer 15

The act of R/C/A/T/AS

Question 16

Mens Rea

Answer 16

ATT of the acts assisting the offender, their intent must have been to enable the offender to escape after K9 or to escape or avoid K9 or conviction.