AATF

Question 1

S71 CA61

Accessory after the fact

Answer 1

(1) An accessory after the fact to an offence is one who, knowing any person to have been a party to the offence, receives, comforts, or assists that person or tampers with or actively suppresses any evidence against him, in order to enable him to escape after arrest or to avoid arrest or conviction.
(2) repealed

Question 2

S312 CA61

Penalty for AATF

Answer 2

Every one who is accessory after the fact to any imprisonable offence, being an offence in respect of which no express provision is made by this Act or by some other enactment for the punishment of an accessory after the fact, is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 7 years if the maximum punishment for that offence is imprisonment for life, and not exceeding 5 years if such maximum punishment is imprisonment for 10 or more years; and in any other case is liable to not more than half the maximum punishment to which he would have been liable if he had committed the offence.

Question 3

What needs to be proved

Answer 3

• Person A who is received, comforted, assisted by person B is a party (principal or secondary) to an offence committed
• At the time of receiving, comforting, assisting person A, person B knows that person A was a party to the offence
• Person B received, comforted, assisted person A or tampered with or actively suppressed any evidence against person A
• At the time of receiving, comforting, assisting, person B’s purpose was to enable person A to escape after arrest or to avoid arrest or conviction

Question 4

(Knowing) Simester & Brookbanks

Answer 4

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

Question 5

(Knowledge) R v Crooks

Answer 5

Knowledge means actual knowledge or belief in the 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 6

At the time of the assistance being given, an accessory must possess the knowledge that:

Answer 6

• An offence has been committed and
• The person they are assisting was a party (principle or secondary) to that offence

Where this knowledge comes about after the assistance has been given they are not liable as an accessory

Question 7

(Wilful blindness) R v Briggs

Answer 7

As with a receiving charge under s246(1), knowledge may also be inferred from wilful blindness or a deliberate abstention from making inquiries that would confirm the suspected truth

Question 8

A person is considered willfully blind and only two situations, these being:

Answer 8

• Where the person deliberately shuts their eyes and fails to inquire; this is because they knew what the answer would be, or
• In 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 not to know

Question 9

Actus reus of an accessory: The accessory must do a deliberate intentional act with the purpose of assisting the person to escape after arrest, avoid arrest, or avoid conviction. The intentional acts are:

Answer 9

• receives
• comforts
• assists
• tampers with evidence
• actively suppresses evidence

Question 10

(Offence must be complete) R v Mane

Answer 10

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

(The accused initially charged with being an accessory after the fact to murder. The assistance alleged was given after the victim had been shot and before the victim died. Charge withdrawn and substituted with wilfully attempting to pervert the course of justice)

Question 11

Explain:
Receiving
Comforting
Assisting

Answer 11

Receiving/comforting:
Harbouring an offender or offering them shelter, e.g. Hiding a prison escapee in a basement

Comforting:
Providing an offender with things such as food and clothing

Assisting:
Providing transport, acting as a lookout, identifying someone willing to purchase stolen property as a receiver, deliberately providing authorities with false information as to an offender’s whereabouts. Giving advice, information, material or services to the offender.

Question 12

Tampers with evidence meaning

Answer 12

Tampers means to alter the evidence against the offender

Eg Modifying an offender’s telephone records to conceal communications that might implicate them

Question 13

Actively suppresses evidence meaning

Answer 13

Actively suppressing evidence encompasses acts of concealing or destroying evidence against an offender

Eg bloodied clothing washed repeatedly to remove evidence or it is set alight to destroy the clothing

Question 14

Mens rea of an accessory

Answer 14

Intention to enable the offender to:
Escape after arrest
Avoid arrest
Avoid conviction

Question 15

Elements:

Answer 15

• Knowing any person to have been a party to an offence
• Receives or comforts or assists the person or
• Tampers with or actively suppresses any evidence against the person
• To enable the person to escape after arrest or avoid arrest or avoid conviction