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Actus Reus Flashcards

1
Q

What is Actus Reus?

A

‘Guilty act’. The external elements of an offence

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2
Q

What must be satisfied to establish liability?

A

Actus Reus + Mens Rea + No defence

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3
Q

Which offences can give rise to liability in the absence of positive movement?

A
  • Possession offences
  • State of Affairs (Situational) Offences
  • Omissions
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4
Q

What is a possession offence?

A

The possession of dangerous materials (e.g. drugs, weapons)

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5
Q

How is D liable in a possession offence?

A

D may have acted to gain possession or omitted to dispense of the possessed item.

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6
Q

What is a state of affairs offence?

A

Crimininalisation in the event D is found in a proscribed situation. E.g. Membership of a proscribed organisation; Being drunk on a highway

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7
Q

How can the conduct element of AR be divided?

A
  • Conduct
  • Circumstances
  • Result
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8
Q

What is meant by conduct?

A

D’s physical acts or omissions required for liability.

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9
Q

What is meant by circumstance?

A

Surrounding facts that must exist for liability.

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10
Q

What is meant by result?

A

Consequences occurring from D’s conduct. Result MUST be caused by D’s conduct.

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11
Q

Do all offences require a result element?

A

No- perjury, inchoate offence of attempt

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12
Q

What stages must be established to establish causation?

A

Causation in fact & Causation in law

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13
Q

What is causation in fact?

A

‘But for’ D’s conduct, the result would not have occurred

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14
Q

What is causation in law?

A

Conduct must be substantial; blameworthy; and an operating cause

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15
Q

How can an offence be categorised?

A

As a conduct/result crime

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16
Q

What is a conduct crime?

A

AR is complete as soon as F completes the conduct in certain proscribed circumstances. No need to establish causation

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17
Q

What is a result crime?

A

Requires a result element. AR complete when D performs conduct in proscribed circumstances that cause a proscribed result.

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18
Q

What is the general rule for ommissions?

A

No liability for omissions unless there is a specific legal duty to act.

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19
Q

What must be satisfied to find liability for an omission?

A

Legal duty to act & breach of that duty

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20
Q

What are the recognised categories as having a duty to act?

A

Statutory offence
Property offences
Contractual duties
Familial duties
Assumption of care

21
Q

Which case illustrates a statutory duty? What does an omission of this duty lead to?

A

Dytham- D (a police officer) failed to intervene in an incident where V was kicked to death. The offence of misconduct in a public office creates a duty to act in a reasonable manner.

22
Q

Which case illustrates a contractual duty? What does an omission of this duty lead to?

23
Q

Which case illustrates a familial duty? What does an omission of this duty lead to?

24
Q

What happened in hood? Why did the omission give rise to liability?

A

D omitted to summon help for three weeks after his wife (V) fell and suffered broken bones. V died as a result. D was charged with manslaughter on the basis of breaching his familial duty to assist.

25
What happened in Pitwood?
D, a railway crossing gate-keeper, opened the gate to let a cart cross the lines and then went to lunch, forgetting to close it again. As a result, a subsequent cart collided with a train, killing the train driver. D was charged with manslaughter based on his omission (contractual duty to close the gate).
26
Which case illustrates an assumption of care -> duty ?
Nicholls
27
What happened in Nicholls?
D, V’s grandmother, agreed to take care of V after the death of V’s mother. V was neglected by D and died. D was charged with gross negligence manslaughter based on the duty arising from an explicit assumption of care.
28
Which case illustrates a duty to act based on endangerment?
Miller
29
What happened in Miller?
D, a squatter in V’s house, went to sleep holding a lit cigarette. He awoke to find the mattress smouldering, but did nothing except move to an adjoining room. The fire caused extensive damage, and D was charged with criminal damage based on his omission to tackle the smouldering mattress or alert the authorities. The duty to do so arose from his inadvertent creation of the dangerous situation.
30
Why would D be liable for an omission?
D fails to do what the duty to act requires of her
31
What does the duty to act require D to do?
To do what is reasonable
32
What must be demonstrated to establish liability for an omission?
D's conduct caused the result
33
Which case demonstrates that factual causation must be established ?
White- D poisoned mother (v) V died from an unrelated heart attack = no causation in fact.
34
What breaks the chain of causation?
A Novus Actus Interveniens
35
What are the types of intervening acts?
Intervention from defendent, Intervention from naturally occurring events, Intervention from victim, Intervention by a third party
36
What is it called when multiple acts occur within a single event?
A Transaction
37
When will naturally occurring events break the chain of causation?
If they are unforeseen by D and by the reasonable person
38
What must be established for an intervention by a victim to break the chain of causation?
Unforeseeability of V's acts, Voluntariness of V's Acts, Unique vulnerabilities of V
39
When will unforeseeabililty break the chain of causation?
Where V's conduct is daft and unforeseeable
40
When will the test for unforeseeability vary?
Dependent on V's age, mental capacity and other circumstances (e.g. if V is intoxicated, the courts will ask if V's response was within the range of foreseeable responses of an intoxicated person)
41
What is meant by a voluntary act?
If the result comes about because of V's free, informed and voluntary act
42
Which case illustrates that if an action if not free or voluntary, the chain of causation will not be broken?
Field- V was uninformed that the alcohol was poisoned
43
What is the eggshell skull rule?
D must take V as he finds him- V's unique vulnerabilities do not break the chain of causation
44
Which case establishes the eggshell skull rule?
Blaue
45
When will an act by a third party break the chain of causation?
The actions of X must be unforeseeable, voluntary and is dependent on the status of X.
46
Which case demonstrates that an act of a third party may break the chain of causation?
Jordan
47
What is the doctrine of supervening fault?
Having created the danger, whether inadvertently or otherwise, D must act to try to prevent harm coming about.
48

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