Actus Reus and Omissions

Question 1

what does Actus Reus mean

Answer 1

‘guilty conduct/ act’

Question 2

what does Mens rea mean

Answer 2

guilty mind

Question 3

types of actus reus:

Answer 3

1) conduct
2) consequence (crimes)
3) state of affairs

Question 4

conduct meaning

Answer 4

where a consequence does not have to be proved, eg theft

Question 5

consequence (crimes)

Answer 5

there is an act and a prohibited consequence for example ABH (that’s the act, the consequence is the injury)

Question 6

State of affairs

Answer 6

1) being somewhere you shouldn’t be eg, R v Larsonner 1933 (she was deported back to the UK from Ireland but she shouldn’t have been in the UK in the first place)
2) having something in your possession that you shouldn’t have for example a weapon

Question 7

Actus reus can be a voluntary act, example of this?

Answer 7

Hill v Baxter (fell asleep at the wheel)

-Lord Goddard stated that ‘suppose a driver had a stroke, it would not be voluntary and no offence has been committed’

Question 8

what does omission mean

Answer 8

Failure to act that can constitute to Actus Reus

not usually an offence

Question 9

Omission- duty as a result of a relationship (give case name)

Answer 9

R v Gibbins and Proctor 1918
-key words:
•girl starved, isolated, died

• Father of a seven year old girl lived with a partner, he had several children earlier but him and his partner kept her separate, starving her-> convicted of murder
• The father had a duty of care to feed her because he was a parent
• The mistress also had a duty of care since they were in the same house

Question 10

Omission- duty undertaken voluntarily (give case name)

Answer 10

R v Stone and Dobinson 1977

-key words:
•Fanny, bedridden, stayed in room, manslaughter

• Stones elderly sister Fanny came to live with the defendants but Fanny stayed in her room for several days until she became bedridden and couldn’t take care of herself
• Dobinson (Stone’s partner) helped to wash her and sometimes prepared food
• F died and they were both convicted of manslaughter
• they owed a duty of care as they could’ve recommended help from other sources

Question 11

Omission- duty of setting of a chain of events and failing to take action (give 2 case name)

Answer 11

R v Miller 1983
-key words:
•mattress, cigarette

• Fell asleep while smoking a cigarette and woke up to his mattress on fire, there was no attempts to summon help or put out the fire, instead, he went to another room and went back to sleep

DPP v Santa Bermudez 2003
-key words:
•needle, S47 ABH

-police woman searching the defendants pockets asked if he had any sharp objects in which his response was no, she was injured with a needle in his pockets, he was convicted of assault under S47 ABH

Question 12

Omission- duty through ones official position (give case name)

Answer 12

R v Dytham 1979
-key words:
•nightclub, man beaten to death, D was ‘off duty’, left scene

• D was a police officer who was on duty, saw a man thrown out of nightclub and saw man being beaten to death by three men
• D didn’t intervene/ summon help, D told bystander he was going off-duty and left scene
• D convicted of misconduct in a public office

Question 13

Omission- contractual duty (give case name)

Answer 13

R v Pittwood
-key words:
•railway, gates closed, person killed, manslaughter

• A railway crossing keeper omitted to shut the gates which led to a person crossing the line which was struck and killed by the train
• guilty of manslaughter

Question 14

Omission- statutory duty examples

Answer 14

Domestic violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004, motoring offences (driving without insurance etc)