Attempts

Question 1

What does ‘inchoate’ mean?

Answer 1

‘Inchoate’ means unfinished or incomplete.

Question 2

What is an inchoate offence?

Answer 2

An inchoate offence occurs when the defendant takes some steps towards committing a crime but the full offence is not committed.

Question 3

Why do we have inchoate offences?

Answer 3

We have inchoate offences to prevent harm to people or property.

Question 4

What is required for an inchoate offence to occur?

Answer 4

The defendant’s conduct must reach a certain threshold that warrants criminal liability.

Question 5

What is the Actus reus (AR) for an attempt?

Answer 5

An act which is more than merely preparatory to the commission of an offence.

Question 6

What is the Mens rea (MR) for an attempt?

Answer 6

An intention to commit the full offence.

Question 7

What is the absence of a valid defence in an attempt?

Answer 7

A defendant cannot be convicted for a non-existent crime.

Question 8

What does section 1 of the Criminal Attempts Act 1981 state?

Answer 8

‘(1) If, with intent to commit an offence to which this section applies, a person does an act which is more than merely preparatory to the commission of an offence, he is guilty of an attempt to commit that offence.’

Question 9

What is the significance of R Gullefer [1990] in relation to attempts?

Answer 9

An attempt begins when the merely preparatory acts come to an end and the defendant embarks on the crime proper.

Question 10

What is an example of an act that constitutes an attempt?

Answer 10

Getting into a car with a loaded gun and pointing it at the victim (attempted murder, Jones (1990) 91 Cr App R 351).

Question 11

What is required for the mens rea in attempted murder?

Answer 11

The accused must intend to kill.

Question 12

What does conditional intent mean?

Answer 12

A conditional intention counts as an intention.

Question 13

What was held in Attorney General’s Reference (No 3 of 1992)?

Answer 13

For an attempt to commit aggravated arson, it was only necessary to prove an intent to achieve what was missing from the full offence.

Question 14

What are the three main types of impossibility?

Answer 14

Non-existent crime, through inadequacy, and in fact.

Question 15

What is a non-existent crime?

Answer 15

This arises where the accused believes that what they are doing is an offence, whereas it is in fact lawful.

Question 16

What does R v Taaffe illustrate about non-existent crimes?

Answer 16

A defendant cannot be convicted for attempting a non-existent crime.

Question 17

What is impossibility through inadequacy?

Answer 17

This arises where the crime itself is feasible, but the defendants adopt a method that cannot work.

Question 18

What is impossibility in fact?

Answer 18

The Criminal Attempts Act 1981 has reversed the common law position on impossibility in fact; it is no longer a defence to attempt.

Question 19

What was held in R v Shivpuri regarding impossibility?

Answer 19

He was convicted of attempting to knowingly be concerned in dealing with a prohibited drug despite the contents being harmless.

Question 20

What is the summary of the actus reus element of an attempt?

Answer 20

The actus reus element of an attempt is ‘an act which is more than merely preparatory’.

Question 21

What is the mens rea element of an attempt?

Answer 21

The mens rea element of an attempt is an intention to commit the full offence.

Question 22

Is impossibility a defence to an attempt?

Answer 22

Impossibility through inadequacy and in fact is no defence to an attempt.