Robbery Flashcards
Robbery
Defined as theft with force
Defined in which act?
S8(1) of the theft act 1968
Definition
‘A person is guilty of robbery if he steals and immediately before or at the time of doing so, and in order to do so, he uses force on any person or puts or seek to put any person in fear of being then and there subjected to force’
AR
Five elements:
1) Theft
2) using force or putting or seeking to put any person in fear of force
3) immediately before or at the time of theft
4) on any person
5) in order to steal
1) Theft
There must be a completed theft for a robbery to have been comitted i.e. Both the AR and MR must have been proved
Robinson- if not all elements of theft are present then there is no robbery
Raphael- there had been theft, D guilty of robbery
Corcoran v Anderton- if there is force then the moment the theft is complete, it is robbery o
2) force
As Well as theft the prosecution also need to prove that there was force or threat of force
The word force is not defined in the act. However, the force, or threat of force, must be sufficient to be noticeable, but not necessarily to V
The amount of force can be small- Dawson and James
Clouden- the force does not need be directly on the V
2) threat of force
Force doesn’t need be applied
The threat of future violence will not suffice as this would not fulfil the definition of ‘ fear of being then and there subjected to force”
Robbery is also committed even if the V is not actually frightened by the D’s actions or words; it is the D’s intention that matters B and R v DPP
3) on any person
This means that the person threatened does not have to be the person from whom the theft occurs
4) Immediately before or during the theft
The force or threat of force must be immediately before, or at the time of the stealing
Hale - the appropriation can be an continuing act; as it continued while the V was tied up the force was ‘in order to steal’
Lockley confirmed Hale
5) In order to steal
The force or threat of force must be used in order to steal
If the force, or threat is used for a different purpose then it is NOT robbery
This is also the case where for example the D has an argument with the V and punches him, knocking him out. The D then sees that some money has fallen out of v’s pocket and decides to take it = no robbery
However, wherre the force is used to allow the theft to happen, e.g. To obatain the keys to a building or a safe then it can be robbery. E.g. The tying up of v in hale.
MR
1) MR of theft (dishonesty + intention to permanently deprive the other of it)
2) intention or recklessness as to use to the force to or threat of force to steal
