Criminal Law.
Actus Reus-
In criminal law consists of all elements of a crime other than the state of mind of the
defendant. In particular, actus reus may consist of: conduct, result, a state of affairs or an
omission.
Conduct - the conduct itself might be criminal. Eg. the conduct of lying under oath
represents the actus reus of perjury. It does not matter that whether the lie is believed or if
had any effect on the outcome of the case, the actus reus of the crime is complete upon the
conduct.
Examples of conduct crimes:
Perjury
Theft
Making off without payment
Rape
Possession of drugs or a firearm
Result - The actus reus may relate to the result of the act or omission of the defendant. The
conduct itself may not be criminal, but the result of the conduct may be. Eg it is not a crime
to throw a stone, but if it hits a person or smashes a window it could amount to a
crime. Causation must be established in all result crimes.
Examples of result crimes:
1. Assault
2. Battery
3. ABH
4. Wounding and GBH
5. Murder & Manslaughter
6. Criminal damage
State of affairs - For state of affairs crimes the actus reus consists of 'being' rather than
'doing'. Eg 'being' drunk in charge of a vehicle (Duck v Peacock [1949] 1 All ER 318 Case
summary) or 'being' an illegal alien (R v Larsonneur (1933) 24 Cr App R 74 case summary).
Omission - Occasionally an omission can amount to the actus reus of a crime. The general
rule regarding omissions is that there is no liability for a failure to act. Eg if you see a child
drowning in shallow water and you don't do anything to save that child you will not incur
criminal liability for your inaction no matter how easy it may have been for you to save the
child's life. This general rule however, is subject to exceptions:
, 1. Statutory duty: In some situations there is a statutory duty to act. Eg to provide details of
insurance after a traffic accident or to notify DVLA when you sell a vehicle.
2. Contractual duty: If a person owes a contractual duty to act, then a failure to meet this
contractual duty may result in criminal liability:
R v Pittwood [1902] TLR 37
The defendant was employed by a railway company to man the gate at a level crossing. The
defendant lifted the gate to allow a cart to pass and then went off to lunch failing to put it
back down. A train later collided with a horse and cart killing the train driver. The defendant
was liable for the death of the train driver as it was his contractual duty to close the gate.
3. Duty imposed by law
The actus reus can be committed by an omission where there exists a duty imposed by law.
There are three situations in which a duty may be imposed by law. These are where the
defendant creates a dangerous situation, where there has been a voluntary assumption of
responsibility and misconduct in a public office. Additionally an omission may be classified
as part of a continuing act.
a). Creating a dangerous situation and failing to put it right:
R v Miller [1983] 2 AC 161
The defendant had been out drinking for the evening. He went back to the house he had
been staying in and fell asleep on a mattress with a lighted cigarette in his hand. He awoke
and saw that the cigarette had started a small fire. Upon seeing the fire, he then got up and
went to another room and went back to sleep. At his trial, the prosecution did not rely on
the acts of the defendant in falling asleep with a lighted cigarette as being reckless, but
relied solely on the grounds that upon becoming aware of the fire he failed to take steps to
put the fire out or call the fire brigade. The defendant had created a dangerous situation
and owed a duty to call the fire brigade upon becoming aware of the fire. He was therefore
liable for his omission to do so.
b). Assumption of responsibility:
R v Stone & Dobinson [1977] 1 QB 354
Ted Stone was 67, totally blind, partially deaf had no appreciable sense of smell and was of
low intelligence. He lived with his housekeeper and mistress of 8 years, Gwendolyn
Dobinson aged 43 who was described as ineffectual and inadequate. Ted's sister Fanny
came to live with them. She had previously lived with another sister but had fallen out with
her. She had mental problems and was suffering from anorexia nervosa. Ted and
Gwendolyn took her in and agreed to look after her. However, Fanny's condition
Actus Reus-
In criminal law consists of all elements of a crime other than the state of mind of the
defendant. In particular, actus reus may consist of: conduct, result, a state of affairs or an
omission.
Conduct - the conduct itself might be criminal. Eg. the conduct of lying under oath
represents the actus reus of perjury. It does not matter that whether the lie is believed or if
had any effect on the outcome of the case, the actus reus of the crime is complete upon the
conduct.
Examples of conduct crimes:
Perjury
Theft
Making off without payment
Rape
Possession of drugs or a firearm
Result - The actus reus may relate to the result of the act or omission of the defendant. The
conduct itself may not be criminal, but the result of the conduct may be. Eg it is not a crime
to throw a stone, but if it hits a person or smashes a window it could amount to a
crime. Causation must be established in all result crimes.
Examples of result crimes:
1. Assault
2. Battery
3. ABH
4. Wounding and GBH
5. Murder & Manslaughter
6. Criminal damage
State of affairs - For state of affairs crimes the actus reus consists of 'being' rather than
'doing'. Eg 'being' drunk in charge of a vehicle (Duck v Peacock [1949] 1 All ER 318 Case
summary) or 'being' an illegal alien (R v Larsonneur (1933) 24 Cr App R 74 case summary).
Omission - Occasionally an omission can amount to the actus reus of a crime. The general
rule regarding omissions is that there is no liability for a failure to act. Eg if you see a child
drowning in shallow water and you don't do anything to save that child you will not incur
criminal liability for your inaction no matter how easy it may have been for you to save the
child's life. This general rule however, is subject to exceptions:
, 1. Statutory duty: In some situations there is a statutory duty to act. Eg to provide details of
insurance after a traffic accident or to notify DVLA when you sell a vehicle.
2. Contractual duty: If a person owes a contractual duty to act, then a failure to meet this
contractual duty may result in criminal liability:
R v Pittwood [1902] TLR 37
The defendant was employed by a railway company to man the gate at a level crossing. The
defendant lifted the gate to allow a cart to pass and then went off to lunch failing to put it
back down. A train later collided with a horse and cart killing the train driver. The defendant
was liable for the death of the train driver as it was his contractual duty to close the gate.
3. Duty imposed by law
The actus reus can be committed by an omission where there exists a duty imposed by law.
There are three situations in which a duty may be imposed by law. These are where the
defendant creates a dangerous situation, where there has been a voluntary assumption of
responsibility and misconduct in a public office. Additionally an omission may be classified
as part of a continuing act.
a). Creating a dangerous situation and failing to put it right:
R v Miller [1983] 2 AC 161
The defendant had been out drinking for the evening. He went back to the house he had
been staying in and fell asleep on a mattress with a lighted cigarette in his hand. He awoke
and saw that the cigarette had started a small fire. Upon seeing the fire, he then got up and
went to another room and went back to sleep. At his trial, the prosecution did not rely on
the acts of the defendant in falling asleep with a lighted cigarette as being reckless, but
relied solely on the grounds that upon becoming aware of the fire he failed to take steps to
put the fire out or call the fire brigade. The defendant had created a dangerous situation
and owed a duty to call the fire brigade upon becoming aware of the fire. He was therefore
liable for his omission to do so.
b). Assumption of responsibility:
R v Stone & Dobinson [1977] 1 QB 354
Ted Stone was 67, totally blind, partially deaf had no appreciable sense of smell and was of
low intelligence. He lived with his housekeeper and mistress of 8 years, Gwendolyn
Dobinson aged 43 who was described as ineffectual and inadequate. Ted's sister Fanny
came to live with them. She had previously lived with another sister but had fallen out with
her. She had mental problems and was suffering from anorexia nervosa. Ted and
Gwendolyn took her in and agreed to look after her. However, Fanny's condition
