Property Offences – Theft
Section 1Theft Act
Defined as: The dishonestS2 appropriationS3 of propertyS4 belonging to anotherS5
with the intention to permanently deprive the other of itS6.
1 Actus Reus
The appropriation of property belonging to another
Appropriation – Section 3
An assumption of the rights of the owner, treating the property as your own
Morris – switching price labels in the supermarket.
Consuming it
Taking it away
Treating it as your own
Destroying it
Consent to appropriation:
Can be consensual if it was gained through adverse interference (Lawrence – Italian
man who had paid a sum, and the driver who took more than the original cost)
Can also be consensual if the property or the rights of the owner have been obtained
by false representation (Gomez – fake cheques in exchange for shop goods)
Can be consensual without deception if an ordinary and honest person would regard it
as dishonest to accept a gift from someone (Hinks – duped a man of low intelligence
out of £60 000 although he consented)
Property – Section 4
Property is defined as money, real property, personal property, things in action, other tangible
property, and even dead bodies and body parts (Kelley and Lindsay – theft of body parts that
were used in a gallery exhibition)
Real Property
The legal term for land and buildings. It can be stolen in three circumstances:
A trustee or personal representative takes land in breach their duty
Someone not in possession of the land severs anything part of the land from the land
A tenant takes a fixture or structure from the land let to him
Intangible property – has no physical presence but can be stolen
Knowledge cannot be considered property – (Oxford v Moss, a student of engineering, took
an exam paper with the intention of returning the paper having used the information gained in
order to cheat in his exam.)
Things that cannot be stolen:
Wild mushrooms, flowers, fruit or foliage that is picked for reward, sale or any other
commercial purposes.
Wild creatures, tamed or untamed that are not ordinarily kept in captivity that is not
possessed by anyone.
Section 1Theft Act
Defined as: The dishonestS2 appropriationS3 of propertyS4 belonging to anotherS5
with the intention to permanently deprive the other of itS6.
1 Actus Reus
The appropriation of property belonging to another
Appropriation – Section 3
An assumption of the rights of the owner, treating the property as your own
Morris – switching price labels in the supermarket.
Consuming it
Taking it away
Treating it as your own
Destroying it
Consent to appropriation:
Can be consensual if it was gained through adverse interference (Lawrence – Italian
man who had paid a sum, and the driver who took more than the original cost)
Can also be consensual if the property or the rights of the owner have been obtained
by false representation (Gomez – fake cheques in exchange for shop goods)
Can be consensual without deception if an ordinary and honest person would regard it
as dishonest to accept a gift from someone (Hinks – duped a man of low intelligence
out of £60 000 although he consented)
Property – Section 4
Property is defined as money, real property, personal property, things in action, other tangible
property, and even dead bodies and body parts (Kelley and Lindsay – theft of body parts that
were used in a gallery exhibition)
Real Property
The legal term for land and buildings. It can be stolen in three circumstances:
A trustee or personal representative takes land in breach their duty
Someone not in possession of the land severs anything part of the land from the land
A tenant takes a fixture or structure from the land let to him
Intangible property – has no physical presence but can be stolen
Knowledge cannot be considered property – (Oxford v Moss, a student of engineering, took
an exam paper with the intention of returning the paper having used the information gained in
order to cheat in his exam.)
Things that cannot be stolen:
Wild mushrooms, flowers, fruit or foliage that is picked for reward, sale or any other
commercial purposes.
Wild creatures, tamed or untamed that are not ordinarily kept in captivity that is not
possessed by anyone.
