CRW1501 EXAM
PACK 2024
QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS
FOR ASSISTANCE CONTACT
EMAIL:
, lOMoARcPSD|46589353
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS (MCQs) COVERING ALL THE UNITS OF THE
CRW1501 STUDY GUIDE FOR EXAM REVISION
NB: all MCQs highlighted in green, indicate that they are more difficult.
As far as legislation as a source of criminal law is concerned, there is one piece of
legislation that is more important than all others, namely:
A. English law
B. Common law
C. Roman-Dutch law
D. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (CORRECT) (2)
The contents of the common law can be found in primary sources, such as:
A. acts of law or legislation
B. customary law
C. the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996
D. the writings of the Roman- Dutch authors (CORRECT) (2)
According to the principle of legality, a court can convict and punish an accused for a
crime only if the conduct:
A. is recognised by the statutory or common law as a crime(CORRECT)
B. is a new form of conduct created by the court
C. is a form of conduct without a penalty attached to its commission
D. is recognised by the common law as a crime (2)
Does the following law comply with the principle of legality? Parliament enacts a new law
which provides that it is a crime if a person does not behave properly in public and that
anyone convicted under this law will be subject to a fine of R1000.
A. The law does not comply with the principle of legality since it conflicts
with the prohibition against retrospectivity
B. The law does not comply with the principle of legality because it is
vaguely formulated (CORRECT)
C. The law complies with all the rules in the principle of legality
D. The law complies with the principle of legality despite the low fine
prescribed (2)
An omission in criminal law is sometimes referred to as:
A. Positive conduct on the part of X
B. A commission on the part of X
C. Negative conduct or a failure to act on the part of X (CORRECT)
D. An act on the part of X (2)
Read the following facts and then choose the correct option: If X stabs and kills his
wife, while he (X) is having an epileptic fit, can X be found guilty of murder?
A. Yes, because X has committed a voluntary act
B. No, because there has been no voluntary conduct on X’s part (CORRECT)
C. No, because the voluntary nature of X’s act is excluded by absolute force
, lOMoARcPSD|46589353
D. No, because the voluntary nature of X’s act is excluded by relative
force (2)
The perpetrator of the act must be:
A. an animal
B. an inanimate object
C. a human being(CORRECT)
D. a male (2)
If X keeps a baboon as a pet, but fails to maintain its cage properly with the result that
the baboon escapes and kills a child, X may be convicted of a crime on the basis of:
A. the provisions of the common law
B. a protective relationship
C. accepting responsibility for the control of a dangerous object(CORRECT)
D. common law (2)
X’s act is the factual cause of Y’s death if it is a conditio sine qua non for Y’s death,
which means that there is:
A. “but-for causation” or a “but-for” link between X’s act and Y’s death (CORRECT)
B. a “but-for” link between X’s act and his state of mind at the time
C. a policy consideration which would make X the factual cause of Y’s death
D. a policy consideration which would make X the legal cause of Y’s
death (2)
The three most important specific tests or theories to determine legal causation, are the
following:
A. the individualisation theory, the condition sine qua non theory, and the novus actus
interveniens theory
B. the individualisation theory, the theory of theory of adequate causation and
the novus actus interveniens theory (CORRECT)
C. the individualisation theory, the theory of the reasonable person, and the novus
actus interveniens theory
D. the individualisation theory, the theory of unlawfulness, and the novus actus
interveniens theory (2)
According to the individualisation theory of legal causation, we must look for:
A. the one condition or factor that is the most operative and regard it as the legal cause
of the prohibited situation (CORRECT)
B. the two conditions or factors that are the most operative and regard these as the
legal cause of the prohibited situation
C. all the conditions or factors that qualify as factual causes of the prohibited situation
D. a reasonable number of factors or conditions that qualify as factual causes of the
prohibited situation (2)
The attack in private defence:
A. must be threatening and completed
B. must be threatening, but not yet completed (CORRECT)
C. must have been completed
, lOMoARcPSD|46589353
D. must have posed a threat in the past (2)
Read the following facts and then choose the correct option: Y threatens to steal the packet of
fruit that X is holding in his hand. X retaliates by pulling out a gun and shooting and killing Y.
A. X can rely on private defence since he was protecting his property
B. X cannot rely on private defence since the defence may not be more harmful than
necessary to ward off the attack (CORRECT
C. X can rely on private defence since there is a reasonable relationship between the
attack and the defence
D. X cannot rely on private defence since the attack was not completed (2)
The attack in private defence:
A. must be threatening and completed
B. must be threatening, but not yet completed (CORRECT)
C. must have been completed
D. must have posed a threat in the past (2)
Read the following facts and then choose the correct option: If X shoots and kills a person, in
the belief that the person is trying to break into her home, whereas the person is in fact, Y, X’s
husband, who is trying to enter their home at night:
A. X may rely on private defence on a charge of murder since she has met all the
requirements of the ground of justification
B. X may rely on putative private defence on a charge of murder since the defence only
existed in X’s mind or thoughts (CORRECT)
C. X may not rely on private defence on a charge of murder since she has exceeded the
limits of this ground of justification
D. X may not rely on private defence on a charge of murder since the attack was
completed (2)
Read the following facts then choose the correct option: X is walking home on an extremely
hot afternoon. He notices a child locked in a car.
The child is clearly suffocating from the intense heat. X breaks open the car window
and pulls the child out of the car. X then proceeds to set the car alight and destroy it. X
is charged with malicious injury to property:
A. X can validly rely on the ground of justification of necessity
B. X cannot rely on necessity since he caused more harm than is necessary (CORRECT)
C. X can validly rely on necessity since the life of a child is worth more than a car
D. X cannot rely on necessity because of the origin of the situation of necessity (in this
case the extreme heat) (2)
Read the following facts then choose the correct option: X obtains consent from Y, a mentally
ill woman, to have sexual intercourse with her.
A. X can rely on consent as a ground of justification since he has complied with all the
requirements of consent
B. X cannot rely on consent as a ground of justification since Y is not endowed with
minimum mental abilities (CORRECT)
C. X cannot rely on consent as a ground of justification since he should have obtained Y’s
parent’s consent first
D. X cannot rely on consent as a ground of justification since he should have obtained
Y’s consent in writing first (2)
PACK 2024
QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS
FOR ASSISTANCE CONTACT
EMAIL:
, lOMoARcPSD|46589353
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS (MCQs) COVERING ALL THE UNITS OF THE
CRW1501 STUDY GUIDE FOR EXAM REVISION
NB: all MCQs highlighted in green, indicate that they are more difficult.
As far as legislation as a source of criminal law is concerned, there is one piece of
legislation that is more important than all others, namely:
A. English law
B. Common law
C. Roman-Dutch law
D. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (CORRECT) (2)
The contents of the common law can be found in primary sources, such as:
A. acts of law or legislation
B. customary law
C. the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996
D. the writings of the Roman- Dutch authors (CORRECT) (2)
According to the principle of legality, a court can convict and punish an accused for a
crime only if the conduct:
A. is recognised by the statutory or common law as a crime(CORRECT)
B. is a new form of conduct created by the court
C. is a form of conduct without a penalty attached to its commission
D. is recognised by the common law as a crime (2)
Does the following law comply with the principle of legality? Parliament enacts a new law
which provides that it is a crime if a person does not behave properly in public and that
anyone convicted under this law will be subject to a fine of R1000.
A. The law does not comply with the principle of legality since it conflicts
with the prohibition against retrospectivity
B. The law does not comply with the principle of legality because it is
vaguely formulated (CORRECT)
C. The law complies with all the rules in the principle of legality
D. The law complies with the principle of legality despite the low fine
prescribed (2)
An omission in criminal law is sometimes referred to as:
A. Positive conduct on the part of X
B. A commission on the part of X
C. Negative conduct or a failure to act on the part of X (CORRECT)
D. An act on the part of X (2)
Read the following facts and then choose the correct option: If X stabs and kills his
wife, while he (X) is having an epileptic fit, can X be found guilty of murder?
A. Yes, because X has committed a voluntary act
B. No, because there has been no voluntary conduct on X’s part (CORRECT)
C. No, because the voluntary nature of X’s act is excluded by absolute force
, lOMoARcPSD|46589353
D. No, because the voluntary nature of X’s act is excluded by relative
force (2)
The perpetrator of the act must be:
A. an animal
B. an inanimate object
C. a human being(CORRECT)
D. a male (2)
If X keeps a baboon as a pet, but fails to maintain its cage properly with the result that
the baboon escapes and kills a child, X may be convicted of a crime on the basis of:
A. the provisions of the common law
B. a protective relationship
C. accepting responsibility for the control of a dangerous object(CORRECT)
D. common law (2)
X’s act is the factual cause of Y’s death if it is a conditio sine qua non for Y’s death,
which means that there is:
A. “but-for causation” or a “but-for” link between X’s act and Y’s death (CORRECT)
B. a “but-for” link between X’s act and his state of mind at the time
C. a policy consideration which would make X the factual cause of Y’s death
D. a policy consideration which would make X the legal cause of Y’s
death (2)
The three most important specific tests or theories to determine legal causation, are the
following:
A. the individualisation theory, the condition sine qua non theory, and the novus actus
interveniens theory
B. the individualisation theory, the theory of theory of adequate causation and
the novus actus interveniens theory (CORRECT)
C. the individualisation theory, the theory of the reasonable person, and the novus
actus interveniens theory
D. the individualisation theory, the theory of unlawfulness, and the novus actus
interveniens theory (2)
According to the individualisation theory of legal causation, we must look for:
A. the one condition or factor that is the most operative and regard it as the legal cause
of the prohibited situation (CORRECT)
B. the two conditions or factors that are the most operative and regard these as the
legal cause of the prohibited situation
C. all the conditions or factors that qualify as factual causes of the prohibited situation
D. a reasonable number of factors or conditions that qualify as factual causes of the
prohibited situation (2)
The attack in private defence:
A. must be threatening and completed
B. must be threatening, but not yet completed (CORRECT)
C. must have been completed
, lOMoARcPSD|46589353
D. must have posed a threat in the past (2)
Read the following facts and then choose the correct option: Y threatens to steal the packet of
fruit that X is holding in his hand. X retaliates by pulling out a gun and shooting and killing Y.
A. X can rely on private defence since he was protecting his property
B. X cannot rely on private defence since the defence may not be more harmful than
necessary to ward off the attack (CORRECT
C. X can rely on private defence since there is a reasonable relationship between the
attack and the defence
D. X cannot rely on private defence since the attack was not completed (2)
The attack in private defence:
A. must be threatening and completed
B. must be threatening, but not yet completed (CORRECT)
C. must have been completed
D. must have posed a threat in the past (2)
Read the following facts and then choose the correct option: If X shoots and kills a person, in
the belief that the person is trying to break into her home, whereas the person is in fact, Y, X’s
husband, who is trying to enter their home at night:
A. X may rely on private defence on a charge of murder since she has met all the
requirements of the ground of justification
B. X may rely on putative private defence on a charge of murder since the defence only
existed in X’s mind or thoughts (CORRECT)
C. X may not rely on private defence on a charge of murder since she has exceeded the
limits of this ground of justification
D. X may not rely on private defence on a charge of murder since the attack was
completed (2)
Read the following facts then choose the correct option: X is walking home on an extremely
hot afternoon. He notices a child locked in a car.
The child is clearly suffocating from the intense heat. X breaks open the car window
and pulls the child out of the car. X then proceeds to set the car alight and destroy it. X
is charged with malicious injury to property:
A. X can validly rely on the ground of justification of necessity
B. X cannot rely on necessity since he caused more harm than is necessary (CORRECT)
C. X can validly rely on necessity since the life of a child is worth more than a car
D. X cannot rely on necessity because of the origin of the situation of necessity (in this
case the extreme heat) (2)
Read the following facts then choose the correct option: X obtains consent from Y, a mentally
ill woman, to have sexual intercourse with her.
A. X can rely on consent as a ground of justification since he has complied with all the
requirements of consent
B. X cannot rely on consent as a ground of justification since Y is not endowed with
minimum mental abilities (CORRECT)
C. X cannot rely on consent as a ground of justification since he should have obtained Y’s
parent’s consent first
D. X cannot rely on consent as a ground of justification since he should have obtained
Y’s consent in writing first (2)
