Aggravated Burglary Flashcards
What is aggravated burglary?
Theft Act 1968, s10
(1) A person is guilty of aggravated burglary if he commits any burglary and at the time has with him any firearm or imitation firearm, any weapon of offence, or any explosive; . . .
What is the sentence for aggravated burglary?
Triable on indictment
Life imprisonment
What are the points to prove for aggravated burglary?
An aggravated burglary is committed when a person commits an offence of burglary (either a s9(1)(a) or a s9(1)(b)) and at the time he has with him a WIFE
W- weapon of offence
I- imitation firearm
F- firearm
E-explosive
What does ‘at the time mean’ for s9(1)(a)?
The moment at which a burglary under s. 9(1)(a) is committed is at the point of entry, therefore it is essential that D has the WIFE with him when entering a building or part of a building with the intention of committing one of the trigger offences under s. 9(1)(a). If that is the case, D commits aggravated burglary
What does ‘at the time mean’ for s9(1)(b)?
The moment at which a burglary under s 9(1)(b) is committed is when D steals, inflicts GBH on any person or attempts to do either. If the defendant has the WIFE with him when committing or attempting to commit either offence, an aggravated burglary is committed.
You do NOT need to have a WIFE item on entry- only need to have it when you commit/attempt either two offences.
What does ‘has with him’ mean?
More restrictive term than ‘possession’
Requires D to have some degree of immediate control of the item (R v Pawlicki [1992]). It needs to be readily available.
D need not actually have the WIFE item on his/her person to be in immediate control of it. It is also essential that the individual has knowledge of the presence of the WIFE item
If D has no knowledge of the WIFE item he/she does not commit the aggravated offence.
What if one co-defendant is unaware of the WIFE item and they agree to commit a 9(1)(a) together? Case?
R v Jones [1979]- X and Y agree to commit a 9(1)(a) together. X takes a knuckleduster, but doesn’t tell Y. When X and Y enter the building they intend to burgle so commit a s9(1)(a), with X committing aggravated burglary. Y does not commit aggravated burglary because he has no knowledge of the existence of the WIFE item
If X told Y then both would be guilty under s10
What happens if the WIFE item is being carried by a person who did not enter the building?
R v Klass [1998]- must be shown that one of D’s actually entered the building or part of a building had the weapon with him. Offence is not committed if the WIFE item was being carried by a person who did not enter the building. Armed getaway driver remained in the car while his colleagues burgled a nearby house. No aggravated burglary.
What if D has a WIFE item for unconnected reasons?
Aggravated offence is committed due to the presence of the WIFE when the s. 9(1)(a) or s. 9(1)(b) burglary is carried out. It is irrelevant that D had the item with him for some other purpose unconnected with the burglary offence
What happens if D instantly arms themselves with ordinary items inside the building? Case?
Ordinary items can, instantaneously, change into weapons of offence; it is the intention of the person to use an item in a particular way that allows this to take place eg: to cause injury- man uses ash tray to hit householder with
R v Kelly (1993)- D entered building using a screwdriver to facilitate entry. When he was confronted, he prodded the person confronting him in the stomach with the screwdriver. At that moment, the screwdriver instantly became a weapon of offence and D was later convicted of aggravated burglary
Does s10 state the meaning of firearm, weapon of offence and explosive?
Theft Act 1968, s10(1)
(a) ‘firearm’ includes an airgun or pistol, and ‘imitation firearm’ means anything which has the appearance of being a firearm, whether capable of being discharged or not, and
(b) ‘weapon of offence’ means any article made or adapted for use for causing injury to or incapacitating a person, or intended by the person having it with him for such use; and
(c) ‘explosive’ means any article manufactured for the purpose of producing a practical effect by explosion, or intended by the person having it with him for that purpose
What do weapons of offence include?
Any article made or adapted for use for causing injury to or incapacitating a person or intended by the owner for such use.
- items made for causing injury, e.g. a bayonet or a knuckleduster;
- items adapted for causing injury, e.g. a screwdriver that has been sharpened at the tip;
- items intended for causing injury, e.g. an ordinary cutlery knife. The cutlery knife is certainly inoffensive in everyday use but if the defendant intends to use it to injure, it will fall into this category;
- items made, adapted or intended to incapacitate a person, e.g. handcuffs, rope, CS spray and chloroform
What do imitation firearms include? Case?
This includes anything which has the appearance of being a firearm, whether capable of being discharged or not (but note that this will not include D’s fingers pointed at someone under a coat to resemble a firearm (R v Bentham [2005]))
What do firearms include?
This does not relate to the definition under the Firearms Act 1968. Indeed, the term is not defined other than to include airguns and air pistols.
What do explosives include? Case?
This would cover explosives like TNT and grenades as they are both manufactured to produce a practical effect by explosion. It also covers items intended by the person having it with him for such a purpose eg: home-made devices or substances. The issue in relation to fireworks has yet to be firmly resolved by the courts, although they may well be excluded from the definition as fireworks are, by and large, manufactured to produce a pyrotechnic rather than practical effect by explosion and have been described as ‘things that are made for amusement’ (Bliss v Lilley (1862))
