CPAI Parties Flashcards
Define being ‘Party to an offence’ as outlined in Section 66(1) CA61
S66, CA61
1) Every is a party to and guilty of an offence who-
(a) Actually commits the offence; or
(b) Does or omits an act for the purpose of aiding any person to commit the offence; or
(c) Abets any person in the commission of the offence; or
(d) Incites, counsels or procures any person to commit the offence
What must you prove in charging a person with being a party to an offence?
- The identity of the defendant, and
- an offence has ben successfully committed; and
- the ingredients of the offence (s66(1)) have been satisfied
R v Pene
R v Pene
A party must intentionally held or encourage - it is insufficient if they were reckless as to whether the principal was assisted or encouraged
What was held in R v Betts & Ridley in relation to common intention?
An offence where no violence is contemplated and the principle offender in carrying out the common aim uses violence, a secondary offender taking no physical part in it would not be held liable for the violence used.
Describe the difference between a ‘principal’ and ‘secondary’ offender
Principle:
A person who acutally commits the offence. They satisfy both the Actus reaus and the mens rea of the offence. They are liable under S66(1)(a)
Secondary:
They do not actually commit the offence, however they assist, abet, counsels or incites another to commit the offence. They can be held liable under S66(b)(c)(d)
To be considered as a party to an offence when must ‘participation’ have occurred?
Must have occurred before or during (contemporaneous with) the commission of the offence and before the completion of the offence.
What was held in Larkins v Police in realtion to proof of assistance?
While it is unnecessary that the principal should be aware that he or she is being assisted, there must be proof of actual assistance. The mere commission of an act intended to have that effect is insufficient. Absence of knowledge by the principal that he is being assisted removes a common foundation for a finding of actual assistance, namely that the principal was able to proceed with his enterprise with the additional confidence gained because his accomplice was on the lookout for unwanted intervention.
Explain and provide examples for the terms ‘Aids, Abets, incites, counsels, procures’
Aid:
means to assist in the commission of the offence, either physically or by giving advice and information. The presence of the person offering aid is not required at the scene, before or at the time of it being committed.
e.g Keeping lookout for someone committing a burglary
Abets:
To instigate or encourage; that is to urge another person to commit the offence. Their presence is not required at the scene.
e.g A woman encourages her lover to kill her husband during a fight between lover and husband.
Incites:
To rouse, stir up, stimulate, animate, urge or spur on a person to commit the offence.
e.g Sports fan spurs another to assault a protester and yells approval during the offence.
Counsels:
To intentionally instigate the offence by advising another on how to best to commit an offence or planning the commission of the offence for another.
e.g In R v Baker a letter with instruction on how to blow up a safe was found on two offenders during a burglary. The letter writer was charged as a party to the offence.
Procures:
Setting out to see that something happens and taking the appropriate steps to ensure that it does.
e.g Woman obtains services of a ‘hit man’ to kill her husband and offers money or sexual services to him as payment.
Identify two exceptions to passive presence rule and what was held.
- Special relationship:
In R v Russell the accused was found to be morally bound to take active steps to save his children, while his wife drowned herself along with the children. By deliberate abstention, he encouraged and approved his wife’s act thus aiding and abetting her and thus becoming a secondary offender to murder. - Legal duty
Ashton v Police
An example of a secondary party owing a legal duty to a third person or to the general public is a person teaching another person to drive. That person is in New Zealand under a legal duty to take reasonable precaution because under s156 of the crimes act 1961 he is deemed to be in charge of a dangerous thing.
A person is not party to an offence by their mere presence at the scene of a crime. In realtion to a legal duty discuss what was held in Ashton v Police?
Ashton v Police
An example of a secondary party owing a legal duty to a third person or to the general public is a person teaching another person to drive. That person is in New Zealand under a legal duty to take reasonable precaution because under s156 of the crimes act 1961 he is deemed to be in charge of a dangerous thing.
Outline the ingredients of section 66(2) of the CA61
(2) where 2 or more persons form a common intention to prosecute any unlawful purpose, and to assist each other therein, each of them is a party to every offence committed by any one of them in the prosecution of the common purpose if the commission of that offence was known to a probable consequence of the prosecution of the common purpose.
Define what an ‘innocent agent’ is and outline what was held in R v Paterson
An innocent agent is someone who is unaware of the significance of their actions. When used by the offender to bring about the actus reaus, they are not regarded as being a participant and are simply the mechanism.
R v Paterson
In R v Paterson a person was asked to uplift a TV set from a flat which the accused Paterson pretended to won. Where an innocent agent, and that person is regarded as the principal offender. The innocence of the agent may arise from their youth, a mental deficiency, ignorance of the facts or some other cause.
R v Paterson
An innocent agent is someone who is unaware of the significance of their actions. When used by the offender to bring about the actus reaus, they are not regarded as being a participant and are simply the mechanism.
R v Paterson
In R v Paterson a person was asked to uplift a TV set from a flat which the accused Paterson pretended to won. Where an innocent agent, and that person is regarded as the principal offender. The innocence of the agent may arise from their youth, a mental deficiency, ignorance of the facts or some other cause.
Outline the two methods by which multiple offenders may be considered principals.
- Each offender satisfies the ingredients of the offence committed.
- Each offender separately satisfies part of the actus reas.
Give 3 examples of providing assistance in relation to ‘party to’
- Keeping lookout for someone committing a burglary
- Providing a screwdriver to someone interfering with a motor vehicle
- Telling an associate when a neighbour is away from their home so as to allow the opportunity to commit a burglary
