Parties to a crime Flashcards
(27 cards)
Who is the principal in an offence?
Person who with the MR commits the AR
Who can be an innocent agent?
Person carrying out AR is under age of criminal liability or is deceived as to what they are doing
In what five ways can someone be an accessory to a crime?
Aiding
Abeting
Counseling
Procuring
Being a party to a joint enterprise
“Assisting or encouraging the commission of the principal’s offence”
What is the AR and MR of accessorial liability?
AR: To [aid / abet / etc] P in committing the offence
MR: An intention to assist or encourage the principal’s conduct
An intention that the principal will do the AR with that MR
Knowledge of existing facts or circumstances necessary for the offence to be criminal.
What is the general rule on withdrawal?
Not enough to just have a change of mind
Something must be done - at the minimum, withdrawal must be communicated to the principal or a law enforcement agency.
“Mere repentance does not suffice”
At what time must the assister form the MR?
At the time of the act of assistance, not at the time when the principal commits the crime
When will withdrawal from the crime be harder?
If D has supplied the principal with the means of committing the crime and has given assistance versus just giving some advice
When will withdrawal from the crime be easier?
When the crime is spontaneous violence, as opposed to something pre-meditated
Can the secondary party be convicted and the principal be acquitted?
Yes
What is the general rule if you can’t work out who of two people committed the crime?
Both must be acquitted
However, if it can be proven that the one who did not commit the crime as the principal was a secondary party to the crime - both can be convicted
How is ‘to procure’ understood?
To produce by endeavour
Must be a causal link between D’s act and the commission of the offence
Give examples of aiding as an accessory
Supplying materials / tools
Giving information helping P to commit a crime
Holding down a victim in assault
What type of assistance would being an accessory before the fact come under?
Aiding
What has ‘counselling’ been held to mean?
Giving advice or encouragement before the commission of the offence
Need be no causal link but must be contact between the parties and connection between counselling and the offence - must be some consensus
how is ‘abetting’ understood?
To incite / instigate or encourage - suggested that this is at the time the offence is being committed
No causal link, but must be some communication
When will presence at the scene of the crime be considered abetting?
Only when it is an encouragement to the crime
When can failure to prevent an offence be considered abetting?
If D has the right or duty to control the actions of another and deliberately refrains from exercising it - e.g. licensee watching people drink in a pub after hours
Passive acquiesence when you are in a position of control is enough
How is joint enterprise best understood?
D1 and D2 have a common intention to commit crime A - while doing so, D1 incidentally from crime A, commits crime B.
What is the mens rea of assisting a crime?
Intention to assist or encourage the principal’s conduct [this does not need to be positive / mean desire - has been interpreted as conditional intent]
If the crime requires a MR, intention that the principal will do the AR with that MR [exception - procuring] [consider what D’s attitude would be if P did commit the crime] [if dismayed - only oblique intention will suffice]
Knowledge of existing facts or circumstances necessary for the offence to be criminal
How does the court approach cases where the MR does not correspond to the AR?
Both parties would be liable for the greater crime, despite the fact that they may not have had the MR
BUT - both D’s must have sufficient knowledge
How does the court approach ‘knowledge of facts or circumstances’?
An assistant needs to have sufficient knowledge
Knowledge includes wilful blindness - deliberately shutting your eyes to the obvious means you know
D need not know the exact details of the crime which will be committed
Enough to know that a principal will commit any one of a number of crimes including the crime which the principal does in fact commit
How does the court approach defendants with a lesser intent?
If a person is party to a violent attack on another without an intent to assist in the causing or death or really serious harm - but violence escalates - won’t be guilty as an accessory to murder but can be guilty for manslaughter
Can you be convicted of an attempt to aid / abet etc?
No - this is not a crime
Who decides when a defendant has withdrawn from a joint enterprise?
Jury
