Attempts
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?- Created by: Hayley Petts
- Created on: 06-06-14 10:35
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- Attempts
- definition
- s.1(1) Criminal Attempts Act 1981
- 'if, with intent to commit an offence to which this section applies, a person does an act which is more than merely preparatory to the commission of the offence, he is guilty of attempting to commit the offence'
- actus reus
- a person does an act which is more than merely preparatory to the commission of the offence
- mens rea
- with intent to commit that offence
- s.1(1) Criminal Attempts Act 1981
- the old law on attempts
- before attempts was defined in the Criminal Attempt Act 1981 common law tests were used
- 'last act' test
- had D done the last act he could do before committing the crime?
- the 'proximity' test
- were D's acts so 'immediately connected' to the actus reus of the offence as to justify liability for attempt?
- Rubicon test
- D crossed the line into criminality and passed the point of no return with no chance of going back
- series of acts test
- D did several things which together could create liability
- difficult to decide what and how many acts are enough for liability
- 'last act' test
- before attempts was defined in the Criminal Attempt Act 1981 common law tests were used
- Actus Reus
- acts which are merely preparatory
- Gullefer (1987) - placed bet at dog race then tried to stop race to get money back when clear dog wouldn't win
- CA quashed conviction of attempting to steal because had not embarked on crime proper
- Campbell (1990) - seen loitering outside post office. When stopped by police C had sunglasses, imitation gun and threatening note
- held to be still preparing
- needed to enter shop to go beyond the merely preparatory
- Geddes (1996) - found hiding in school toilets with bag containing knife, rope and tape
- not guilty as hadn't actually tried to commit offence
- Gullefer (1987) - placed bet at dog race then tried to stop race to get money back when clear dog wouldn't win
- acts which are more than merely preparatory
- Boyle and Boyle (1987) - B and B found standing by door with broken lock and hinge
- B and B has carried out a sufficient series of acts to be attempt
- entering the building would have been committing burglary so trying to gain access was an attempt
- Jones (1990) - got into car wearing crash helmet and pointed shotgun at man
- guilty of attempted murder as done almost everything before he could commit full offence
- AG Ref (1993) - man dragged girl into shed and attempted **** but couldn't get an erection
- man had not performed last act but had done enough
- Tosti and White (1997) - T and W caught examining barn padlock with cutting equipment hidden in hedge
- by examining padlock men were trying to commit full offence
- Boyle and Boyle (1987) - B and B found standing by door with broken lock and hinge
- AG Ref (NO1 of 1992) (1993) - D need not have performed the last act before the crime proper nor need he have reached the point of no return
- acts which are merely preparatory
- Mens Rea
- Intention for full offence is needed
- recklessness is not generally sufficient
- there are exceptions
- AG Ref (NO3 of 1992) (1994) - man threw petrol bomb at car containing four men but missed
- needed intention to damage property but recklessness as to whether life endangered was sufficient
- AG Ref (NO3 of 1992) (1994) - man threw petrol bomb at car containing four men but missed
- Millard and Vernon (1987) - M and V kept pushing fence in football stand
- not convicted as both were only reckless
- there are exceptions
- Easom (1971) - picked up, looked in and replaced handbag in cinema without taking anything
- not convicted as no intention to steal particular items
- no evidence that D had intended to permanently deprive owner
- Husseyn (1977) - loitered near van containing sub-aqua equipment but ran off when saw police
- not convicted as no intention to steal particular items
- attempting the impossible
- before the criminal attempts act 1981
- if crime was physically or legally impossible to commit there was no offence
- After Criminal Attempts Act 1981
- Factually impossibility
- s.1 (2) - person may guilty of attempted to commit an offence even though the facts are such that commission of the offence is impossible
- legal impossibility
- s.1 (3) - in any cases where:
- a) apart from this subsection a person's intention would not be regarded as having amounted to an intent to commit an offence
- but b) if facts of case had been as he believed them to be, his intention would be so regarded for the purpose of the subsection (1)
- will be regarded as having an intent to commit that offence
- s.1 (3) - in any cases where:
- Factually impossibility
- Aderton v Ryan (1985) - bought video recorder thinking it was stolen but it wasn't
- video player not stolen so R's acts are 'innocent'
- Shivpuri (1986) - intended to receive suitcase which believed to contain drugs but actually contained harmless vegetable matter
- intended to deal in drugs and impossibility no barrier to conviction, overruling Anderton v Ryan
- before the criminal attempts act 1981
- definition
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