Actus Reus

I) Actus Reus

Actus Reus (guilty act) is the physical side of the crime.

Defined to be "any act of the D that : i) is unlawful and ii) has the consequence of causing injuries to the victim that iii) is recognised by the Law (ABH GBH Wounding)"

E.g AR of Murder : Unlawfully killing of a human being within the Queen's peace.

First and key element for Criminal cases. No AR  - no Liability.

AR must be a voluntary and deliberate act (Acts that you do of your own free will. Must involve some degree of physical control) E.g punching, shooting...

Exeption i) The act appears to be involuntary or ii) Omission-based AR.

i) Involuntary acts :

   Everybody performs involuntary acts E.g shutting eyes while sneezing. Such involuntary acts do not form the AR of a crime - derived from HILL V BAXTER

   Examples from HILL V BAXTER : being stung by a swarm of bees and hit by a stone whilst driving.

ii) Omission-based AR :

    Omission means failure to act, the Law only makes a person liable for…