Coincidence of Actus Reus and Mens Rea

Created by: JessicaRidley
Created on: 15-03-16 12:19

What is the coincidence rule?

In order for the defendant to be guilty of an offence, the actus reus and mens rea must happen at the same time.

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What happened in the case of Fagan?

PO told Fagan to park his car, he drove on the PO's foot without realising. Initially, Fagan refused to move the car, the policeman pointed out what happened and asked Fagan to move several times, eventually he moved.

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Using the coincidence rule, would their be criminal liability?

No, because the actus reus and mens rea were not committed at the same time.

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What is a continuing act?

Where there is a continuing act for the actus reus, at some point while that act is still going on the defendant has the necessary mens rea.

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Using the continuing act approach, would their be criminal liability in Fagan?

Yes, because the actus reus was continuing to cover the mens rea.

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What happened in Thabo Meli?

Appellants took the victim to a hut, beat him up and rolled his body over a cliff to make it seem accidental, victim died shortly after. The mens rea was continued.

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What happened in Church?

Defendant took the victim into a van for sexual purposes, the v mocked him and slapped him, the defendant knocked the v unconscious, panicked and dumped her body in a river. He was convicted of manslaughter because he set off a series of acts.

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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What happened in the case of Fagan?

Back

Card 3

Front

Using the coincidence rule, would their be criminal liability?

Back

Card 4

Front

What is a continuing act?

Back

Card 5

Front

Using the continuing act approach, would their be criminal liability in Fagan?

Back

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Coincidence of Actus Reus and Mens Rea