HSC Legal Studies Year 2017 Mark 97.00 Pages 46 Published Feb 6, 2017 Legal Studies: Crime By Rose (99.4 ATAR)
Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) Your notes author, Rose. Rose achieved an ATAR of 99.4 in 2016 while attending St Marys Senior High School Currently studying Bachelors of Law/ Bachelors of Arts (Major in English) at Macquarie University Rose says: Studying a double Law/ Arts degree at Macquarie University on Merit Scholarship.
Crime 1.1 The Nature of Crime Crime: Any conduct which violates the rights of the community at large, punishable by a recognised criminal sanction upon proof of guilt in a criminal proceeding initiated and presented by officers of the crown or its agencies. Criminal Law: - Concerned with the protection of society. - Criminal actions include crimes against a person, the state and/or property. The law provides for the state to take legal action against an accused to prosecute the offender in a court of law to obtain some form of punishment. - Crown must prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. - When the police and/or Director of Public Prosecutions decide prosecute the offender in court, they are known as the accused or defendant. 1.2 Elements of a crime Actus Reus: (Guilty Act) The accused person actually commits the crime. Mens Rea: (Guilty Mind) The accused person sufficiently intended to commit the offence. Actus Reus: - Must be a voluntary act, but can include an omission or failure to act. Mens Rea: - Mens Rea must coincide with the actus reus. - Offender must be capable of forming mens rea. - Three main levels of mens rea: intention, recklessness, criminal negligence. Intention: clear, malicious or wilful intention to commit the crime. Recklessness: the accused foresaw the danger of the action and acted anyway. Criminal negligence: the accused fails to foresee the risk of their action, a risk than an ordinary person would have foreseen under the same circumstances. 1.3 Causation Causation: the act that was performed must have caused the crime that took place. - Act must be the operative and substantial cause of the crime, i.e. responsible for the offence. 1.4 Strict Liability offences Offences which often do not have to include the mens rea. Only the actus reus will need to be shown. E.g. speeding offences, selling alcohol or cigarettes to minors, drink driving.
- The State assumes ignorantia iuris neminem excusat (ignorance of the law excuses no one) - Provides administrative convenience. - Usually, there is no defence for strict liability offences, but in some situations honest and reasonable mistake of fact is allowed (element of the offence raised on the balance of probabilities.) 1.5 Categories of crime Offences against the person Involve some form of harm or injury to an individual. Most crimes against the person are listed in the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) 1. Homicide The unlawful killing of one person by another. In a homicide case, causation must be established between the actions of the accused and the death of the victim. Categories of homicide: a. Murder: the killing of one person by another with malice aforethought. In order to prove that a killing was murder the prosecution must show that at least one of the following exists: The accused intended to deliberately kill the victim The prosecution must show that at least one of the following exists: a. The accused intended to deliberately kill the victim b. The accused set out to inflict serious bodily harm, which resulted in death c. The act was done with reckless indifference to another human life; that is, the accused did not care that the act might end a human being s life d. The act was done while committing or attempting to commit another seriously crime punishable by life or 25 years imprisonment - NSW: 2011 Murder victims was 77 compared to 26145 of domestic violence-related assaults at the same period. b. Manslaughter: the killing of someone in circumstances less culpable than murder. Types: Voluntary Manslaughter: when a person kills with intent, but there are mitigating circumstances (such as the defence of provocation) which reduce their culpability. Involuntary Manslaughter: killing of a person where the death occurred because the accused acted in a reckless or negligent way, but without intention to kill the person.
Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) Constructive Manslaughter: killing of a person while the accused as carrying out another dangerous or unlawful act. c. Infanticide: killing of a child under 12 months old by the mother when her mind has been affected by the born of that child or by lactation. A defence is the preservation of a mother s life or health. d. Dangerous Driving causing death: when a person drives in an unsafe and reckless was, such as under the influence of alcohol, and in so doing causes the death of another human being, maximum penalty of 10 years in person. If the offence is aggravation by certain circumstances the penalty can be as much as 14 years. Assault: includes the offence of causing physical harm to another person and threatening to cause physical harm to another person (common assault). ABS: in 2010, there was 171083 assaults recorder by policy. Maximum penalty 2-7 years. Sexual assault: wherein someone is forced into sexual intercourse against their will and without their consent. In the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), a person is not consenting where they are: - Substantially intoxicated by drugs/ alcohol, therefore lacking the capacity to consent. - Intimidated or coerced - If the accused is abusing their position of trust and authority. Indecent Assault is whereby the accused commits and assault and act of indecency on or in presence of another person without their consent. Aggravated sexual assault in company: most serious sexual offence in NSW. Includes elements of sexual assault, but is performed with another person or people present together with either depriving the victim of their liberty or the infliction or threatened infliction of bodily harm. 2. Offences against the State: include political offences against the State or heads of State. a. Treason: involves a breach of allegiances to the Crown by trying to kill or harm the Queen/ King, their heir/ spouse, going to war against Australia, assisting an enemy in the war against Australia or inciting a foreign power to invade Australia. b. Sedition: involves the incitement of hatred of the sovereign or government, or the intention to incite violence against the government in order to over throw it. 3. Economic Offences: involve damage to or loss of the victim s property. a. Crimes against property