Property offences (Theft/ Robbery)

Appropriation definition

Assuming rights of the owner

belonging to another

Anyone with possession, control, or a proprietary interest.

Consent is irrelevant to appropriation

R v Lawrence

Gifts can be appropriation

R v Hinks

You can steal your own property

R v Turner- stole his car from the mechanic

Abandoned meaning

Property that has no owner

R v Rostron- golf balls belonging to a club

Property is rarely considered abandoned.

Rule on keeping overpaid wages

AG Ref

wrong prices in shop/ switching lables

R v Morris

Force can be minimal

R v Dawson and James

Appropriaton can be a continuing act

R v Hale

Robbery requires all elements of theft to be present first.

R v Robinson

• D used a knife to get £5 he was owed. He wasn't "dishonest" (s.2(1)(a) right in law), so there was no theft, therefore no robbery.

it is appropriation even if defendant leaves empty handed

Corcoran v Anderton (1980)

• D tugged a bag, V let go, and it hit the floor. D ran off empty-handed. Result: Guilty of robbery; the "assumption of rights" happened the moment V let go.

"Force" is an ordinary word for the jury; it doesn't need to be serious.

R v Dawson and James

nudge is enough to be force

Wrenching an item out of someone’s hand counts as force on the person.

R v Clouden

bodyparts can become property if work/skill is applied

R v Kelly & Lindsay- real property

wild flowers,fruits and folliage are excluded if not used for commercial purposes

5 property types.

Money, real, personal, intangible, things in action.

Money-property type

bank notes/cheques

real property

land or buildings

personal property

moveable objects

things in action

rights enforced by law

intangible property

non-physical rights

section of appropriation

s.3

section of property

s.4

belonging to another

s.5

section of dishonesty

s.2

section for intention to permanently deprive

s.6

section for use of force

s.8