Actus Reus: Conduct and Omissions

Flashcards covering the fundamental concepts of Actus Reus, the distinction between actions and omissions, and the five specific categories of the legal duty to act.

Actus Reus

The 'guilty act' which constitutes the physical element of a criminal offence.

Mens Rea

The 'guilty mind' which constitutes the mental element of a criminal offence.

Conduct Crimes

Offences that require proof that the defendant did, or failed to do, a specific act ($X$).

Result Crimes

Offences where the Actus Reus requires proof that the defendant's conduct ($X$) caused a particular result.

Omission Liability

Liability arising from a failure to act, requiring a recognised offence, a legal duty to act, and a breach of that duty.

State of Affairs Offences

Offences that do not require active conduct but instead punish a person for being in a specific situation, such as being found drunk on the highway in Winzar v Chief Constable of Kent ($1983$).

Airedale NHS Trust v Bland ($1993$)

A case involving medical treatment necessitated by the Hillsborough tragedy used to help distinguish between actions and omissions.

Statutory Duty

A legal obligation to act created by legislation, such as the requirement to have car insurance under the Road Traffic Act $1998$.

Law Enforcement Duty

A duty for police officers to protect civilians, as demonstrated in Dytham ($1979$), involving misconduct in public office.

Contractual Duty

A duty to act arising from terms of employment, such as the railway gatekeeper in Pittwood ($1902$).

Familial Duty

A duty to act based on specific family relationships, such as those between parents (Gibbins and Proctor ($1918$)), married people (Hood ($2004$)), or siblings (Stone and Dobinson ($1977$)).

Voluntary Assumption of Duty

A duty that arises when an individual explicitly or implicitly promises to care for another, as in Stone and Dobinson ($1977$) or Instan ($1893$).

Creating a Dangerous Situation

A duty to act that arises when a person's conduct creates a hazard, established in Miller ($1983$) regarding a mattress fire.

Gibbins & Proctor ($1918$)

A case establishing omission liability for manslaughter due to a familial failure to provide food.

Santana Bermudez ($2004$)

A case regarding non-fatal offences involving a failure to warn an officer about a sharp object in a pocket.

Evans (Gemma) ($2009$)

A case clarifying that a duty to act arises when a defendant knows or should have realised they created a dangerous situation (drug supply), and noting no automatic duty between half-siblings.

Lewin v CPS ($2002$)

A case establishing that 'mere' friendship is not sufficient to qualify as a voluntary assumption of duty.

Breach of Duty

The failure to act according to the standard of a 'reasonable person,' as discussed in Stone and Dobinson ($1977$) and R (Jenkins) ($2009$).

Strafgesetzbuch § $323c$

The German code providing for a duty to rescue and a duty to prevent a crime if reasonably possible, contrasted with the general reluctance of English Law to impose liability for omissions.

Possession Offences

Crimes committed by having control over forbidden items, which do not necessarily require active conduct.