Actus Reus

• Actus Reus - physical part of a crime (Guilty Act)

  • positive, voluntary act
• If the d has no control over actions, he has not committed the actus reus

  • Hill v Baxter - swarm of bees, struck on head by stone, or heart attack while driving
• Actus Reus can be satisfied in a number of ways:

  • conduct (action) crimes
  • consequence (result) crimes
  • circumstances (state of affairs) crimes
• Conduct:

  • actus reus is the prohibited conduct in doing the actions
  • consequences is irrelevant
  • act/omission
  • R v Archer - committed perjury in libel case against the 'star' in 1987
• Consequence/Result Crime:

  • majority of crimes
  • describes the situation where the illegal act is the outcome of Ds action
  • actus reus is shown by the fact that the accused's behaviour must produce a particular consequence (result)
  • R v Gregory and Mott - defendants actions (stabbing) resulted in victims death, produced a murder charge
  • must be an actus reus causing the consequence
  • Marchant and Muntz - death, no criminal actus reus, not guilt
• State of Affairs

  • 'wrong place, wrong time'
  • circumstances are enough for the actus reus
  • Possession of an Offensive Weapon in a Public Place - s.1 Prevention of Crime Act 1953
  • Possession of a Controlled Substance - s.5 Misuse of Drugs Act 1971
  • State of affairs can be involuntary
  • Winzar v Chief Constable of Kent - actus reus was 'being' found drunk on public highway even though he had been placed there by the arresting police officers