There are lots of evils in our society, one among them is a crime. There is no universally accepted definition of crime, however certain acts of an individual or group of people, which harm the people or disturb peace and tranquility of the society can be termed as crimes. The person, who commits a crime, is punished as per law so that such activities do not repeat in the future. In general, the following acts can be considered as a crime like an attack on public order, abuses or obstructions of public property, causing injuries to the public, attacking individuals and annexing their rights, attack upon the property of individuals, or upon rights associated with, etc.
Thus, crime can be of dual nature i.e. civil or criminal. Sometimes, a crime in one country may not be a crime in any other country, as crime is decided by the statute of the nation. According to sociologists, a crime can be against the human body, property, public place, religion, and family, morals of society, and conservation of resources of society.
According to Sir William Blackstone, "Crime is an act committed or omitted in violation of public law forbidding or commanding it."
According to Sergeant Stephen, "A crime is a violation of right, considered in reference to the civil tendency of violation as regards the community."
According to John Gillin, "An act that has shown to be actually harmful to Society or that is believed to be socially harmful by a group of people that has the power to enforce its beliefs, and that places such an act under the ban of positive penalties."
According to Prof. SW Keeton, "A crime today would seem to be any undesirable act, which the State finds most convenient to correct by the institution of proceeding for the infliction of a penalty, instead of leaving the remedy to the discretion of some injured person."
According to Section 40 of the IPC, "An offense denotes a thing made punishable by the code."
According to Halsbury's Law of England, "A crime is an unlawful act or default which is an offense against the public and renders the person guilty of the act or default liable to legal punishment."
According to BA Wortley, "A crime is an offense against the law, and is usually an offense against morality, against a man's social duty to his fellow being members of society; it renders the offender liable to punishment."
When a person does or performs certain activities, there can be positive, negative, or neutral consequences. A person is liable for the consequences of his/her act. In law, criminal liability can be defined as a liability or responsibility of a person, for a crime when he or she has acted with criminal intent, as opposed to acting accidentally or lacking the ability to act deliberately.
If liability is proven in court, then one will be sentenced accordingly. In deciding criminal liability, the actus reus and the men's rea play a chief role.
There are two general principles of criminal liability i.e. Actus reus and Mens rea.
These are discussed below:
Actus reus is the first general principle of criminal liability. It is a Latin term, which means 'guilty act'. It is also referred to as the external element or the objective element of a crime. According to statute, it refers to the act or omission that comprises the physical elements of a crime.
In his criminal law, Glanville Williams stated that "actus reus includes all the external circumstances and consequences specified in the rule of law as constituting the forbidden situation."
Therefore, we can say that it includes everything except the mental element. It consists of both positive and negative elements.
The characteristics and constituents of actus reus are decided by the criminal law of the country, that's why they vary from one country to another. Definition of crime, as adopted by the law plays a very significant role in deciding the requirement of actus reus.
This Article Does Not Intend To Hurt The Sentiments Of Any Individual Community, Sect, Or Religion Etcetera. This Article Is Based Purely On The Authors Personal Views And Opinions In The Exercise Of The Fundamental Right Guaranteed Under Article 19(1)(A) And Other Related Laws Being Force In India, For The Time Being.
