accessories are people who assist in criminal acts, but who do not actually participate in a criminal commission as a joint principal. The difference between an accessory and a principal is a matter of fact and degree:
- The principal is a person whose actions or omissions, accompanied by mens rea (Latin for "guilty mind"), are the most direct cause of actus reus (Latin for "guilty acts").
- If two or more persons are directly responsible for actus reus , they may be charged as joint perpetrators (see shared goals). The test to distinguish the shared principle of the accessory is whether the defendant independently contributes to causing actus reus rather than simply providing general and/or limited support and encouragement.
Video Accessory (legal term)
Element
In some jurisdictions, accessories are distinguished from the accomplices, who are usually present in crime and participate in several ways. An accessory in general must have knowledge that a crime is taking place, or it will be done. A person with such knowledge can become an accessory by helping or encouraging criminals in several ways. Help for criminals may be of any type, including emotional or financial help as well as physical assistance or concealment.
Relative severity of punishment
Penalty rates for accessories vary across jurisdictions, and vary in different historical periods. In some places and places accessories are subject to a lower penalty than the principal (people who actually commit crimes). In other accessories is considered the same as the principal in theory, although in certain cases the accessory can be treated less severe than the principal. In recent times and place accessories before the facts (ie, with knowledge of crimes before commitments) have been treated differently from the accessory after the fact (for example, those who assisted the principal after the crime has been committed, but have no role in the crime itself). Common law traditionally considers an accessory to be just as innocent as the offender in a crime, and is subject to the same punishment. Separate and lower penalties exist by law in many jurisdictions.
Conspiracy
In some situations, conspiracy allegations can be made even if a major offense is never committed, provided that a plan has been made, and at least one concrete action against a crime has been committed by at least one of the conspirators. For example, if a group plans to conduct bank checks, and falsify a check but ultimately does not attempt to monetize a check, the group may still be subject to conspiracy due to a real counterfeiting action. Thus, the accessory before the fact will be frequent, but not always, also considered a conspirator. A conspirator must be the one planning the crime, not just be aware of the plan to do it and then assist in some way.
A person who incites another person to commit a crime will be part of a conspiracy if an agreement is reached, and then may be considered an accessory or a joint head if the crime is finally committed.
In the United States, a person who learns about crime and provides some form of relief before a crime is committed is known as an "accessory before the fact". A person who knows the crime after it has done and helped the criminal to hide it, or helped the criminals flee, or simply failed to report the crime, known as "accessories after the fact". Someone who does both is sometimes referred to as "accessory before and after the facts", but this use is less common.
Criminal facilitation
In some jurisdictions, criminal "facilitation" legislation does not require that the main crime is actually committed as a prerequisite for criminal liability. This includes state laws that make it a crime to "give" a person with a "means or opportunity" to commit a crime, "believing that it may be that he is providing assistance to someone who intends to commit a crime."
Knowledge of crime
To be found guilty of alleged accessory, the accused must generally be proven to have actual knowledge that the crime will, or has been, committed. In addition, there must be evidence that the accessory knows that its action, or inaction, helps criminals commit crimes, or avoids detection, or escapes. A person who is unknowingly the home of a person who has just committed a crime, for example, can not be charged a cost of accessory violation because they have no knowledge of the crime.
Exceptions
In many jurisdictions one can not be charged as an accessory for a crime committed by a spouse. This relates to the traditional privilege of not testifying against the accused partner, and the older idea that a wife is entirely subservient to a husband's order, whether halal or illegal.
In most jurisdictions, accessories can not be attempted before the principal is found guilty unless the accessory and principle are tried together, or unless the accessory is permitted in advance.
Maps Accessory (legal term)
Usage
The term "accessory" is derived from English common law, and has been inherited by those countries with a more or less identical British-American legal system. The concept of engagement is of course common in different legal traditions. The specific terms of accessory-before-the-fact and accessory-after-the-facts are used in the United Kingdom and the United States but it is now more common in history than it is currently usable.
The signature spelling is sometimes used, but only in the sense of this law.
History
The English legal authority William Blackstone, in his book Comments , defines accessories as:
II. An accessory is he who is not the principal actor in the offense, or is not present at his performance, but in any case concerned, either before or after the fact is done.
He goes on to define the accessory-before-the-fact
The second point, which may be an accessory before the fact; Sir Matthew Hale 12 defines him as one, who was absent when the crime was committed, had not yet received, advised, or ordered another to commit a crime. Here is not required to make it an accessory; for such consent is required to make it an accessory; because if such a nanny, or the like, is present, she is guilty of the crime as a perpetrator.
and accessory-after-the-facts as follows:
An accessory after a possible fact, where a person, knowing a crime has been committed, accepting, reducing, entertaining, or assisting criminals. Therefore, to make an ex post facto accessory, it is first necessary that he know about the crime committed.18 In the next place, he must accept, release, comfort, or assist him. And, in general, any help given to criminals, to prevent him from being arrested, tried, or punished, makes the investigator an accessory. Like giving a horse to escape from his pursuers, money or victory to support him, a house or other shelter to hide it, or an open and violent force to save or protect it.
Special laws
Canada
The Criminal Code has several parts related to the accessory for the offense:
21. (1) Everyone is a violating party
(2) Where two or more persons have the same intent to implement an unlawful purpose and to assist one another in it and one of them, in exercising a common purpose, commits an offense, each of whom knows or should have knowing that the commission of infringement will be a possible consequence of carrying out the common goal is the offending party.
23. (1) Accessory after the fact of an offense is a person who, knowing that a person has been a party that commits a violation, accepts, entertains, or assists the person in order to enable the person to escape.
For this purpose, conspire means "to push or set" and an peer is "instigator or tuner on, the person promoting or committing a crime shall be committed.."
Notice that under s. 21 (2), the words "should know" indicate objective knowledge has been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Canada in cases where the principal offense requires a subjective outlook from consequences, such as murder ( R v Logan , [1990] 2 SCR 731).
French
Section 121-6 states that "the offender of the offense, in the sense of chapters 121-7, may be punished as a perpetrator". Chapters 121-7 distinguish, in two paragraphs, involvement by helping or abetting and engaging with encouragement. Thus states that:
The legs of a criminal or a criminal are persons who, by assisting or abetting, facilitate preparation or commission. Anyone who, using gifts, promises, threats, order or abuse of authority or power, provokes commission offenses or gives instructions to do so, is also an accomplice. It follows from this article that in order to generate responsibility as an accomplice, the person must participate in an unlawful act from the principal and must have a strong intention to succeed. Theory assumes criminality requires that the participation of the accomplice should be attributed to the offense that the principal actually committed.
Norwegian
Any criminal provisions in the Norwegian criminal code determine whether it is a criminal to assist and abett. Furthermore, when the effort is a criminal, participating in the effort is a criminal.
England and Wales
The law governing the engagement in criminal offenses originally stems from general law, but is codified in section 8 of the Accessory and Abettors Act 1861 (as amended by s.65 (4) of the Criminal Law Act 1977), which states:
Anyone who will assist, conspire, advise, or obtain a commission from any alleged infringement, whether the same is a violation of common law or under any law passed or passed will be liable for trial, indictment and punishment as the main actors.
Importance of presence
Attendance at the crime scene was not enough, even when the defendant remained on the scene to witness the crimes committed. In R v Coney (1882) 8 QBD 534, where the crowd witnessed illegal gift battles, it was held that there should be active encouragement, not just passive. Therefore, although the fight will not happen without the audience preparing to bet on the result, the audience is released because of their unintentional presence. It would be different if they were present at the scene with prior agreement because their presence would only be a boost. Similarly, in Rv J. F. Alford Transport Ltd (1997) 2 Cr. Application. R. 326 there is a reasonable conclusion that the company, knowing that its employees are acting illegally and deliberately doing anything to prevent it being repeated, actually intends to encourage repetition. This will be a natural conclusion in any situation where the alleged accessory has the right to control what the principal does.
Mens rea
A mens rea is required even when it is not necessary for the principal offender (eg, when the principal commits a violation of strict obligations). The defendant must intend to take action which he knows will assist or encourage the principal to commit a particular type of crime. In the case of the defendant supplying the cutting equipment did not know exactly what the crime was going to do, but was punished because the equipment provided was not used in the normal way, but for criminal purposes instead. The feet should also know all the important things that make the action a crime, but do not need to know that the action will be a crime because ignorantia juris non excusat . In National Coal Board v. Gamble (1959) 1 QB 11 operators of weigh stations are indifferent, whether principals commit abuses that are generally insufficient mens rea , but NCB is punished because the employee's actions are sales actions (see representative responsibility).
Gillick v West Norfolk and Wisbech Regional Health Authority (1986) AC 112 is an example of a type of case in which the uncertainty of the meaning of right intention effectively confers on the sometimes accepted wisdom of whether to impose responsibility. The case involves the question of whether a physician providing contraceptive advice or treatment to a girl under the age of 16 can be held liable as an accessory to the subsequent infringement of an unlawful sexual relationship perpetrated by the girl's sexual partner. The Lords stated that in general this would not be the case (the act was civil for a declaration) because the doctor would lack the necessary intentions (although he realized that his actions would facilitate intercourse). One reason for the decision is that a jury will not conclude intentions in such circumstances if they think that the doctor is acting in what he considers to be the best interests of the girl.
Scotland
In Scotland, under section 293 of the Criminal Procedure (Scottish) Act 1995, a person can be punished, and punished for, contrary to any enforcement, even though he is guilty of violations such as art and only part.
United States
US jurisdictions (that is, the federal government and various state governments) have come to treat accessory before the facts differ from accessories after the fact. All US jurisdictions have effectively eliminated the distinction between an accessory before facts and principals, either by completely eliminating the category of "factual accessory" or by providing the accessory before it is guilty of the same offense as the perpetrators. The definition of the Penal Code Model concerning the responsibility of accomplices includes those who are in common law called accessories before facts; under the Model of the Criminal Code, accomplices face the same responsibilities as the perpetrators. It is now possible to be punished as an accessory before the fact even though the principal has not been punished or (in most jurisdictions) even if the principal is released at the previous trial.
However, modern US jurisdictions punish accessories after the facts for a separate criminal offense different from the underlying crime and have different (and less severe) penalties. Some countries still use the term "accessory after fact"; others no longer use the term, but have comparable laws against avoidance or interdiction that impede, obstruct justice, corrupt evidence, store criminals, or the like. Such crimes usually require proof (1) intention to deter arrest or prosecution and (2) real assistance in good form (a) hide criminals, (b) provide certain means (such as disguises) to avoid arrest, (c) evidence, (d) warning of criminal arrests, or (e) using violence or fraud to prevent arrest.
Federal law has followed these two trends. The US Code effectively treats it as an offender traditionally regarded as an accessory before the facts in general law:
(a) Anyone who helps, conspires, advises, commands, induces or obtains a commission from an offense, may be punished as headmaster.
(b) Any person who knowingly causes action to be taken if it is committed by him or otherwise is a violation, may be punished as principal.
However, federal law treats accessories after the facts differ from the principals. Accessories after the fact faced a maximum of only half a fine and half the prison time faced by the principal. (If the principal faces the death penalty or life imprisonment, the accessory after the fact faces the sentence of 15 years in prison.) Federal law defines the after-fact accessories as a person who provides criminals with specific help to impede criminal understanding or prosecution:
Anyone, knowing that a violation of the United States has been committed, accepting, reducing, entertaining, or assisting the offender to impede or prevent its understanding, experimentation or punishment, is an accessory after the event.
See also
- Accomplice
Notes and references
External links
- Attorney Source
- All reference references
- Free dictionary
- New Zealand's Net Act
- Blackstone Comments
- The new wales South legal aid article
- West Virginia (USA) modeled the jury's instruction
- Florida (USA) laws
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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