Actus Reus and Mens Rea Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Actus Reus and Mens Rea - Research Paper Example lt case, for instance, may say that he hit the victim unintentionally and hence did not have the required motive for an assault, or a motive to bring about physical injury (Allen, 2013). Nevertheless, if the prosecution can establish that the victim and defendant had been quarrelling immediately prior to the suspected assault, the intent can work as a circumstantial proof that a suspect truly did intend to hurt the victim. Otherwise, defendants can take advantage of the prosecution’s lack of evidence of intent as a ‘reasonable doubt’ to evade criminal responsibility (LaFave, 2006). This paper discusses ‘actus reus’ and ‘mens rea’ as depicted on the cases of homicide, murder, rape, and manslaughter. It also answers the following questions: why are individuals not punished for their thoughts? What are some of the reasons why law requires ‘mens rea’? Why is it difficult to prove ‘mens rea’ beyond a reasonable doubt? Murder is a usual crime which has not been identified by the law. The 17th-century definition of murder given by Sir Edward Coke is â€Å"†¦ the unlawful killing of a reasonable person in being and under the King’s peace with malice aforethought, express or implied†¦ is widely referenced. The actus reus is described by the first part and mens rea by the second† (Allen, 2013, 324). As explained by Sir Edward Coke, the mens rea of murder needs one component to be met—malice aforethought, whether overt or covert. Aforethought does not necessitate planning or thinking ahead of time just that the motive to murder does not occur after the action. The mens rea of unlawful killing is fulfilled by the motive to kill or bring about serious physical injury (Allen, 2013). Overt motive is direct, a suspect fires at the victim attempting to murder him. Motive could also be indirectly expressed by the suspect trying to bring about harm which leads to death (Brody & A cker, 2011). Nevertheless, problems emerge when the primary goal of the