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Actus Reus and Mens Rea
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| Submitted: Thu Jul 11 2002
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Actus Reus and Mens Rea To be convicted of any crime under English law, two elements need to be proved, the actus reus and the mens rea. The actus reus for any crime is different, the actus reus is most commonly known as the 'guilty act' or the 'state of affairs', while the mens rea constitutes the 'state of mind' of the accused. The mens rea of a crime may be present, but if the actus reus is absent, no conviction can be made. It will have to be determined in the present case whether both the actus reus and mens rea can be proved, in order to identify and judge, David and Alex's actions. From the details given, it is necessary to decide whether Alex was responsible for her actions or was it due to non-insane automatism. As regards David, the issue of self-defence has to be considered, but also the actions...
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