Criminal law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Criminal law - Essay Example For an act of complicity to be charged there must be at least one principal in the first degree. This is the party who actually performs the actus reus of the crime. An defendant charged with complicity can be classed as a principal in the second degree, which would be someone who is present during the commission of the crime and aids and abets the commission but does not perform the actus reus. An accessory before the fact would be someone who aids and abets the commission of the crime but is not present when it happens and does not perform the actus reus of the offence. An accessory after the fact is one who assists that perpetrator after the crime has been committed. This could be by hindering the apprehension of the perpetrator. Under modern law second degree principles and accessories before the fact are punished identically whereas accessories after the fact would receive a lesser punishment. The American approach to complicity is to punish the principals and the accomplices in equal measure. This is known as derivative liability whereby the accomplices liability is derivative of the conduct of the principal offender. The mens rea required for a charge of complicity is that the accomplice must intentionally aid or encourage a criminal act and have the same mental state necessary for the crime committed by the defendant. There are some exceptions where the accomplice can be charged with complicity where it is sufficient in law for the accomplice was acting with the knowledge that the defendant might commit a crime. With aiding and abetting a crime the accomplice must have intentionally aided the defendant’s criminal act by intentionally committing the acts that assisted or encouraged the defendant to commit the crime and the accessory intended that his acts would help the defendant to commit the offence1. Where the accomplice knows his conduct will assist or encourage the defendant to commit a crime but does not actually intend