Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure
Elements and process
Criminal law questions turn on the elements of an offence: object, objective side (act, causation, result), subject (age, sanity), subjective side (intent, negligence). Know the difference between attempt, preparation, and completed offence, and the rules on complicity and cumulative offences.
Concepts you must know
- Legality, guilt, proportionality; grounds excluding punishability (self-defence, necessity, lawful arrest).
- Forms of participation: perpetrator, instigator, accessory; excess by one participant.
- Penalties, probation, release from punishment, statute of limitations for prosecution and for enforcement.
- Procedure: pre-trial proceedings, charges, detention and bail, rights of the accused, evidentiary rules, appeal and cassation.
Traps
- Confusing attempt with impossible attempt; both may be punishable but differently.
- Forgetting that intent must cover the act and the result where the offence requires a result.
- Mixing detention review deadlines with the overall time limits of pre-trial proceedings.
- Overlooking that procedural violations can be grounds for cassation even if guilt is proven.
Worked example
A steals a bag believing it contains money; it contains only papers. Rule of thumb: assess the subjective side against the intended object. If the offence requires a valuable item, the completed offence may fail but attempt may remain punishable. Always check the statutory elements before concluding.
Rule of thumb
Fit facts to each element; if one element fails, ask whether attempt or a lesser offence applies.