Why Are the Three Elements Crimes So Necessary in Determining Crime?
Why are the three elements crimes so necessary in determining crime?
According to the assigned reading for this unit, the main three elements of crime are actus reus, mens rea, and causation.
Actus reus in definition is a wrongful action that causes harm. Actus reus must be a voluntary act. An example of actus reus would be someone robbing a bank. The person robbing the bank is committing a conscious action.
Mens rea in definition is a wrongful mind. Mens rea is the state of mind the person in question was in while and before committing a wrongful action. An example of mens rea would be gunman shooting a person and then taking their money and car.
Causation in definition is the requirement that the act must cause the harm. Causation is the link between the harm and actus reus. It must be proven that the criminal conduct caused the harm directly. An example of causation would be a store robber being caught on tape shooting the store clerk and emptying the cash register.
Although some scholars substitute the coexistence of actus reus and mens rea for causation, usually to prosecute most crimes successfully all three elements of crime must be proven.
The three elements of crime are necessary in determining crimes because to prosecute the criminal act properly the crime must be evaluated and proven to be just that a criminal act. The intent of the person that committed the wrongful act must be proven to be a conscious and voluntary act that was the direct cause of harm.