GENERAL ELEMENTS OF THE TERRORIST CRIME
Liability for serious offences requires proof that the accused was blameworthy in doing what they did. It is because of it is an important ethical principle underpinning the criminal law that the state has the moral authority to punish its citizens only if they deserve it. Terrorism defined under Article 1 of Anti-terrorism law as: “ Every criminal act committed by an individual, or an organized group that targeted an individual, or a group of individuals or groups or official or unofficial institutions and caused damage to public or private properties, with the aim to disturb the peace, stability, and national unity or to bring about horror and fear among people and to create chaos to achieve terrorist goals.”
Elements of a crime of terrorism, in general, for an act to be an offence in the Iraqi anti-terrorism law, there are two elements must be present: The actus reus, which Includes: (criminal behavior, result, and Causation) and the mental element (achieve terrorist goals).
3.2.1 The Criminal Act (Actus Reus)
Terrorism is principally a psychological act that communicates through violence or the threat of violence. The core element
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The general intent: A general intent is an intent to commit the actus reus or criminal act. There is no obligation that prosecutors demonstrate that an offender possessed the intent to violate the law, a consciousness that the act is an offence, or that the act will cause in a particular type of harm. Proof of the defendant’s general intent usually inferred from the nature of the law and the surrounding circumstances. It is intent to do the actor to try to do the act. Specific intent is any other kind of criminal intent requirement. The general intent is less sophisticated than specific intent. So overall intent offences are easier to prove and can also result in a less severe punishment. An essential definition of general intent is the intent to perform the criminal act or actus
“A jury may infer a defendant’s specific intent from the circumstances attending the act, the manner in which it is done, and the means used, among other factors.” Id. at 834. Moreover, the specific intent to maim may not be proven exclusively from evidence that the injury inflicted is permanently disfiguring. Id. In Ferrell, the defendant entered the victim’s apartment and, after a confrontation, shot one victim in the knee, and another victim in the neck paralyzing her.
Grem the court concludes battery is harmful contact of one person against another, with the intent to act out and harm the person receiving the harmful contact, which leads to direct or indirect results. Grem attacked Agnes from behind, smashing a “rocks glass” into his head, resulting in a permanent scar after his injury was healed. The court ruled in favor of Agnes. It reasoned that Grem clearly acted with intent, as he was behind Agnes when he attacked him, as well as acted with intent to harm, as he smashed a “rocks glass” into Agnes’s skull to result in injury against Agnes. Though Grem acted recklessly in his actions and intent, it was substantially certain that Grem acted with the intent to cause harm towards
The doctrine of transferred intent, which is highly criticized by Dressler as a useless and potentially misleading legal fiction, see p. 122 - 125, is not followed in Texas. Instead, in Texas, the issue of what happens when a different person or property than the target is injured or harmed or otherwise affected is an issue of causation. The same is true when a different offense than the one desired, contemplated or risked was committed. Section 6.04 (b) TPC says that a person is nevertheless criminally responsible for causing a result if the only difference between what actually occurred and what the actor desired, contemplated, or risked is that :(1) a different offense was committed, See Thompson v. State, 236 S.W.3d 787 (Tex. Crim. App.
Similarly, the act increased penalties for those who commit terrorist crimes at both home and abroad. The act created a new offense that forbids knowingly protecting persons who have committed or are about to commit a variety of terrorist attacks such as the use of weapon of mass destruction,
For battery there must have been the actual act and intent is not necessarily a requirement. A negligent or illegal act may be enough. For assault it is required that an actual deliberate threat was made to cause fear on the victim, and there was an attempt to commit battery.
Criminal behaviour has always been an interest for psychologists, for they could never quite come to a conclusion between nature and nurture. Research concerning this topic has been organized for many years and due to the never ending debate, is still being conducted. I have decided to read and write about this myself, for I was genuinely curious about the matter and wanted to be a part of the research, as I felt responsible to do so. I believe that in order to stop something, it must be discussed and scrutinized. What effects do genes have on criminal behaviour, why do peer pressure and habitat influence a person to commit crimes and are men really more violent than women?
WHAT ARE THESE INTENTIONS? GIVE A
National terrorism has been the focus of attention since September 11 (Haubrich, 2006). Unfortunately, domestic terrorism is now becoming increasingly common with hate groups around our nation. Domestic terrorism can be defined as violent acts that someone has committed in their own country against their fellow citizens and infrastructures. Some examples of violent acts include violent crimes, (murder, assault, and etc.) property crimes, and public order crimes.
What constitutes an intention to commit a criminal offence has been the focus of intense common law debate for more than three decades. Intention can be separated into two sub-sections: ‘direct intent’ and ‘oblique intent.’ The preponderance of murder cases deal with the concept of direct intent, and prove to be uncomplicated as the defendant embarks on a course of conduct to bring about a result which in fact occurs. When considering the concept of oblique intent, it is essential to look at the case of R v Woolin [1998] 1 WLR, alongside previous cases, to better understand how and why the appellate courts have developed the meaning of oblique intent. It is also important to note that in view of the uncertainty inherent in the judicial guidelines
“ ‘Motive’ is not an element of second degree murder. ....[t]he state is not obligated to prove that the accused had a cause or reason to commit the crime of second degree murder; it is required to prove that the accused had the ‘specific intent’ to commit the crime. ”State v. Johnson, 324 So.2d 349, 353 (La.1975). As a result, the court of appeal committed error in reversing the defendant's second degree murder conviction because of its misplaced view that the State failed to prove motive, which is not an element of the charged offense.2
However, as presented in Glebow, there are specific cases where it is appropriate to expand upon intent. Justice Davies in Glebow stated intention could be looked at
A statute may be voided for vagueness if it is determined a reasonable person cannot comprehend what activity is being prohibited (Hall, 2014). Additionally, the statute may be voided if the penalty for the activity is not clearly defined so that a reasonable person could discern the penalties for the prohibited actions. This can become a due process issue, by not giving full disclosure to the people explaining the action prohibited, moreover, not detailing the punishment for the action. The void-for-vagueness doctrine provides a protection of the people, requiring that laws be detailed to avoid police and prosecutors from having infinite power over determining what individuals should be charged. The void-for-vagueness doctrine most commonly applies to criminal cases.
A tort is a wrong committed by a person. There are three types of wrongs, which are intentional torts, unintentional torts and strict liability. According to the textbook, intentional torts is when someone’s reputation and privacy are violated. An assault is the threat of immediate harm or offensive contact or any action that arouses. Physical contact is unnecessary in order for it to be considered an assault.
The meaning of intention have been highly debated and had went through transformation throughout the years. It was R v Moloney [1985] AC 905 which introduced the Moloney Guidelines was the first case to introduce this subject, this case was followed by R v Hancock and Shankland [1985] 3 WLR 1014 then came along the case of R v Nedrick [1986] 1 WLR 1025 the final, clarified guidance comes from R v Woolin [1999] 1 A.C. 82 . DIRECT INTENT If a defendant commits an act with an aim in mind, and he succeeds in it, it can be said that he directly intended this consequence, and therefore, has direct intent. For an example, in the case of R v White [1910] 2 KB 124 , defendant put cyanide into his mother’s lemonade drink, but she died of heart failure before the poison could kill her.