Introduction to Criminal Liability

Criminal Law is a large area; during AS Law, you may look at over 50 cases! Rather than explain the ins and outs of criminal law here, this page offers you an introduction to criminal law in the specific context of young people.

Read the following incidents carefully and decide if you think a criminal offence has been committed:

1. Alan (14) and Hazel (9) take apples from a tree belonging to the lady who lives next door.
   
2. Darren (17) takes a pair of jeans from a clothes shop. He and his parents are unemployed and they have very little money to spare.
   
3. Sadia (15) was caught outside a shop with a CD she had not paid for. She is a daydreamer and had left the shop without thinking. She had not intended to steal the CD. She had £14.50 in her purse.



In each of the examples it appears that a criminal law may have been broken, as a theft may have taken place. However the law has to be satisfied of certain things before a person can be found guilty of a crime:

Generally a person has to intend to commit the act before he or she can be found guilty of a crime. A crime could also have been committed by a person acting recklessly (not caring about the result of their actions).

There are some crimes however, where intention to commit the act is not required, for example, motoring offences. You can be found guilty of speeding even if you did not intend to break the limit.

No child under 10 years of age can be found guilty of a crime. The law assumes young children do not sufficiently understand the difference between right and wrong to be responsible for what they have done.

Children between 10 and 14 years of age may be found guilty of a crime if the court believes they knew what they were doing was wrong. Children over 14 are assumed in law to know the difference between right and wrong.

So, in the examples you have already looked at:

Hazel, who was 9, could not be found guilty of stealing apples as she is under the age of criminal responsibility.

Alan and Darren have both committed crimes.

Sadia however, has not committed a crime, as she had no intention of stealing the CD (although she may find it hard to convince anyone of this).