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Transcript of Topic 14
Topic 14
BurglaryTopic 14
Burglary
Topic 14
Burglary
Introduction
Burglary is defined in the Theft Act 1968. According to s.9(1), a person is guilty of burglary if:
(a) he or she enters any building or part of a building as a trespasser and with intent to commit any such offence as mentioned in s.9(2) (stealing, inflicting grievous bodily harm or causing criminal damage), or
(b) having entered any building or part of a building as a trespasser, he or she steals or attempts to steal anything in the building or that part of it or inflicts or attempts to inflict on any person therein any grievous bodily harm
Topic 14
Burglary
Actus reus (1)
Entry
The actus reus of burglary requires the defendant to have
entered the building (R v Collins, 1973; R v Brown, 1985; R
v Ryan, 1996).
Topic 14
Burglary
Actus reus (2)
The definition of building
The type of building that is burgled affects the length of sentence that the defendant will receive.
‘Building’ is discussed in s.9(4) of the Theft Act 1968:
‘References in subsections (1) and (2) above to a building…shall also apply to an inhabited vehicle or vessel, and shall apply to any such vehicle or vessel at times when the person having a habitation in it is not there as well as at times when he is.’
Topic 14
Burglary
Actus reus (3)
Stevens v Gourley (1859)
Judge Byles defined a building as ‘a structure of
considerable size and intended to be permanent or at least
endure for a considerable time’.
Topic 14
Burglary
Actus reus (4)
Part of a building: R v Walkington (1979)
The defendant went into a department store. He went
behind the till to look in an open cash register. When he
saw that there was nothing in it he closed the drawer. The
defendant was charged with burglary under s.9(1)(a). His
conviction was upheld, as the Court of Appeal believed that
what constitutes ‘part of a building’ is a question of fact for
the jury to decide.
Topic 14
Burglary
Actus reus (5)The requirement of a trespassIf the defendant has permission to enter a building or part of a building, he or she is not a trespasser. However, the defendant will be a trespasser if he or she goes beyond the permission given to him or her.In R v Jones and Smith (1976), the defendant had permission to enter his parent’s house, but when he did so in the middle of the night with his friend and took two television sets, the court held that he was a trespasser. The Court of Appeal said: ‘A person is a trespasser if he enters premises of another knowing that he is entering in excess of the permission that he has been given to him to enter, or being reckless whether he is in excess of that permission.’
Topic 14
Burglary
Mens rea
The mens rea of burglary requires the defendant to either intend or be reckless that he or she is a trespasser.
In order to have the mens rea for s.9(1)(a), he or she must intend to commit one of the ulterior offences in s.9(2) – causing criminal damage, stealing or inflicting grievous bodily harm.
Section 9(1)(b) requires that the defendant have the required mens rea for the offence when he or she commits it or attempts to commit it. He or she need not have the mens rea for the offence at the time of entry.
Topic 14
Burglary
Evaluation
• There is no definition of ‘building’.
• The ‘ulterior offences’ are confusing for the jury.
• The interpretation of ‘entry’ and ‘trespasser’ has changed many times.