All About Strict Liability and Criminal Law
November 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Mens rea is a Latin term meaning “guilty mind,” and it is used in law to express the idea that criminals should only be punished if they had intent to act in the way they did. It is used to measure whether the criminal is morally blameworthy.
The issue of what is moral defines many modern laws, and as a society we use the fact that something is not moral as justification for punishment. This is why it is so important that we can prove intent, mens rea, is present at the time of the crime. Without this the defendant may have been honestly misinterpreting the reality of the situation and not be morally in the wrong.
Crimes of strict liability do not require mens rea to be present. Even if the defendant is morally blameless they can be found guilty of this type of crime. These are crimes that society deems to be so serious that it doesn’t matter whether the defendant had intent or not - the act itself is a crime and they are guilty. Punishment without mens rea is deemed acceptable.
Selling alcohol to a minor is a crime of strict liability. It doesn’t matter if the salesperson honestly though they were of age and thus does not have mens rea. Society deems that this is a crime that must not take place under any circumstances, and is to be punished accordingly. This is why forty years olds will still get carded at bars - these establishments have no margin for error and this follow procedures that seek to eliminate error.
Finally, another example of a crime of strict liability is that of having sex with a minor. The crime is known as statutory rape, and whether or not the adult believed the minor was of age is irrelevant and a crime has been committed regardless. A minor is not old enough to legally consent to sexual intercourse, thus society determines this a crime of strict liability.
For more details about Srict Liability and its role in criminal law you should read the some basic legal textbooks. A good place to start is http://hubpages.com/hub/What-is-Strict-Liability