Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery PDF

OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4...

OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery Lesson Aim: The learner will be able to differentiate between different types of acquisitive crime Learning Outcomes: On successful completion of the lesson, Introduction students will be able to:- The term 'Robbery' is often incorrectly used by the public to refer to other incidents of theft 1. Describe the common law crime of robbery You as a police officer must be aware of what exactly constitutes the crime of robbery, how the crime is defined and its essential elements. Robbery is considered a serious crime and any reports must be treated as a priority. 1 th Amended 25 April 2024 v.5 OFFICIAL  OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery Definition of Robbery “A crime at common law committed by any person, who feloniously appropriates property, by means of violence or threats of violence.” As this is a common law crime it is punishable by imprisonment and the power of arrest is provided under Section 1 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2016. Communication C As a police officer investigating this crime you will meet victims who may be traumatised by the incident. Good communication skills are required to assist you to extract vital information regarding the offender quickly. The Essential Elements for Robbery There must be certain essential elements present to prove the crime of robbery. They are as follows:- 1. Violence or the threat of violence 2. As well as the violence there must be the intent to feloniously appropriate ("steal") the property 3. The robber must take possession of the property To help you understand the essential elements of the crime we will look at them in more depth. 2 Scots Criminal Law: Introduction and Investigation OFFICIAL  OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery Activity 1 A1 From what we have learned so far which of the following do you think is a robbery? A school pupil threatens another pupil that he will punch him if he does not hand over his mobile telephone. The pupil hands over his mobile phone. Yes No A male enters the post office with an imitation hand gun and shouts, “Hand over the money!” No money is handed over. Yes No Two people carrying guns enter a bank and pointing them at staff shout, “Hand over the money!” They get handed the money but then the alarm rings and they drop it and run out leaving it behind. Yes No Example Charge EC “On 16th June 2020, at Coleridge Close, Brookbank, you SEAN OWEN by means of violence or threats of violence, rob Andrew Rudd, care of Police Service of Scotland, of a mobile phone.” 3 Scots Criminal Law: Introduction and Investigation OFFICIAL  OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery 1. Violence or the Threat of Violence There must be a degree of violence used to force the victim to give up the property. For some people the mere threat of being assaulted may be all it takes for the property to be handed over. Such threats may be verbal but commonly we would relate this to a weapon being displayed e.g. a knife or gun being pointed at the victim. The violence or threat of violence must be offered at the same time as the property is taken. The threat of violence at a later date (whilst still criminal and an example of the common law crime of Extortion) would not constitute robbery. These examples are from actual cases and you may well come across similar cases in the near future. 1. Two males jumped into a taxi and punched the driver in the head as they grabbed his bag with the takings. They then ran away with the bag 2. A 12-year-old girl was selling sweets for charity by going round the houses. A 15-year-old girl stopped her and threatened to “kick her face in” if she did not hand them over. In fear of her safety the girl immediately handed over the sweets 3. A female waited until people had taken cash from the ATM and then produced a blood-filled syringe stating she would stab them with it if they did not hand over their money. Three people did so before she was traced Remember:- robbery does not always mean an armed hold-up in a bank or building society. 2. Intent to Steal the Property The intention of the attack or threats of violence must be to obtain property. The violence or threats must take effect simultaneously to the property being obtained and robbery has to be the motive of the crime. It is not robbery to assault a person out of malice and then having assaulted them decide to take their wallet out of spite. In this case we would consider charges of assault and theft. 4 Scots Criminal Law: Introduction and Investigation OFFICIAL  OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery The person was assaulted and then the property was stolen. There was no plan to commit robbery. Equally where a pickpocket steals a wallet out of someone’s pocket and is then discovered and uses violence to prevent the owner taking back his property, we do not have a robbery. The crime here is theft and then assault. The wallet was stolen first and then the victim assaulted to prevent him taking back his wallet. Feedback 1 F1 Did you answer as shown? A. Yes - although a playground incident there have been threats of violence made and this has caused the pupil to hand over the mobile phone. B. No - Under the circumstances you would consider assault with intent to rob. C. Yes - weapons have been pointed at staff, they have handed over the money and the robbers have had possession of the money, even for only a brief time, so the crime is robbery. 3. Possession of the Property This is the last link in the chain and must be present for the crime to be complete. The robber must have possession or overall control of the property even if only momentarily. As soon as the robber has the property in their possession the crime is complete. A robber threatens a person with a knife and demands they hand over their wallet. The victim refuses and the assailant runs off without the wallet. The crime here would be assault with intent to rob. If the assailant had possession of the wallet even for a split second, the crime would be robbery. 5 Scots Criminal Law: Introduction and Investigation OFFICIAL  OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery Robbery and Theft Robbery and theft are two different crimes. Robbery is a separate crime and not an aggravation of theft although it looks like the two crimes are very similar at times. The law recognises that there are times when it can be very difficult to decide whether a person should be charged with robbery or assault and theft. It allows that a person charged with robbery may be convicted of theft as a charge of robbery will contain an allegation of theft as part of the charge. Health and Safety HS Be aware when approaching any suspect that they may well be armed and officer safety is a paramount consideration. Case Law In this case, the accused used force to snatch a bag, knocking his victim into a wall with substantial force. The accused was charged with robbery aggravated by a specified charge of assault. The charge of assault was found not proven, but the accused was found guilty of robbery. On appeal against conviction, it was held that the injuries and bruises sustained by the victim, in direct consequence of her handbag being snatched from her, constituted violence sufficient to justify a conviction for robbery. (O'Neill v. HMA (1934) SLT) In this case, the accused approached the complainer from behind and pulled at a money bag he was carrying. The complainer tried to hold on and the plastic handles of the bag snapped. The accused then made off with the bag. Held to be robbery. (Cromar v HMA (1987) SCCR 635) 6 Scots Criminal Law: Introduction and Investigation OFFICIAL  OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery For further information, use the resources shown below:- Legal Database:- Criminal Law - Crimes against Property - Robbery Review: You can describe the common law crime of robbery Learning Log: How will what you have learned in this module impact your day-to- day role? Are there any skills or knowledge you would like to develop further following this module? End of Module 7 Scots Criminal Law: Introduction and Investigation OFFICIAL  OFFICIAL Unit 4 Lesson 5.4 Acquisitive Crimes - Robbery 8 Scots Criminal Law: Introduction and Investigation OFFICIAL