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Incitement (Mens Rea (R v Whitehouse: The incitee must be capable of…
Incitement
Mens Rea
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R v Shaw:
Facts: Accused charged with incitement to obtain property by deception
- Getting a fellow employee to pass false invoices off as real ones
Issue; Claimed motives was not personal profit but to highlight weaknesses in his employer's security system
Held; Convicted,but appeal quashed
- judge should have directed jury that dishonesty was an important element of the offence
- By having an apparently altruistic motive, he could not have been convicted of crime of incitement
No need that the accused communicate the incitement to a particular person
Invicta Plastics v Clare: Held co had placed an article in a magazine which incited breach of Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 re receiving police transmission
Held Entirely of article should be examined in deciding whether plain intention of article = incitementR v Marlow: Accused wrote book on cultivation and production of cannibas
- Held Book incited breach of Misuse of Drugs Act
Incitement
A person incites another to commit a crime if they:
- Persuade
- Coerce
- Or otherwise cause another person to commit a crime
Also includes:
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Case law
DPP's consent needed before a prosecution can be initiated
- So far only three prosecutions taken, one successful
People (DPP) v Flannery: accused was a Mayo policeman who reporedly said at a meeing of the Western Health Board, that travellers were 'like pedigree dogs'
- Held: Not guilty
People (DPP) v O'Grady:
Facs; Dublin bus driver referred to a Gambian passenger as a 'nignog'
- Asked him 'what are you doing in this country' and told him to 'Go back to where you come from'
Held: Convicted in District Court but won appeal in Circuit Court
- However appalling words were, they were not intended or likely to stir up hatred under the strict interpretation of the law
- the act does not target hate speech per se, but the inciting of people to become hateful towards minorities
: Proselytising that is criminal not hatred
People (DPP) v Callan:
Facts: Schol bus driver said to a 12 year old boy on his bus
- What are you doing you fucking nigger, sit down you black bastard
- Go back to Africa where you came from
- referring to no. of blacks in nearby car- those blacks in the car should taken out and drowned
Held: Final comment is the one which signified the incitement to hatred which distinguishes it from previous cases
Further Reform
S2 Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act 1989
Makes it an offence to display, publish, distribute or show any material likely to stir up hatred
- Hatred defined: hatred against a group or person in the state or elsewhere on account of race, colour, nationality, religion etc
Defence: for such material to be published within a private residence unless being used to hold public meetingMR: No need for prosecution to prove accused intended to stir up hatred
s2(2); Defence to a charge if the accused can prove he was not aware of the content of the material and that he had no reason to suspect the material was threatening, abusive or insulting
Section 3
Media outlets targeted
- Broadcasters, producers, directors and contributors are covered
- Defences provided include lack of suspicion the offending item would be broadcast or that the material was likely to stir up hatred
Jersild v Denmark: Current affairs TV programme broadcst section bout political far right
- Featured a group of neo-Nazi youths speaking about immigration
- Found to have invited hatred, but this was held to contravene FOE
- Taking in all circumstances into account, it was reasonable to include such material due to serious nature of the programme and the maturity of its intended audience
Definition
People (AG) v Capaldi:
Facts: Accused charged with incitement to procure an aborion
- Brought pregnant gf to doctor and asked him to 'do something for her'
- Doctor replied he was being asked to perform an illegal operation
- Accused replied; he knew this and there was plenty of money to meet his fees re the procedure
Held; Person incited need not actually go on to commit the offence
Definition: A person may truly incite another to commit a crime by the action of stirring up enmity in his mind against another, or by offering him some pecuniary or other inducement
- Such action would be an incitement if, but for it, it would not have occured to the party incited to commit the crime
Murder
S4 Offences Against the Person Act
Offence to solicit, encourage, persuade or endeavor to persuade a person to commit murder
People (DPP) v Gillane: Lynch J held the solicited person does not need to know details of the victim's identity so long as there is a definite intended victim
- If group of people solicited, it is not necessary every person in group know what is going on as long as one person in group does so understand