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STRICT LIABILITY OFFENCES, NB the more the above factors are present, the…

- - - - however, there's some statutes that don't make it clear whether or not the offences they cover are strict liability or not. in this situation the judges have to decide the issue.
- - - - (1) the wording of the act implies strict liability
        
        over years, judiciary have interpreted certain words in act as indicating that no mens rea is necssary
        
        examples:
        
        if statute makes an offence of "causing" something to happen it will be interpreted as not requiring proof of mens rea
        
        in *Alphacell v Woodward 1972 the relevant statute made it an offence to "cause" polluted water to enter a river. D's company were convicted even though there was no evidence that they'd been reckless or negligent (leaves had clogged up their filter)
        
        also NRA v Yorkshire Water 1994 d were strictly liable for "causing" the polluting of a river with raw sewage.
        
        the words "being in possession of" also implies that the act creates strict liability. hence no mens rea needs to be proven to convict for someone "being in possession" of cannabis
        
        in contrast using word "knowingly" in a statute indicates that mens rea probably needs to be proved and it's not a strict liability offence
      - it is a regulatory offence
        
        regulatory offences are those which "are not truly criminal" Gammon 1985
        
        they're created to encouraging us to stick to the rules that make society work better, e.g. Traffic offences and Health and Safety
        
        this is in contrast to "true crimes" e.g. theft and GBH that punish us for immoral behaviour
        
        if social stigma (moral condemnation) might result from conviction then the offence is less likely to be regarded as SL.
        
        in other words, if a guilty verdict would seriously damage an individual's reputation then the offence much more likely to be classed as one that requires proof of mens rea
        
        1 more item...
      - it's a public safety offence
        
        an offence designed to make potential offenders take extra care to protect the general public is more likely to be regarded as strict liability
        
        Examples:
        
        pollution offences Alphacell v Woodward
        
        road traffic offence - driving under the influence of alcohol
        
        offences under the Food and Drugs Acts
        
        in Gammon v AG Hong Kong 1985 building laws made it an offence for builders to deviate from the architect's plan. in this case the builders did not comply and the building collapsed. the fact they didn't know that they were deviating substantially from the plan did not help them. this was a public safety offence and one of strict liability
      - It is a crime with a small penalty
        
        examples:
        
        parking offence or speeding
        
        if the offence can be punished by prison, the court are much less likely to make it a SL offence.
        
        see under age sex cases such as B v DPP 2000 and R v K 2001