Arkansas Criminal Defense Blog ©

Actus Reus is the criminal legal term of the week. Last week we discussed “mens rea” which is the mental state required for any given criminal act.

Actus Reus is the act that is done. When a prosecutor is proving his case he has to not only prove what the criminal’s mental state was, but also prove that he did the act.

Example: Assault in the Third Degree is a Class C Misdemeanor in Arkansas. (A.C.A. 5-13-207). The crime is defined as follows:

“A person commits assault in the third degree if he or she purposely
creates apprehension of imminent physical injury in another person.”

Here is a breakdown of the two parts:

Mens Rea- The prosecutor must show that the defendant “purposely” acted. Under the Arkansas statutes someone acts purposely if it is the person’s conscious object to engage in conduct of that nature or to cause the result. (A.C.A. 5-2-202)

Actus Reus- The Prosecutor must show that the defendant created apprehension of imminent physical injury in another person.

Next week’s criminal legal term: Modus Operandi.

Tags: Legal Term of the Week