Actus reus and mens rea are elements of criminal liability. To be criminally liable for a particular behavior requires a prohibited action (the actus reus) and a criminal state of mind (the mens rea). This is explained in detail in the related link below.
The Mens Rea is the criminal INTENT to commit the offense - the Actus Rea is the actual ACT of committing it.
Mens rea is a Latin legal term that can be translated as "guilty mind" or "criminal intent". To commit a crime, you need mens rea - the INTENT to commit a crime, and actus reus - the actual doing of a crime.
It is against the law for me to assault you with a Bowling ball, if I intend to hit you, and in fact, DO hit you. However, if the handle tears off my ball bag, the ball falls onto your foot, I had no intent to assault you, and thus no mens rea. You, on the other hand, still have a sore foot, and maybe grounds for a civil suit - but there has been no crime.
Mens rea is the state of mind someone must have during an act to be criminally liable for that action.
The fact that he committed it (Actus Rea).
The concurrence theory of mens rea and actus reus.
Nobody is going to do your homework!
§ Actus Reus (Criminal Act)§ Mens Rea (Criminal Intent)§ Concurrence (Actus Reus)§ Causation§ Harm
arm with a weapon then to commit an act of assault
Legality, Mens rea, Actus Reus, Causation, Concurrence, Harm, and Punishment
Sir Edward Coke
the crime of theft requires physically taking something (the actus reus) coupled with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of the object (the mental state, or mens rea)
Explain also, why for less serious crimes parliament has altered the level of mens rea required for conviction?
Two factors must be present in the prosecution of a criminal case. These factors are Mens Rea and Actus Reus. Mens Rea is literally translated as "guilty mind," and colloquially translated as the premeditation of a crime. Actus reus is translated literally to mean "guilty action," and means the actual commission of a crime. Without one, it is very rare to find the other. The Actus Rea is where intent comes in to play, for without the intent of committing a crime, there can be no crime, except in extreme circumstances. A prosecutor must prove that there was Mens rea involved in the commission of the crime or else the case would be extremely shaky.
There are only TWO. (1) a criminal ACT (Actus Reus), accompanied by (2) a criminal INTENT (Mens Rea).
One knows one is illegally parking a car or flying an airplane too low. Those are both matters with a guilty mind. To see a discussion of mens rea and actus reus see the link below.