Mens Rea

Mens Rea is a legal phrase that is used to describe the mental state a person must have been in while committing a crime to prove that they did the act intentionally. It can refer to a general intent to break the law or a specific, premeditated plan to commit a particular offense. To convict an accused person of a wrong doing, a criminal prosecutor must show beyond any reasonable doubt that the suspect actively participated in a crime that harmed another person or their property.

The term Mens Rea was based on the writings of Edward Coke, an English Jurist who wrote about common law practices. He advocated that "an act does not make a person guilty unless (their) mind is also guilty". This means that a person may have committed an act that is a crime, but they must only be found guilty of criminal activity if the deed was done deliberately.

To put it simply, Mens Rea is a concept that helps determine whether or not a criminal deed was done on purpose or accidentally. One of the most common illustrations of this idea is found in murder cases. The Mens Rea, or mental state of mind that the perpetrator was in at the time of the killing, is an essential factor in whether or not they will be declared guilty or innocent. In order to receive a conviction, the accused party must be shown to have had some intention or willingness to end the life of another person. On the other hand, if the death is shown to be accidental and unavoidable, the suspect must be declared innocent and set free.

In 1962 the American Law Institute created the Model Penal Code (MPC), which helped to better define Mens Rea. It stated that in order to be blameworthy for any activity, the suspect must have done the act willingly, with the knowledge of what the final result would be or in a reckless manner that has no consideration for the safety of others. Actions that meet any of those qualifications will be viewed as intentional crimes, even if the perpetrator claims to be unaware that their activities were illegal. This concept falls under a U.S. law which states that "ignorance of the law or a mistake of law is no defense to criminal prosecution".

Every crime that is tried in court has two factors: the Actus Reus, which is the actual carrying out of the crime itself, and Mens Rea, an intent to commit that act. Prosecutors must prove both of these conditions existed to achieve a conviction. These policies are in place to protect the innocent, and to ensure that people are not penalized for any crime they did not purposefully commit.

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