In the United States criminal justice system, actus reus generally occurs when an individual voluntarily takes part in an illegal action that results in injury or damage to another person or to another person’s property. In most cases, this is fairly easy to recognize. An individual who is responsible for beating another person will be found guilty of assault and battery. Likewise, an individual who robs a convenience store and is convicted is a criminal and will be sentenced to a fitting punishment.
However, in the criminal justice system, it is not always clear who is a criminal and who is not. This is especially true in cases of omission. Although partaking in illegal activities is the most common way that an individual becomes a criminal, an individual can also be convicted of a crime for failure to take part in essential and required activities.
There are many activities that individuals are required by law to take part in. For example, people who are residing in the United States must pay State and Federal taxes. If an individual fails to pay taxes then he or she will receive penalties for his or her omission. Likewise, an individual who is ordered by a court to pay child support and who fails to do so will receive negative consequences for his or her actions.
An individual who fails to pay child support may face authorities who must determine when the failure to act becomes a crime. criminal charges of contempt and may be arrested. Crimes of omission are often very obscure and vague. In the criminal justice system, it is possible for an individual to be charged with homicide for failure to prevent or to stop a death from occurring, especially in the case of children.
However, this is largely dependent on the relationship between the victim and the defendant. The most commonly used example that is used to illustrate this is failure to rescue a child who is drowning. If a bystander has no relationship to the child and has no responsibility to the child, then the individual has no obligation to rescue the child.
