Hi! Welcome to “Dusty Phrases.” You will find below an ancient phrase in one language or another, along with its English translation. You may also find the power to inspire your friends or provoke dread among your enemies.
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Latin:
Mens rea
English:
Guilty mind
This ancient Latin phrase is still used by lawyers today. It refers to the idea that when you commit a crime, you needed to have intended (mentally) to do so. Showing what a person intended though is a difficult task.
From wiki:
In criminal law, mens rea (/ˈmɛnz ˈreɪə/; Law Latin for “guilty mind“) is the mental state of a defendant who is accused of committing a crime. In common law jurisdictions, most crimes require proof both of mens rea and actus reus (“guilty act”) before the defendant can be found guilty.
The standard common law test of criminal liability is expressed in the Latin phrase actus reu non facit reum nisi mens sit rea, i.e. “the act is not culpable unless the mind is guilty”. As a general rule, someone who acted without mental fault is not liable in criminal law. Exceptions are known as strict liability crimes. Moreover, when a person intends a harm, but as a result of bad aim or other cause the intent is transferred from an intended victim to an unintended victim, the case is considered to be a matter of transferred intent.
The types of mental states that apply to crimes vary depending on whether a jurisdiction follows criminal law under the common law tradition or, within the United States, according to the Model Penal Code.
In civil law, it is usually not necessary to prove a subjective mental element to establish liability for breach of contract or tort, for example. But if a tort is intentionally committed or a contract is intentionally breached, such intent may increase the scope of liability and the damages payable to the plaintiff.
In some jurisdictions, the terms mens rea and actus reus have been replaced by alternative terminology.
Embedded below is a more thorough discussion of mens rea.
