The defendant appealed a conviction for kidnapping, saying the victims’ absence of consent was not fundamental. Driving his car, he had stopped at bus stops, inviting women to get in saying falsely that the bus had been cancelled. He had with him articles clearly intended to facilitate rape.
Held: Following Regina -v- D, the victims’ consent had clearly been obtained by fraud. It had been submitted that as in cases of assault and rape, in law only mistakes as to identity or the nature of the act, could vitiate a consent. That contention was rejected. The nature of the consent in rape and assault cases was different. The absence of consent may not need to be proved. ‘It is difficult to see how one could ever consent to that once fraud was indeed established. The ‘nature’ of the act here is therefore taking the complainant away by fraud. The complainant did not consent to that event. All that she consented to was a ride in the car, which in itself is irrelevant to the offence and a different thing from that with which Mr Cort is charged.’
Buxton LJ, Mitting, Paget QC JJ
Times 23-Jul-2003, Gazette 18-Sep-2003, [2003] 3 WLR 1300, [2004] QB 388
England and Wales
Citing:
Applied – Regina v D HL 1984
D was convicted for kidnapping his 5-year old daughter, a ward of court, who was in the care and control of her mother. The CA held that there was no such offence as the kidnapping of a child under 14, that it could not be committed by a parent, and . .
Cited by:
Cited – Regina v Dica CACD 5-May-2004
Reckless HIV transmission – Grievous Bodily Harm
The defendant appealed against his conviction for inflicting grievous bodily harm. He had HIV/Aids, and was found to have transmitted the disease by intercourse when the victims were not informed of his condition. It was not suggested that any rape . .
Cited – Regina v Hendy-Freegard CACD 23-May-2007
The defendant against appealed his conviction for kidnapping. He had fraudulently taken control of his victims’ lives and fleeced them. He was said to have kidnapped them, originally by persuading them to get into his car and then driving off. He . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Updated: 14 October 2021; Ref: scu.185833