DPP v Armstrong
| DPP v Armstrong | |
|---|---|
Held: to request an illegal item which does not exist in the hands of the intended vendor, but would be a severe offence to sell, amounts to incitement of an offence in the law of England and Wales. | |
| Court | High Court of Justice (Queen's Bench Division) |
| Full case name | Director of Public Prosecutions v Andrew Armstrong |
| Decided | 5 November 1999 |
| Citation | 1999 EWHC QB 270; 45 LS Gaz 32, 143 Sol Jo LB 279, [2000] Crim LR 379 |
| Cases cited |
|
| Legislation cited | Common law |
| Case history | |
| Prior action | None |
| Subsequent action | None |
| Court membership | |
| Judges sitting | Lord Justice Tuckey, Mr Justice Moses |
| Keywords | |
| Incitement; impossibility to complete the offence | |
DPP v Armstrong is a decision of the Queen's Bench Division of the English High Court of Justice dealing with incitement when the offence incited could be deemed "impossible" to complete, on the precise facts. It was ruled that this impossibility (and more specifically complete lack of means and/or intention by another person to complete the very specific offence incited) is irrelevant to the incitement itself and therefore a conviction is sustainable.