Larceny is a crime involving the unlawful taking or theft of the personal property of another person or business. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of England into their own law (also statutory law), where in many cases it remains in force.

The crime of larceny has been abolished in England, Wales, Ireland, and Northern Ireland, broken up into the specific crimes of burglary, robbery, fraud, theft, and related crimes. However, larceny remains an offence in parts of the United States, Jersey,[1] and in New South Wales,[2] Australia, involving the taking (caption) and carrying away (asportation) of personal property without the owner's consent and without intending to return it.

Etymology

The word "larceny" is a late Middle English word, from the French word larcin, "theft". Its probable Latin root is latrocinium, a derivative of latro, "robber" (originally mercenary).

By nation

Australia

New South Wales

In the state of New South Wales, the common law offence of larceny is punishable with up to 5 years' imprisonment.[3] Whilst section 117 of the New South Wales Crimes Act 1900 specifies the punishment for larceny, it is silent on the elements of the offence, leaving them to be articulated by the common law.[3] The leading authority on larceny in NSW is the High Court of Australia case of Ilich v R (1987).[4] This case stipulates the mens rea and actus reus elements required to be proven by the prosecution for a successful conviction.

Ireland

The common law offence of larceny was abolished[5] on 1 August 2002.[6] However, proceedings for larceny committed before its abolition are not affected by this.[7]

United Kingdom

England and Wales

Richard Percy Stewart, 27, was a painter arrested in North Shields, England for larceny in 1905, after stealing a jacket and vest. He was sentenced to 3 months in prison.

The common law offence of larceny was codified by the Larceny Act 1916. It was abolished[8] on 1 January 1969,[9] for all purposes not relating to offences committed before that date.[10] It has been replaced by the broader offence of theft under section 1(1) of the Theft Act 1968. This offence did incorporate some of the terminology and substance of larceny. Despite the offence's being abolished in England, it has been retained in the Crown Dependency of Jersey.[11]

Northern Ireland

The common law offence of larceny was abolished[12] on 1 August 1969,[13] for all purposes not relating to offences committed before that date.[14] It has been replaced by the broader offence of theft under section 1(1) of the Theft Act (Northern Ireland) 1969.

United States

Chart indicating the distribution of forms of larceny in the United States, according to the 2004 Uniform Crime Report.

Larceny laws in the United States of America have their roots in common law, pursuant to which larceny involves the trespassory taking (caption) and carrying away (asportation, removal) of the tangible personal property of another with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of its possession. Larceny is now codified as a statutory crime in all U.S. jurisdictions.[15]

Under many states' larceny statutes, including California, larceny can include the taking of "money, labor, or real or personal property."[16]

Elements

Possession versus custody

Larceny is a crime against possession. Furthermore, it has two elements which must be met: the actual taking of the property, even if momentarily (actus reus), and the culpable intent (mens rea) to deprive another of their property. Larceny involves the trespassory taking of property from possession of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of that property.[17]:945 To understand larceny, one must understand the distinction between custody and possession.[18]

  • A person has possession of property when he has actual physical control over the property (actual possession) or he has the right to exercise considerable control over the disposition or use of the property (constructive possession).
  • A person has custody if he has actual physical control of the property, but the person who has constructive possession has substantially restricted the custodian's right to use the property.[18]

Examples of custody would be a store customer examining the goods of a merchant, or an employee who has been given the property of his employer to be used in his employment. This is to be contrasted to, for example, a person who has obtained actual possession of the property by fraud.

Ancient Roman law (first 50 years of written University law, possibly borrowing from Greek law there is no copy of) was more lax about "simple possession"; it was assumed "borrowing" if there was no one to ask: unless or until other factors arose (such as refusal to return promptly when asked).

Take

The taking or caption element requires that the offender take actual physical control of the property, if but for a moment.[19] Under the common law, it was not sufficient if the offender simply deprived the victim of possession; the offender must have gained control over the property. Thus merely knocking an article from a person's hand was not larceny, as long as the defendant did not thereafter take it. The control must be complete. In a famous case, the defendant removed an overcoat from a department store mannequin and began to walk away with it. The overcoat was secured to the mannequin by a chain, a fact the defendant first discovered when the chain drew taut. These actions were held not to be larceny because the defendant never had complete control over the disposition and use of the coat.[20]

The taking may be only momentary. In another famous case,[21] the defendant snatched an earring from the victim which immediately became entangled in the victim's hair. The court held that the defendant's control over the property, although momentary, was sufficient to constitute a taking. The taking may be either direct or indirect; that is, accomplished by the criminal himself or an innocent agent.

The equivalent term "deprive" is also sometimes used: