Robbery concepts and applications

Robbery is described as the criminal activity of trying to take or taking a valuable thing through force or threat of force by putting the victim in fear. In common law, this criminal activity is defined as taking another person's property with the intention of permanently depriving the victim their property using means of force or fear. Notably, the precise definition of robbery as a criminal offence may vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. However, many states or jurisdictions describe robbery as theft of someone's property or money through use of fear against the victim or physical force by the offender. Robbery is quite different from theft because of its use of intimidation and violence to accomplish the offender's aim. Unlike simple theft, the offence of robbery normally requires a victim to be threatened with harm or suffer actual injury.

Aspects of Robbery in Washington:

In Washington, DC, robbery is considered as an offence that comprises of a combination of two distinct crimes i.e. assault and theft. Consequently, the offence has a serious assault than either of the crimes since its crime against an individual and against property. In this jurisdiction, this criminal activity incorporates three basic elements which are force or violence, taking a valuable thing, and taking directly from a person or from the individual's property. The punishment for this criminal offence in Washington ranges between 2 to 15 years imprisonment ("Robbery," n.d.). Additionally, the use of a weapon in committing a theft from the victim turns the crime into an armed robbery. The conviction of such a crime could result in a punishment of maximum sentence of up to 30 years imprisonment. However, this imprisonment could include a compulsory minimum sentence of between 5 to 10 years based on the nature of previous criminal activities and the offender's criminal history.

Essential Elements for Robbery, Armed Robbery, and Carjacking:

In order for an offence to classified into any of the three categories, there are specific elements which the offence should contain. For robbery the essential elements of the crime are certain intention, theft from an individual, and use of fear or force. However, this level of fear or force doesn't necessarily have to be great in order to meet the statutory threshold. Since robbery and armed robbery differ slightly, the essential elements for armed robbery include those of robbery though the use of a deadly weapon is included to take immediate control of the victim. On the other hand, the essential elements of carjacking are hijacking for the purpose of stealing a motor vehicle and armed assault on the vehicle's occupants.

In armed robbery offences, the main weapons that will suffice are deadly weapons which are either loaded or unloaded firearms. Notably, the weapons that can suffice in armed robbery offence are other weapons that can cause great bodily harm or death of the victim such as daggers, slingshots, sword canes, bludgeons, and sharp pointed canes ("Criminal Law," n.d.).