Where several persons are engaged or concerned in the commission of a criminal act, they may be guilty of different offences by means of that act.
Section history
Section 38 — Several persons engaged in the commission of a criminal act may be guilty of different offences
As in force on 31 December 2021.
The text below is this provision as reproduced in the Revised Edition that came into force on this date. A revised edition consolidates the law without changing its substance, so editorial amendments — such as renumbering, updated citations and formatting — may have been made but are not shown as a redline.
Illustration
A attacks Z under such circumstances of grave provocation that his killing of Z would be only culpable homicide not amounting to murder. B, having ill will towards Z, and intending to kill him, and not having been subject to the provocation, assists A in killing Z. Here, though A and B are both engaged in causing Z’s death, B is guilty of murder, and A is guilty only of culpable homicide.