R v Betts and Ridley (1930, 22 Cr App R 148) is a landmark case in English criminal law from 1930, which established that to be convicted of a crime under the doctrine of Common purpose, it was not necessary for an accessory to actually be present when the offence was carried out.[1]
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Victor Betts and Herbert Ridley agreed to rob a man, William Thomas Andrews, as he was on his way to the bank. Their plan was that Betts would push the individual to the ground and snatch his bag. Meanwhile Ridley would be waiting around the corner in a getaway car. However, Betts struck Andrews with such force that he died as a result of the blow.
Both were subsequently convicted of murder and sentenced to death. An appeal against the murder conviction by Ridley later saw his conviction reduced to one of manslaughter and the death sentence commuted.[2] Betts was hanged at Birmingham Prison on 3 January 1931 by Thomas Pierrepoint.[3]
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