What is the difference between a criminal offence and a regulatory offence?
Alberta, Canada
The following excerpt is from Canada v. Barrientos, 1995 ABCA 468 (CanLII):
Most cases trace the modern distinction between criminal and regulatory offences back to Sherras v. DeRutzen, [1895] Q.B.918. The issue of mens rea arose in the case of a publican who had sold liquor to a non-duty constable. He had assumed that the constable was off duty because the constable, before entering the pub, had removed his armband. Wright J. held that mens rea is presumed to exist subject to certain exceptions, one of which is “acts which…are not criminal in any real sense but are acts which in the public interest are prohibited under a penalty.”
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