Translation Notice — This is an English translation of a Hebrew law and may contain inaccuracies. In any dispute or legal matter, the original Hebrew text as published in Reshumot (ספר החוקים) is the sole authoritative and legally binding version.

Law

Penal Law, 5737-1977

חוק העונשין

Section D: Criminal Liability of a Corporation

Scope of Criminal Liability of a Corporation

23.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

(a)A corporation shall bear criminal liability –

(1)pursuant to Section 22, where the offense was committed by a person in the course of performing their function in the corporation;

(2)for an offense requiring proof of criminal intent or negligence, if, in the circumstances of the matter and in light of the person's role, authority, and responsibility in the management of the corporation's affairs, the act by which the offense was committed, and the criminal intent or negligence thereof, are to be regarded as the act, and the intent or negligence, of the corporation.

(b)In an offense committed by omission, where the duty to act is imposed directly upon the corporation, it is immaterial whether the offense may also be attributed to a particular officeholder in the corporation or not.

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Section E: Classification of Offenses by Severity

Classification of Offenses

24.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

The following are the categories of offenses by severity:

(1)"felony" – an offense for which a punishment more severe than imprisonment for a period of three years has been prescribed;

(2)"misdemeanor" – an offense for which a punishment of imprisonment for a period exceeding three months but not exceeding three years has been prescribed; and if the punishment is a fine only – a fine exceeding the amount of the fine that may be imposed for an offense whose punishment is a fine for which no specific sum has been prescribed;

(3)"violation" – an offense for which a punishment of imprisonment for a period not exceeding three months has been prescribed, and if the punishment is a fine only – a fine not exceeding the amount of the fine that may be imposed for an offense whose punishment is a fine for which no specific sum has been prescribed.

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Chapter V: Derivative Offenses

Section A: Attempt

What Constitutes Attempt

25.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person attempts to commit an offence if, with the intent to commit it, he performed an act that goes beyond mere preparation and the offence was not completed.

Impossibility of Committing the Offence

26.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

For the purpose of attempt, it is immaterial that commission of the offence was impossible due to a state of affairs of which the person attempting was unaware or about which he was mistaken.

Special Punishment for Attempt

27.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A provision that prescribes a mandatory punishment for an offence or that prescribes a minimum punishment for it shall not apply to an attempt to commit that offence.

Exemption by Reason of Remorse

28.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person who attempted to commit an offence shall not bear criminal liability for the attempt if he proves that, solely of his own free will and out of remorse, he desisted from completing the act or made a substantial contribution to preventing the consequences upon which completion of the offence is contingent; however, nothing in the foregoing shall derogate from his criminal liability in respect of any other completed offence constituted by the act.

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Section B: Parties to an Offense

Perpetrator

29.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

(a)A perpetrator of an offense — including one who perpetrates it jointly or through another person.

(b)Those who participate in the commission of an offense by performing acts toward its commission are joint perpetrators, and it is immaterial whether all the acts were performed together or whether some were performed by one person and some by another.

(c)A perpetrator through another person is a person who contributed to the performance of the act by another person who performed it as an instrument in his hands, where that other person was in a situation such as one of the following situations, as defined in this Law:

(1)minority or insanity;

(2)absence of control;

(3)without criminal intent;

(4)mistake as to a matter of fact;

(5)duress or justification.

(d)For the purposes of subsection (c), if the offense requires a special perpetrator, a person shall be a perpetrator of that offense even where the special qualification exists only in the other person.

Inciter

30.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

One who brings another person to commit an offense by persuasion, encouragement, demand, entreaty, or by any other means involving the application of pressure, is an inciter to an offense.

Abettor

31.

[Amendment: 1994-3, 1995-6]

A person who, prior to the commission of an offense or at the time of its commission, performed an act in order to enable the commission, to facilitate it or to secure it, or to prevent the apprehension of the perpetrator, the discovery of the offense or its proceeds, or in order to otherwise contribute to the creation of conditions for the commission of the offense, is an abettor.

Punishment for Abetment

32.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

The punishment for abetting the commission of an offense is half the punishment prescribed by law for its principal commission; however, if the offense carries —

(1)a mandatory death sentence or mandatory life Imprisonment — the punishment is twenty years' Imprisonment;

(2)life Imprisonment — the punishment is ten years' Imprisonment;

(3)a minimum punishment — the punishment shall not be less than half the minimum punishment;

(4)any mandatory punishment — it shall constitute the maximum punishment, and half thereof shall constitute the minimum punishment.

Attempt to Incite

33.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

The punishment for attempting to incite a person to commit an offense is half the punishment prescribed for its principal commission; however, if the offense carries —

(1)a mandatory death sentence or mandatory life Imprisonment — the punishment is twenty years' Imprisonment;

(2)life Imprisonment — the punishment is ten years' Imprisonment;

(3)a minimum punishment — the punishment shall not be less than half the minimum punishment;

(4)any mandatory punishment — it shall constitute the maximum punishment, and half thereof shall constitute the minimum punishment.

Exemption Due to Remorse

34.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

(a)An inciter or abettor shall not bear criminal liability for incitement or abetment, or for an attempt to incite, if they prevented the commission of the offense or its completion, or if they timely notified the authorities of the offense for the purpose of preventing its commission or completion and did their utmost to that end by other means; however, nothing in the foregoing shall derogate from criminal liability for another completed offense arising from the same act.

(b)"Authorities", for the purposes of this Section — the Israel Police, or another body empowered by law to prevent the commission of the offense or its completion.

Different or Additional Offense

34a.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

(a)Where a perpetrator commits, in the course of committing the offense, a different offense or one additional to it, and in the circumstances of the matter a reasonable person could have been aware of the possibility of its commission —

(1)the remaining joint perpetrators shall also bear liability for it; however, if the different or additional offense was committed with intent, the remaining perpetrators shall bear liability for it only as an offense of indifference;

(2)the instigator or the accomplice shall also bear liability for it as an offense of negligence, if such an offense exists with the same factual element.

(b)Where a court has convicted a defendant pursuant to subsection (a)(1) of an offense for which a mandatory sentence has been prescribed, it may impose upon him a lesser sentence.

Objective and Personal Circumstances

34b.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A circumstance that is a condition for the constitution of an offense shall have effect with respect to every party to that offense, even if it does not exist in that party; however, a personal circumstance whose effect under any law is to aggravate, mitigate, otherwise alter, or preclude punishment shall have effect only with respect to that party in whom it exists.

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Section C: Common Provisions

Exception for Attempt, Incitement, and Assistance

34c.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

Attempt, incitement, attempted incitement, or assistance in respect of an offense that constitutes a contravention are not punishable.

Application of the Law of the Offense

34d.

[Amendment: 1994-3, 1995-6]

Unless otherwise stated in or implied by a legislative provision, any law applicable to the principal commission of the completed offense applies also to attempt, incitement, attempted incitement, or assistance in respect of that offense.

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Chapter V1: Limitations on Criminal Liability

Section A: General Provisions

Burden of Proof

34e.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

Unless otherwise provided in another enactment, an act is presumed to have been done under conditions that do not exclude criminal liability.

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Section B: Defenses to Criminal Liability

Minority

34f.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act committed before reaching the age of twelve years.

Absence of Control

34g.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act which he committed and was unable to choose between committing it and refraining from it, due to absence of control over his bodily movements in relation to that act, such as an act performed as a result of physical compulsion which the doer could not overcome, during a reflex or convulsive reaction, during sleep, or in a state of automatism or hypnosis.

Insanity

34h.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act which he committed if, at the time of the act, due to a disease that affected his mind or due to a deficiency in his intellectual capacity, he lacked substantial ability —

(1)to understand what he was doing or the wrongfulness of his act; or

(2)to refrain from committing the act.

Intoxication

34i.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

(a)A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act committed in a state of intoxication that was caused otherwise than by his controlled conduct or without his knowledge.

(b)Where a person committed an act in a state of intoxication and brought about that state through his controlled and knowing conduct, he shall be regarded as having committed the act with criminal intent if the offense is one of conduct, or with indifference if the offense is also contingent on a result.

(c)Where a person brought about the state of intoxication in order to commit the offense therein, he shall be regarded as having committed it with criminal intent if it is an offense of conduct, or with purpose if it is also contingent on a result.

(d)In this section, "a state of intoxication" means a state in which a person is under the influence of an alcoholic substance, a dangerous drug, or another intoxicating agent, and as a result thereof he lacked, at the time of the act, substantial ability to understand what he was doing or the wrongfulness of his act, or to refrain from committing the act.

(e)Sub-sections (a), (b) and (c) shall also apply to a person who did not lack ability as described in sub-section (d), but who, due to partial intoxication, was not aware at the time of the act of a particular element of the offense.

Self-Defense

34j.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act that was immediately necessary in order to repel an unlawful attack from which there arose a tangible danger of harm to his life, liberty, body, or property, or to those of another; however, a person does not act in self-defense where, through his own wrongful conduct, he brought about the attack while foreseeing in advance the possibility of the course of events.

Defense of Dwelling, Business, and Fenced Agricultural Farm

34j1.

[Amendment: 2008-4]

(a)A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act that was immediately necessary to repel a person who is breaking into or entering a dwelling, business, or fenced agricultural farm — whether his own or another's — with intent to commit an offense, or a person who is attempting to break in or enter as aforesaid.

(b)The provision of subsection (a) shall not apply if —

(1)the act was manifestly unreasonable, in the circumstances of the matter, for the purpose of repelling the intruder or entrant;

(2)the person brought about the break-in or entry through his own wrongful conduct while foreseeing in advance the possibility of such a development.

(c)For the purposes of this section, "agricultural farm" — includes grazing land and land used for the storage of equipment and vehicles on an agricultural farm.

Necessity

34ja.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act that was immediately necessary to save his life, liberty, body, or property, or those of another, from a tangible danger of serious harm arising from the circumstances existing at the time of the act, and he had no other way but to commit it.

Duress

34jb.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act which he was commanded to perform under a threat from which there arose a tangible danger of serious harm to his life, liberty, body, or property, or to those of another, and which he was compelled to commit as a result thereof.

Justification

34jc.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act committed in any of the following circumstances:

(1)he was obligated or authorized by law to commit it;

(2)he committed it pursuant to an order of a competent authority which he was legally obligated to obey, unless the order was manifestly unlawful;

(3)in an act requiring consent under law, where the act was immediately necessary for the purpose of saving a person's life, the integrity of his body, or the prevention of serious harm to his health, and the circumstances did not permit him to obtain consent;

(4)he committed it upon a person with lawful consent, in the course of a medical procedure or treatment, the purpose of which was the benefit of that person or of another;

(5)he committed it in the course of a sporting activity or sporting game that is not prohibited by law and does not contravene public policy, and in accordance with the rules customarily applied therein.

Entry into a Situation through Wrongful Conduct

34jd.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

(a)The provisions of sections 34g, 34k, and 34l shall not apply if the doer was aware, or if a reasonable person in his position could have been aware, in the circumstances of the matter, prior to the formation of the situation in which he committed the act, that he might commit it in such a situation, and if he placed himself through controlled and wrongful conduct in that situation; provided that, in relation to an act committed in the situations referred to in section 34k or section 34l, the purpose of the act was not the preservation of another's interest.

(b)In the case referred to in sub-section (a), the person shall be regarded as having committed the act with criminal intent if the offense is one of conduct, or with indifference if the offense is also contingent on a result; where a person entered the situation in order to commit the offense, and it is also contingent on a result, he shall be regarded as having committed the offense with purpose.

Duty to Face Danger or Threat

34if.

[Amendment: 1994-3, 1995-6]

The provisions of sections 34k and 34l shall not apply where the person was under a duty by law or by virtue of his position to face the danger or the threat.

Unreasonable Excess

34ig.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

The provisions of sections 34j, 34k, and 34l shall not apply where the act was not reasonable in the circumstances of the matter for the purpose of preventing the harm.

De Minimis

34jg.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A person shall not bear criminal liability for an act if, in light of the nature of the act, its circumstances, its consequences, and the public interest, the act is of negligible gravity.

Mistake of Fact

34jh.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

(a)A person who commits an act while imagining a state of facts that does not exist shall not bear criminal liability except to the extent that he would have borne it had the situation truly been as he imagined it.

(b)Sub-section (a) shall also apply to an offense of negligence, provided that the mistake was reasonable, and to a strict liability offense subject to the provisions of section 22(b).

Mistake of Law

34ji.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

For the purposes of criminal liability, it is of no consequence that the person believed his act to be permitted, as a result of a mistake regarding the existence of a criminal prohibition or regarding his understanding of the prohibition, unless the mistake was reasonably unavoidable.

Protection of the Judiciary

34k.

[Amendment: 1994-3]

A holder of a judicial office shall not bear criminal liability for an act performed in the discharge of his judicial functions, even if in so doing he exceeded the scope of his authority.

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