Crime and morality are different, though sometimes morals and crimes coincide.

In crime, there is
no single definition which provide the meaning of Crime. Different cases, such as Board trustee
vs Owen, books, statutes and scholars has provided the different meaning. And crime sometime it
is so called offence of offences.

CRIME

Crime is undesirable act which the state finds most convenient to correct by the institution of
proceeding for the infliction of a penalty rather than leaving the remedy to the discretion of the
injured person. Or Crime is the legal wrong which can be followed with crime proceeding and
may result into the punishment.

According the section 5 of the penal code, provides the meaning of the offence which is the same
to crime, which means an action committed or attempt to commit and actions or failure to do a
duty assigned to a person and will be punishable by the law1.

As per the case of Board of trade vs Owen and others 2, this was an appeal case appealed by the
Board of Trade from a decision of the Court of Criminal Appeal Lord Goddard C.J. in {this case
the house of Lord attempted to define the word “crime” unlawful act or default which may seems
fit to be covered by criminal law at the time being.

Also, according to the scholar namely Michael J and Mortimer J defined the term Crime as a
behavior which prohibited by the criminal code. 3 And no matter what is the degree of immorality,
reprehensively or indecency of an act has been committed, it is not a crime unless it is prohibited
by law.

Crime can be characterized from the following,

That it is harm caused by the human conduct or omission which the state desire to prohibit.
Under the law of criminal which enacted specifically to ban all immoral conduct, because when
done one person to another will caused the injury to another human, also when person failure to
comply with the duty assigned that situation will also cause a harm to another person in one way
or another. Example, under section 200(a)of the Penal code4, that having an intention to cause

1
Penal Code Cap 16 revised 2022.
2
[1957] AC 602.
3
Criminal Law Dsm Police academy.
4
Penal Code Cap 16 revised 2022
death or grievous harm it’s a crime. Also, in the case of Msengi Mkumbo v. Republic 5, on appeal
the court held that the two accused being in the shamba with intent to commit the felony of theft,
they both being armed with sticks showed that they were prepared to offer violence in pursuit of
their common intention and as death resulted from the act of one of them.

The measure taken is the wrongdoer to be punished. Most of the crime conducted, the law set
out the punishment deserve to all immoral conduct as provided under section 25 of the penal code6.
This section highlighted the different punishment may be provided.

Legal proceeding must conduct to determine or decide whether the accused commits and
offence or not. This also provided under section 4 of the Criminal procedure Act7, the procedure
to be adopted for trial of the offences, and also section 2448 of the Criminal procedure Act.

MORALITY

Morality, refers to the social principles that define what is morally right and morally wrong, as
we see that Morals emerged earlier than state and law during that period of primitive and morally
right were regulate the relations of people during the primitive mode of production, The main
aspect that defines this right or wrong quality of action under moral terms is the intention of the
person committing that particular action by acts of free choice, not in a situation where a person
was forced to do certain behaviour, or in a situation where there were no choice. There when a
person acts or behave in a way considered by most to be correct and honest, so will be measured
as being Moral and if a person acts in a way considered by most in the community to be not correct
and honest, and will be measured as immoral. 9

In previous immoral conduct was punished by using a local way which was very harsh, but later
morality strongly influences the emergence of laws. For instance, the currently crimes and other
actions identified as illegal under the law are those that are identified as immoral by morality.
Therefore, morality stands as the basis for the emergence of laws morality remains a feeling,
opinion, views of the specific community with no specific punishment.

5
[1955] E.A.C.A 500
6
Penal Code Cap 16 revised 2022
7
Criminal procedure Act.
8
ibid
9
https://pediaa.com/what-is-the-difference-between-law-and-morality
Characteristic of the Morality are as the following,

Morality are social concepts such as ethics, religious teachings. Most of moral and immoral are
originated from the teachings which performed by the elder or special people in the community to
other young and youth people as way of developing the generation with moral behaviour also
Morality differs from one community to another with their culture and living principles.

Moral rules and principle are not codified. Many people inherit their morality from their family,
community and culture or tradition events which teaches the majority on how they should live in
accordance with those norms because provides useful social codes to follow.

THEIR DINSTICTION

To differentiate between Crime and Morality, as you know each society has its norms and customs
called morals. However, sometimes morals and crimes coincide, Morals emerged earlier than state
and law during that period of primitive. Morals and customs regulated the relations of people
during the primitive mode of production. Where there is a class of people in the society, the
dominant system of moral is that of the ruling class. This is so because by the use of apparatus of
ideological influence, political and legal institutions the dominant class strives to impose its morals
on the whole society. 10

Later, after accessible of law and state, there was an attempt to extend criminal law into morality
though things did not taste out because Morality are not enforced by criminal law, they are apart.
But currently there are existence of laws that prohibit crime, and that laws consists of rules
established in a specific way by the state organs and fixed in legal acts, as well morality is still
maintained because there are norms, concept, view and feelings of the community. So, when crime
prohibited well, protect people with their community and when morality maintained well makes
them live in uniform. 11

Despite all, there are distinctions, dissimilarities or different between Crime and Morality as the
following; -

10
Criminal Law Dsm Police academy.
11
blog. ipleaders. inconcept-crime-morality-criminal-law
Starting from their definition, where on the above discussion, provides different definition of crime
but on of them was that, Crime refers as the actions committed or attempt to commit and actions
or failure to do a duty assigned to a person and will be punishable by the law as referred from
section 5 of the penal code, While the definition of the morality is the refers to the social principles
that define what is morally right and morally wrong.

Crime is originated from set law while Morality is originated from religion, customs, norms
and teachings. All offences are referred from the set laws called Penal especially section 312
provide for saving of certain laws, that all offences are defined by set law which created by the
authorized organ in the state. While in Molarity, those morals acceptable in the particular
community are passed from generation to generation through teachings, religious believes, ethics
and etc.13

Crime causes a direct injury or harm while molarity has no direct injury or harm. When
crime have committed causes harm to the victim or cause a damage to the property of human being
in the public, and in order an act to amount a crime must be committed as well that intention to
commit must exist, example of acts which may harm direct are such as murder as provide under
section 196, rape under section 130, abduction, treason under section 39 and 40 of the penal
code,14 those wrongs is known as “public wrongs” or “crimes”, when committed mostly causes
harm to the public or community. While in Morality those norms and principles that enable people
to live together in communities like life style, behaviour, principle of reality and etc, when violated
cannot cause the harm or injury direct to the community.

Crime punishable by the law of the state while Morality not. Section 25 of the penal code
provides the punishment deserves to wrongdoer15. Each law creates an offence or crime also
creates the punishment, the law provides different punishment to offenders and their age, example
under section 131 (1) of the penal provide for the sentence of imprisonment for life for the person
who commit the crime of Rape, also under the same statutes section 131(2)(a)16 provide for the
corporal punishment for the boy who is under the age of eighteen if he commits the offence or
crime of rape. In the case of Paul Juma Daniel vs Republic17 appeal case no. 200 in the court of

12
Penal Code Cap 16 revised 2022
13
Prof. Dr. M. Shokry EI-Dakkak – Criminology and Penology
14
Penal Code Cap 16 revised 2022
15
ibid
16
ibid
17
[2017] Criminal appeal no. 200
appeal at Arusha ruled by Justice of Appeal KWARIKO, the court cited section 131(2)(a) of the
penal code, that if a first offender, be sentenced to corporal punishment only, there the court set
aside the previous sentence and provide another one in accordance. While under morality
especially when people commit immoral conduct there is no a specific punishment provided
because it derived from teachings, believes and feelings, sometimes it said that the wrongdoer will
be punished by God or ancestors.

Crime influenced by morality (Immoral actions) while Morality emerged before the idea of
set of laws. All immoral conduct was considered as unacceptable to the society or community and
its where idea of setting the enforcement comes from, so that crime influenced in sense that it
provides for the making of all group of immoral action (illegal). While Morals and customs
regulated the relations of people during the primitive mode of production.

In crime, there a specific and formal legal proceeding which conducted by the ruling body in the
country (Court) in order to fulfill the requirement of the law and other guideline before judgment,
while in Morality, there is no a formal proceeding required to determine the wrong behaviour
committed by the person.

Generally, those crime and Morality has the same intention in the community and the state, to
make people live in a moral standard. Crime as result of immoral behaviour is punishable by the
law to make society be in peace, also the aim of morality especially from teachings, customs and
being moral is to make the community be in peace, unity and live the decent life.

Morality describes the principles that govern our behavior. Without these principles in place,
societies cannot survive for long. In today's world, morality is frequently thought of as belonging
to a particular religious point of view, but by definition, we see that this is not the case. Everyone
adheres to a moral doctrine of some kind. 18

18
https://www.allaboutphilosophy.org/morality.htm
REFERENCES

 CRIMINOLOGY AND PENOLOGY - PROF. DR. M. SHOKRY EI-DAKKAK

CASES
 BOARD OF TRADE VS OWEN AND OTHERS [1957] AC 602
 MSENGI MKUMBO V. REPUBLIC [1955] E.A.C.A 500
 PAUL JUMA DANIEL VS REPUBLIC [2017] CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 200

ONLINE SEARCH
 https/blog.ipleaders.inconcept-crime-morality-criminal-law
 https://pediaa.com/law-and-morality/amp/
 https://www.britannica.com/topic/law
 https://www.allaboutphilosophy.org/morality.htm