Culpable mental state presumption governs prosecutions, while the accused may rebut it by proving absence of intent or knowledge. In prosecutions for offences requiring a culpable mental state, the court must presume that such mental state exists, while the accused may rebut the presumption by proving absence of that mental state for the act charged. The expression includes intention, motive, knowledge, belief, and reason to believe a fact, and a fact is proved only when established beyond reasonable doubt, not on a balance of probabilities.