Actus Reus Flashcards
Hill v Baxter (1958)
court gave examples of where a driver of a vehicle could not be said to be doing the driving voluntarily
Larsonneur (1933)
example if a “state of affairs” case
Pittwood (1902)
D owed a contractual duty
Gibbons and Proctor (1918)
D owed a duty due to relationship
Stone and Dobinson (1977)
A duty of care can be undertaken voluntarily
Evans (2009)
D can create a state of affairs in order to create a duty of care
Dytham (1979)
Owe a duty of care due to official position
Miller (1983)
A duty can arise when D sets in motion a chain of events
Santa-Bermudez (2003)
Duty of care by causing a dangerous situation
Lowe (1973)
Unlawful act manslaughter cannot be committed by an omission
Bland (1993)
If stopping treating a patient is in their best interest, then the omission does not form the actus reus
Khan and Khan (1998)
law is capable of expanding to cover other situations e.g. to summon medical assistance
Pagett (1983)
“but for” defendants conduct test
Kimsey (1986)
D can be guilt if his conduct was more than a minimal cause if the consequence
Blaue (1975)
example of the thin-skull rule
Smith (1959)
D liable i the injuries he caused are still an operating and substantial cause
Cheshire (1991)
Medical treatment would only break the chain of causation if “so independent of D’s acts and “in itself so potent in causing death”
Jordan (1956)
Chain of causation was broken
Malcherek (1981)
switching off a life support machine does not break the chain of causation
Roberts (1972)
If D causes V to act in a foreseeable way, then injury to the victim will be considered to have been caused by the defendant
Marjoram (2000)
D liable if V’s actions were reasonably foreseeable
Williams and Davis (1992)
if Vs actions are unreasonable this will break the chain of causation
Dear (1996)
V reopened wounds and didn’t break chain
