Causation

Question 0

Dalloway (1847)

Answer 0

D’s culpable conduct must cause the result, d was driving carriage downhill, was not holding the reigns, child walked out in front of the carriage and was killed. Even if d had been holding the reigns he could not have stopped. His culpable conduct did not cause the child’s death.

Question 1

White (1910)

Answer 1

If result would have happened but for the defendant’s culpable conduct d did not factually cause the result.

Question 2

R v Hughes (2013)

Answer 2

D was driving car without insurance or full licence, collided with v who was on drugs, held: there must be a connection between D’s faulty driving and v’s death.

Question 3

Re A (Conjoined Twins) (2000)

Answer 3

But for the doctors separating the twins, would Mary still have died in the same way? No, the doctors were the cause of death.

Question 4

Jordan (1956)

Answer 4

D stabbed V, V had almost recovered but was given an abnormally large dose of antibiotics to which he was allergic, medical treatment was palpably wrong, chain of causation was broken.

Question 5

Smith (1959)

Answer 5

D stabbed V, V was dropped twice on the way to medical treatment and the treatment was negligent and delayed, V died, stab wound was still main cause of death so chain of causation was not broken.

Question 6

Cheshire (1991)

Answer 6

D shot V, as part of treatment tracheotomy was performed, two months later complications from this killed V, held chain of causation wasn’t broken as tracheotomy was performed due to gunshot.

Question 7

Michael (1840)

Answer 7

D wished to kill her child who was in foster care, she gave poison to the mother claiming it was medicine, another child gave it to D’s child, chain of causation not broken, the other child’s decision wasn’t free, informed and deliberate.

Question 8

Pagett (1983)

Answer 8

D was in shoot off with police, he used his gf as a human shield, she was shot and killed by a police officer, police officer’s act was instinctive rather than voluntary, chain of causation not broken, d caused her death

Question 9

Environmental Agency v Empress Car Co (1999)

Answer 9

The act of a third party opening the tap was not an abnormal or extraordinary event, acts of vandalism are a fact of life, no break in the chain of causation.

Question 10

Roberts (1971)

Answer 10

Girl jumped from moving car to escape D’s sexual advances, the causal link is not broken if V’s conduct is in relation to D’s wrongdoing and V’s reaction was reasonably foreseeable.

Question 11

Williams & Davis (1992)

Answer 11

V jumped from car to escape himself being robbed, reaction was not reasonably foreseeable. V’s personal characteristics may be relevant in deciding if the reaction was appropriate or not.

Question 12

Kennedy (2007)

Answer 12

D prepared a syringe full of heroin which V self injected, V’s act of injecting himself constituted a novus actus interveniens, was a free, voluntary and informed act

Question 13

Evans (2009)

Answer 13

Test from Kennedy does not apply to gross negligence manslaughter

Question 14

Dear (1996)

Answer 14

V was stabbed, refused to seek medical help, left suicide note and agitated the wounds before he died, D’s actions still the operating and substantial cause of death.

Question 15

Dhaliwal (2006)

Answer 15

V was long term sufferer of domestic abuse, she committed suicide, would not necessarily break the chain of causation

Question 16

Hayward (1908)

Answer 16

Thin skull test, D must take his victim as he finds them

Question 17

Blaue (1975)

Answer 17

Jehovah’s Witness refused blood transfusion, thin skull test applied.