causation (actus reus) Flashcards
what are the two types of causation
factual causation, legal causation
what is the test for factual causation
but for test- it must be proven that but for d’s conduct the consequence to v would not have happened
chain of causation
in order for d to be the operative and substantial cause an unbroken chain of events must be established from d’s actions to the consequence
intervening act
any event that takes place between d’s actions and the consequence to v
intervening acts only break the chain if they are …
unreasonable
unforeseeable
what are the three types of intervening acts
acts of a third party
acts of the victim
acts of god
acts of third party case
R v Pagett
R v Pagett (1983) case facts
D kidnapped pregnant girlfriend and ended up in a stand-off with armed police. D used V as a human shield and fired at the police. The police returned fire and killed V.
D was factual cause of v death
In the medical profession there is an extra requirement for proving they break the chain
palpably wrong
examples of acts of god
lightening
hurricane
wildfire
flood
animal attack
what is the thing that never breaks the chain of causation
the thin skull rule
what kinds of conditions does the thin skull rule apply to
physical
mental
is the thin skull rule fair/unfair
fair- why punish the victim
shouldn’t stab people anyway
not fair- medical conditions- d didn’t mean for v to die
R v white (1910) case facts
D decided to poison his mother to gain his inheritance, his mother took a sip of her poisoned drink but coincidentally dies o a heart attack
D found guilty for attempted murder
R v smith (1959) case facts
D and V were fellow soldiers who got into a fight D stabbed V from behind with a bayonet and punctured v’s lung medics were called to the scene but did not know the lung was punctured they saw v struggling to breathe and performed CPR which tore open his lung and he died
D-guilty of murder
R v Jordan (1956) case facts
D shot v in the stomach. V had almost recovered from the gunshot in hospital when a doctor gave v antibiotics V had an allergic reaction so doctor wrote a note saying he shouldn’t be given more another doctor then gave him even more antibiotics V went into cardiac arrest and the doctors pumped 6 times the amount of fluid any human should have in their body
D not significant in v death
doctors fault
R v Roberts (1971) case facts
D picked up a female hitchhiker while driving D started to make sexual advances on v who then jumped out the car and broke her leg
D is a significant c cause of the injury
R v Williams (1993) case facts
D picked up v who was a male hitchhiker along the way D asked if he could see V wallet V thought he was about to be robbed so dived out the moving car hit his head and died
D is not a significant cause of the injury
R v Blaue (1975) case facts
D stabbed v who was a Jehovah’s Witness when v was taken to hospital v was told he needed a blood transfusion v refused the operation on religious grounds and eventually bled to death
court says D must take his victim as he finds him
Legal causation
the defendant’s act must be an operative and substantial cause of the consequence. His act need not be the sole cause, but must make a significant and not trivial contribution to the result.
