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Criminal Law > Core Principles > Flashcards

Core Principles Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the 4 types of actus reus?

A

Conduct, result, circumstances, omissions

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2
Q

What is required for a conduct offence?

A

It only requires certain acts to have been committed by the defendant to satisfy the actus reus

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3
Q

What are some examples of conduct offences?

A

Fraud by false representation, blackmail, theft

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4
Q

What is required for the actus reus for result crimes?

A

They require more than just the defendant’s action - the action must lead to a specified consequence (such as murder)

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5
Q

What is required for the actus reus of surrounding circumstance crimes?

A

The actus reus can include the need for a particular surrounding circumstance - for theft, the property must belong to another

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6
Q

What is required for the actus reus of surrounding circumstance crimes?

A

The actus reus can include the need for a particular surrounding circumstance - for theft, the property must belong to another

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7
Q

What are 4 examples of result crimes?

A

Murder, manslaughter, criminal damage, assault occasioning actual bodily harm

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8
Q

What must be proven for factual causation?

A

The jury must be satisfied that the acts or omissions of the accused were, in fact, the cause of the relevant consequence

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9
Q

What is required for legal causation?

A

It must be established that the acts or omissions of the accused were a legal cause of that consequence

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10
Q

What is the test for factual causation?

A

The ‘but for’ test

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11
Q

What happened in the case R v White [1910]?

A

W intended to kill his mother by putting poison in her drink. It is unknown if she touches the drink, but she was found dead. Evidence showed she died from heart failure not poisoning. W convicted of attempted murder but not murder as there was no causal link between his actions and her death

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12
Q

What happened in the case R v Dyson [1908]?

A

Victim child had meningitis (before it was curable. D threw her down the stairs and she died. Any action that accelerates death is a cause

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13
Q

What will the law ensure before finding a defendant guilty of a result crime?

A

That the defendant was the operating and substantial cause of the prohibited consequence (R v Pagett)

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14
Q

What case is ‘the defendant’s acts must be the ‘substantial’ cause of prohibited harm’ come from?

A

R v Hughes

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15
Q

What case is ‘the consequence must be caused by the defendant’s culpable act’ come from?

A

R v Dalloway

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16
Q

What happens in the case R v Dalloway [1847]?

A

D was driving horse and carriage without holding the reins. Child ran in front, got stuck in the wheels and killed. In evidence, even if D was holding the reins, he could not have stopped the cart in time

17
Q

What happened in the case R v Benge [1865]?

A

Benge ordered track to be taken up as he thought that no trains were due for several hours. Signalman did blue go the correct distance and the train driver wasn’t keeping good look out. Train crashed and several were killed. If D’s negligence mainly or substantially caused the accident, a D can still be liable even when other causes were present.

18
Q

Name the 5 novus actus interveniens that can break the chain of causation?

A

Medical negligence, acts of a third party, acts of the victim, thin skull rule, natural events

19
Q

What happens in the case R v Smith [1959]?

A

Smith stabbed the victim in a fight. It was not realised when he arrived to the medical station how seriously injured he was and received treatment that was positively harmful and died a few hours later. Smith was still convicted of murder as the medical negligence was not a sufficient cause to break the chain of causation.

20
Q

What happened in the case R v Cheshire [1991]?

A

Cheshire shot the victim twice. After extensive surgery V developed respiratory problems and required the insertion of a tracheotomy. Scar tissue formed over this, V found it hard to breathe, medical staff dismissed this as anxiety. His windpipe became blocked and died. The Court of Appeal held that poor medical treatment did not break the chain of causation.

21
Q

What happened in the case R v Pagett [1983]?

A

Pagett used his girlfriend as a shield from the police whilst he shot at them. Police returned fire and killed the girl. Court of Appeal held that there may only be a break in the chain of causation if the actions of the third party were ‘free, deliberate and informed’ which the actions of the police here were not.

22
Q

What are three types of acts of the victim?

A

‘fright and flight’ cases, refusing medical treatment and suicide

23
Q

When in fright and flight cases can a victim break the chain of causation?

A

When the escape would not be foreseeable by the reasonable person

24
Q

What happens in the case R v Roberts [1972]?

A

V was a passenger in Roberts’ car and terrified of his unwanted sexual advances. She jumped out of the moving car, suffering injuries in the process. Roberts was convicted of assault occasioning actual bodily harm

25
Q

What happened in the case R v Williams & Davis [1992]?

A

W & D gave a lift to a hitchhiker and tried to rob him at knifepoint. V jumped from the moving car and died of head injuries. Both were convicted of manslaughter

26
Q

What happens in the case R v Blaue [1975]?

A

B stabbed a woman several times and pierced her lung. She refused a blood transfusion due to religious beliefs, despite medical staff advising her she would die without it. She died. D was convicted of manslaughter, D’s must take their victims as they find them

27
Q

What happens in the case R v Blaue [1975]?

A

B stabbed a woman several times and pierced her lung. She refused a blood transfusion due to religious beliefs, despite medical staff advising her she would die without it. She died. D was convicted of manslaughter, D’s must take their victims as they find them

28
Q

What happened in the case R v Holland?

A
  • V was attacked by Holland and suffered a number of wounds, including a severely cut finger
  • The surgeon advised he should have it amputated but he ignored surgeon’s advice
  • V contracted tetanus in the wound and died
29
Q

What happened in the case R v Dear?

A
  • Appellant’s 12 year old daughter told him that V sexually assaulted her
  • Appellant repeatedly slashed V with a Stanley knife
  • subsequent to receiving treatment, V died when his wounds reopened
  • Appellant’s conduct was an operative and significant contribution to death
30
Q

When is suicide unlikely to break the chain of causation?

A
  • V nonetheless dies from the original wound (R v Dear)
  • Act was reasonably foreseeable (R v Roberts, R v Williams and Davies)
  • D’s unlawful act was a significant and operating cause of death (R v Wallace)
31
Q

When may a suicide break the chain of causation?

A
  • Injuries inflicted by D have healed, but V goes on to die by suicide
  • It was a voluntary and informed decision of V to act (R v Kennedy)
32
Q

What is the ‘thin skull’ rule?

A

D must take V as they find them

33
Q

What happened in the case R v Hayward?

A
  • Hayward threatened his wife and chased her into the road
  • she collapsed and died
  • she suffered from an abnormal thyroid condition which meant the combination of physical exertion and fear might lead to death
  • example of the ‘thin skull’ rule
34
Q

When will a natural event break the chain of causation?

A

If the event is ‘extraordinary’ and not reasonably foreseeable

35
Q

What must the prosecution prove in an omissions case?

A
  • the crime is one which is capable of being committed by an omission
  • the accused was under a legal duty to act
  • the accused breached that duty
  • the breach caused the actus reus of the offence to occur
  • should the offence require, the accused had the required men’s rea
36
Q

When may a duty to act arise?

A
  • statutory duty
  • special relationship
  • voluntary assumption
  • contractual
  • creating a dangerous situation
  • public office
37
Q

What are some examples of a special relationship?

A
  • doctor and patient
  • parent and child
  • spouses
38
Q

Name 5 different types of men’s rea

A
  • Intention
  • Recklessness
  • Knowledge and belief
  • Dishonesty
  • Negligence
39
Q

What are the two types of intention in criminal law?

A
  • direct intent
  • oblique intent

Criminal Law (2 decks)

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