Criminal Flashcards
What is required for causation?
- Factual: ‘but for’ test
- Legal: operating and substantial (i.e., more than de minimis / minimal; no NAI)
When will medical negligence break the chain of causation?
Test: so independent of original acts and in itself so potent in causing serious harm; making original wound ‘merely part of history’
When will acts of 3rd party break the chain of causation?
‘Free, deliberate and informed’
When will V’s acts break the chain of causation?
Was the act (e.g. escape) foreseeable by the reasonable person or was it so daft and unexpected that no reasonable person could have foreseen it?
When will suicide break the chain of causation?
- Injuries inflicted by D have healed, but V goes on to die by suicide; or
- It was a voluntary and informed decision to act
When will natural events break the chain of causation?
Extraordinary and not reasonably foreseeable
What are 5 exceptions to the general rule that D cannot be criminally liable for a failure to act?
- Statutory duty
- Special relationship (doctors and patients; parents and their children; spouses; public office holders)
- Voluntary assumption of DoC
- Breach of contractual duty
- D creates a dangerous situation
When will D be criminally liable for a failure to act by creating a dangerous situation?
D inadvertently sets in motion a chain of events that causes the risk of damage, and that person becomes aware of what is happening and can prevent further damage, and fails to do so
When is oblique intent available? What is the test for oblique intent?
Available where intention is only type of available MR (e.g. murder and s1 - not available if recklessness is a possible MR)
(i) Death/serious injury was a virtual certainty as a result of D’s action (objective)
(ii) D appreciated that (subjective)
What is the general rule regarding the coincidence of AR and MR? What are 2 exceptions/ qualifications to this?
General rule: D must have relevant MR for the offence at precise moment when D commits AR
Continuing act theory: D forms MR for offence at some point during AR continuing
One transaction principle: D has MR at some time during a series of acts (incl. act done with the MR as causing subsequent acts)
What is transferred malice?
D’s MR is transferred from the intended harm to the actual harm
What is the AR for murder?
-Unlawful
-Killing
-Human being
-King’s peace
What is the MR for murder?
Intention to kill or cause GBH (i.e., serious harm)
Murder: what are 3 scenarios in which the killing will not be unlawful?
-Killing enemy soldiers in battle
-Advancement of justice
-Self defence
When will V be alive?
Fully expelled from mother’s body and born alive (umbilical cord does not need to have been cut)
What are the 4 requirements for diminished responsibility?
- An abnormality of mental functioning (i.e., objectively abnormal)
- Arising from a recognised medical condition (can be undiagnosed at the time of killing)
- Substantial (more than trivial) impairment of D’s ability to
(a) Understand the nature of D’s conduct;
(b) Form a rational judgement; or
(c) Exercise self-control - Provides an explanation for D’s acts and omissions (i.e., causality; does not need to be only cause)
How does intoxication interact with diminished responsibility?
- Intoxication is independent of abnormality: if D has AMF + D is voluntarily intoxicated, jury must be satisfied that 1-4 have been satisfied despite the drink
- Intoxication is a result of ADS: use steps 1-4, where recognised medical condition = ADS
What kind of defence is loss of control?
Partial defence
Who has burden of proof for the defence of loss of control?
Once issued is raised, P must prove BRD one component is absent for defence to fail
What are the 3 elements to the loss of control defence?
- D’s act/omission in killing resulted from a loss of self-control
- Due to the fear and/or anger qualifying trigger
- A normal person (of D’s sex and age, with a normal degree of tolerance and self-restraint and in D’s circumstances) might have acted in a similar way to D
Loss of self control: what is required for the fear trigger?
-Fear of serious violence
-Subjective
-Can be in fear for oneself/others
How does the fear trigger (loss of control) compare to self defence?
Loss of control requires fear for serious violence
Self defence requires violence + not unreasonable level of force
Loss of control: what is required for the anger trigger?
- Thing said and/or done
- That constitute circumstances of an extremely grave nature (objective; unusual)
- That caused D to have a justifiable sense of being seriously wronged (objective, but cannot ignore context; consider in relation to contemporary society’s norms and values)
Loss of control: when examining whether a normal person might have acted in a similar way to D, what are the 2 steps?
Step 1. Gravity of the qualifying trigger to a person in D’s circumstances (if relevant to what has been said/done)
Step 2. Whether, as a result of that trigger, a normal person might have done what D did or something similar (excluding those which would affect normal tolerance and ability to exercise restraint)
When can the defence of loss of control not be used? (x4 circumstances)
(a) An act of considered desire for revenge
(b) An excuse to use violence (D had intention from outset to provoke the reaction that then led to the killing)
(c) The thing said/done constituted sexual infidelity
(d) D is charged with an attempt
What is the AR for criminal damage?
-Destroy/damage
-Property
-Belonging to another
-Without lawful excuse
What is the MR for criminal damage?
Intention/recklessness as to the damage/destruction of property belonging to another
What is the AR for basic arson?
-Destroy/damage by fire
-Property
-Belonging to another
-Without lawful excluse
What is the MR for basic arson?
Intention/recklessness as to the damage/destruction of property belonging to another by fire
What is the AR for aggravated criminal damage?
-Destroy/damage
-Property
-Without lawful excuse
What is the MR for aggravated criminal damage?
-Intention/recklessness as to the destruction/damage of property
-Intention/recklessness as to the endangerment of life by the damage/destruction
What is the AR for aggravated arson?
-Destroy/damage by fire
-Property
-Without lawful excuse
What is the MR for aggravated arson?
-Intention/recklessness as to the destruction/damage of property by fire
-Intention/recklessness as to the endangerment of life by the damage/destruction by fire
What is the AR of theft?
-Appropriation
-Property
-Belonging to another
What is the MR of theft?
-Dishonesty
-With the intention to permanently deprive