Criminal Law Flashcards
hill v baxter
tells us the guilty act must be voluntary
r v stone
d’s omission was criminal because they had assumed a duty to act when they start looking after v. their omission to get help formed the actus reus of manslughter
r v miller
d’s omission was criminal because d in setting fire to the matress had set in motion a chain of events and so had a duty to act to put the fire out his omission to do this formed the acts reus.
r v larsonneur
all that was required for the actus reus was the state of affairs of d being drunk in the highway it didnt matter how d got there.
fagan v mpc
d had the actus reus when the mens rea arried and so there was coincidence
r v cunningham
reckless refers to the idea that the defendant must realise there is a risk of the prohibited outcome occuring
r v mohan
direct intent is defined as the defendant having the aim or desire to bring about the prohibited consequence
r v adamako
gross negligence defined as where the defendents conduct departed from the proper standard of care expected
r v pemblington
mens rea cannot be transferred between crimes of a different type
lemon v gay
blasphemy is an example of strict liability common law offence
pharmeceutical society of great britain v storkwain
was guilty of strict liablity because d had commited the actus reus of supplying drugs without prescription
sweet v parsley
courts are deciding whether or not an offence is one of strict liability and the stutute is unclear the starting point is that is presumed to require mens rea
r v benge
illustrates the point that d can be the legal cause of the outcome even if other causes exist aswell
r v hughes
conduct must be more than minimal cause of the prohibited outcome (legal causation)
r v smith
more than minimal cause
r v cheshire
medical negligence will not break the chain of causation unless it is extrordinary and unusual and renders d’s contribution to the outcome as insignificant
r v jordan
chain of causation was broken because the initial stab wound by d was healing and the anti biotics had nothing to do with d so could not be said to be more than minimal cause of v’s death
r v white
factual causation but for test
smith v superintendent of woking police
apprehend means that v must have a general awarness of violence
dpp v ramos
in order for v to apprehend immediate unlawful violence physical action is not needed it can be caused by threats
r v ireland
silent phone calls also can ammount to immediate unlawful violnece
r v savage
the mens rea required for assult is intention or recklessness to cause v to apprehend immediate unlawful violence
dpp v taylor
in this context abh the term assault refers to common assault
r v donovan
abh is defined as any hurt or injury calculated to intefere with the health or comfort of the victim. such hurt or injury need not be permenant but must be more than merely transcient and trifling
dpp v smith
cutting of hair also amounts to gbh
r v roberts
the mens rea required for abh is intention or recklessness for the initial assault or battery d need not intend or risk the harm v suffers
moriarty v brooks
a wound is defined as a break to the continuity of the skin e.g the second layer of the skin
r v burstow
gbh can be caused where no physical violence is applied to v at all and that gbh can be psychiatric in nature
r v dica
gbh can be biological in nature
r v belfon
d must intend to cause serious harm
r v malcherek and steele
doctors turning of life support when v was already brain dead was a lawful killing
r v blackman
killing under the kings peace for example in battle would not constitute murder
r v vickers
implied malice means that d has the intention to cause v really serious harm and v dies
r v wood
a recognised medical condition is battered wives syndrome
r v byrne
abnormality of functioning as a state of mind so different from that of an ordinary human being that the reasonable man would term it abnormal