Criminal Law - Homicide Offences

Question 1

Murder

Answer 1

• Causing the death of a human being unlawfully with the intention to kill / cause GBH
• Can be by action or inaction in the case of a defenany who has a duty of care to the victim
• Death occurs when the victin is medically brain dead

Question 2

Causation

Answer 2

• Factual and legal causation must be satisfied
• ‘But for’ test and defendant’s act was a substantial and operative cause of death
• Are there any acts that break the chain of causation?

Question 3

Death of a human being

Answer 3

A foetus is not classed as a human being

Question 4

Unlawfully

Answer 4

No legal excuse (e.g. self-defence)

Question 5

Intention to kill or cause GBH

Answer 5

Defendant does not have to have the death of the victim as their primary aim or purpose

Question 6

Sentence

Answer 6

Mandatory life sentence

Question 7

Voluntary Manslaughter

Answer 7

• Actus reus and mens rea of murder satisfied
• Extenuating circumstances that provide a partial defence - these are diminished responsibility and loss of control

Question 8

Diminished Responsibility

Answer 8

Criteria

• Abnormality of mental functioning at the time of the offence
• From a recognised medical condition
• Substantially impairs defendant’s ability to understand their conduct, form a rational judgment or exercise self-control
• Abnormality explains the killing

Burden of proof: lies on the defendant

Standard of proof: balance of probabilities

Question 9

Loss of Control

Answer 9

Requirements

• Defendant must lose control at the point of the killing (i.e. unable to restrain themselves)
• Loss of control must be caused by a qualifying trigger: fear of serious violence or things said or done which constitute circumstances of extremely grave character giving defendant a justifiable sense of being seriously wronged (a very high threshold - revenge and sexual infidelity expressly excluded)
• Hypothetic person of the defendant’s age and sex might have reacted in the same way

Burden of proof initially on defence to raise the issue - burden of proof then on prosecution to disprove the defence beyond reasonable doubt

As this partial defence does not require medical evidence it can be disproved by the prosecution (constrast with diminished responsibility)

Question 10

Involuntary Manslaughter: Unlawful Act Manslaughter

Answer 10

Mens rea of murder not present

Unlawful act manslaughter: defendant commits dangerous criminal act that carries an objective risk to the victim and they die as a result (e.g. battery or criminal damage)

Requirements:

• Intentional: clear and deliberate positive action
• Unlawful: need not be directed at the person who dies
• Dangerous: reasonable person would recognise the act exposes others at least to the risk of some harm
• Causation: factual and legal causation

Question 11

Involuntary Manslaughter: Gross Negligence Manslaughter

Answer 11

Defendant does not commit an offence or knowingly take a risk but acts in such an extremely negligent way that they are criminally culpable

Can be committed by an omission

Requirements:

1. Duty of care
2. Breach
3. Causation: factual and legal causation
4. Serious and obvious risk of death (risk of harm is not sufficient)
5. Breach must amount to gross negligence

Defendant’s acts compared to the standards of a reasonable person under that duty of care with the applicable expertise (e.g. a reasonable doctor, a reasonable car mechanic, etc)