Culpable Homicide

Question 1

what intent is required for a charge of murder

Answer 1

The critical factors to be considered for a charge of murder are whether the offender intended to:

1. kill the person
2. cause bodily injury that the offender knew was likely to cause death

if neither of these can be proven then it is manslaughter

Question 2

what is the definition of homicide

Answer 2

s158

homicide is the killing of a human being by another, directly or indirectly, by any means whatsoever

Question 3

with regards to an organisation, what can they be convicted of in relation to a homicide

Answer 3

• an organisation can be convicted as a party to the offence of MANSLAUGHTER
• an organisation cannot be convicted as either a principal offender or a party to the offence of MURDER, this is because the offence carries a mandatory life sentence

Question 4

when does a child become a human being (and therefore is capable of being murdered

Answer 4

s159
1) a child becomes a human being when it has completely proceeded in a living state from the body of its mother, whether it has an independent circulation or not and whether the naval string is severed or not

2) the killing of such a child is homicide if it dies in consequence injuries received before, during or after birth

Question 5

what is a culpable homicide

Answer 5

culpable homicide means the killing is blameworthy

s160
2) homicide is culpable when it consists in the killing of any person:

a) by an unlawful act; or
b) by an omission without lawful excuse to perform or observe any legal duty; or
c) by both combined; or
d) by causing that person by threats or fear of violence, or by deception, to do an act which causes his death; or
e) by wilfully frightening a child under the age of 16 years or a sick person

Question 6

what is an unlawful act

Answer 6

an unlawful act means a breach of any act, regulation, rule or bylaw

the common law requires that the act must be one that is likely to do harm or inherently dangerous as well as being unlawful

R v Myatt

Question 7

what did r v lee confirm

Answer 7

the act must be objectively dangerous, that is, would a reasonable person in the shoes of the defendant know the risk of harm existed

Question 8

with regards to s150A what are some examples of a major departure from the standard of care that have been supported by common law

Answer 8

• committing arson
• giving a child an excessive amount of alcohol
• placing hot cylinders and straw on a drunk person to scare them
• supplying heroin to a person who subsequently dies from it
• throwing a large piece of concrete from a motorway overbridge onto path of a travelling car
• conducting illegal abortion where mother dies

Question 9

what is a legal duty and what are duties defined in the crimes act 1961

Answer 9

duties imposed by statute or common law including uncodified common law duties.

the crimes act 1961 defines duties to preserve life as the duty:

• to provide necessaries and protect from injury (s151)
• to provide necessaries and protect from injury to your charges when you are a parent or guardian (s152)
• to provide necessaries as an employer (s153)
• to use reasonable knowledge and skill when performing dangerous acts, such as surgery (s155)
• to take precautions when in charge of dangerous things, such as machinery (s156)
• to avoid omissions that will endanger life (s157)

Question 10

omission of legal duties can amount to homicide, for the requisite casual connection what must the omission amount to

Answer 10

it seems it must appear that death would not have occurred had the defendant performed the duty in question, and the omission must have been a substantial and operative cause of death

Question 11

what is an example of when an unlawful act and an omission to perform a legal duty are applicable to the same act (s160(2)(c))

Answer 11

to drive a car so recklessly that you kill a pedestrian is both an unlawful act and an omission to observe your duty to take precautions when you are in charge of a dangerous thing

Question 12

when is a person guilty of murder under s160(2)(d)

Answer 12

If they cause the victim by threats, fear, of violence or deception, to do an act that results in the victims death.

Question 13

what are some examples of culpable homicide caused by actions prompted by threats, fear of violence or deception

Answer 13

when a person:

• jumps or falls out of a window and dies because they think they are going to be assaulted
• jumps into a river to escape an attack and drowns
• who has been assaulted and believes their life is in danger, jumps from a moving train and is killed

Question 14

what act is required to frighten a child or a sick person under s160(2)(e)

Answer 14

any act that frightens the child or sick person as long as it is done wilfully

wilfully is regarded as intending

the defendant must have been aware of a real risk that the victim is under 16 or sick

Question 15

what does simmester and brookbanks suggest about wilfully

Answer 15

wilfully would require that the offender intended to frighten or is at least subjectively reckless as to the risk of that

Question 16

in what cases will the death from lawful games or contests lead to a charge of manslaughter

Answer 16

if the contestant causes the death of another by an act that is likely to to cause serious injury

Question 17

if a person consents to being killed, what effect will this have on the criminal responsibility of the person killing them

Answer 17

the fact that consent was given will not have an effect on the criminal responsibility on anyone involved in the killing

Question 18

how do you establish death

Answer 18

to establish death you must prove:

• the death occurred
• the deceased is identified as the person who has been killed
• the killing is culpable

death can be proved by direct and/or circumstantial evidence

Question 19

what are some examples of when acts resulting in death are justified

Answer 19

• homicide committed in self defence
• homicide committed to prevent suicide or commission of an offence which would be likely to cause immediate and serious injury to the person or property of anyone

Question 20

what is the time frame in which a death must occur in order to be seen as caused by another

Answer 20

section 162

• death must be within a year and a day
• no one is criminally liable for killing of another unless the death takes place within a year and a day after the cause of death