Culpable homicide and corporate homicide

Question 1

What are the forms of culpable homicide in Scots law?

Answer 1

Voluntary culpable homicide (mitigated murder).
Involuntary culpable homicide.
- Unlawful act culpable homicide.
- Lawful act culpable homicide.

Question 2

What is the case where an assault is carried out, but the victim was in some way susceptible, so that death was an unlikely result?

Answer 2

THIS DOES NOT MATTER.
- Bird v HMA 1952 JC 23.

Question 3

What unlawful acts will suffice as to unlawful act culpable homicide?

Answer 3

• One which imposes a foreseeable risk of injury? Or are directed at the victim? Or show evidence of recklessness?
  
  • MacAngus v Kane.

Question 3

What unlawful acts will suffice as to unlawful act culpable homicide?

Answer 3

• One which imposes a foreseeable risk of injury? Or are directed at the victim? Or show evidence of recklessness?
  
  • MacAngus v Kane.

Question 4

What is lawful act culpable homicide?

Answer 4

A recklessly causes B’s death.

Question 5

Why is it called ‘lawful act’ culpable homicide if it is not essential that A was acting lawfully?

Answer 5

It indicated that the legality of A’s actions is irrelevant.
- Transco plc v HMA 2004 JC 29.

Question 6

How is recklessness understood for the purposes of lawful act culpable homicide?

Answer 6

Paton v HMA 1936 JC 19.
- “Necessary to show gross, or wicked, or criminal negligence, something amounting, or at any rate analogous, to a criminal indifference to consequences, before a jury can find culpable homicide proved”.
Transco (Lord Hamilton at [37]).
- Mens rea = “complete indifference to the consequences”.
A MUST HAVE BEEN AWARE OF THE RISK (Transco).

Question 7

When can a corporation be guilty of an offence?

Answer 7

Transco.
- If it is established that someone who was a “directing mind and will” of the company committed the necessary actus reus with the requisite mens rea.

Question 8

What did the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 set out?

Answer 8

UK-wide act!
Corporations can be found guilty of corporate homicide if:
- “The way in which its activities are managed or organised causes a person’s death, and amounts to a gross breach of a relevant duty of care owed by the organisation to the deceased”.
- “The way in which its activities are managed or organised by its senior management” is significant.