Definitions Flashcards
Constable
A person who holds office of Constable and includes a Constable who holds any level of position within the NZ police
Any one
Gender neutral and the fact that the victim is a “person” is generally accepted by judicial notice or proved by circumstantial evidence. The age of the victim is also not relevant.
However, the offences of ‘assault on a child’ and ‘male assaults female’ (s194) require proof of age and gender respectively.
Intent
There are two specific types of intention in an offence. Firstly there must be an intention to commit the act and secondly, an intention to get a specific result.
Degree of harm
Wounding, maiming, or disfiguration need not be grievous, if in causing that harm the defendant had the intent to cause really serious harm.
Causes grievous bodily harm
A person causes grievous bodily harm if their actions make them criminally responsible for it.
Grievous bodily harm
Grievous bodily harm can be defined simply as “harm that is really serious”.
Psychiatric injury
In Owen v Residential Health Management Unit5 the Court highlighted that “bodily harm” may include psychiatric injury but does not include mere emotions such as fear, distress, panic, or a hysterical or nervous condition:
Not limited to immediate harm
You need to be mindful that all that is required for the actus reus is an act causing grievous bodily harm. The link between cause and effect is a physical one, not one of time. Usually of course the effect is instant: a blow causes a wound. But it is not necessarily so. The consequences may be delayed, but they are consequences nonetheless.
(example - infecting somebody with HIV and AIDS follows)
Wounds
In R v Waters8 it was held that a wound involves the breaking of the skin and the flowing of blood, either externally or internally.
Any rupture of the tissues of the body, internal or external, can amount to a wound, and whether or not it does is a matter of fact for determination in each case.
Wounding vs grievous bodily harm
The terms “wounds”, “maims” and “disfigures” refer to the type of injury caused, whereas the term “grievous” refers to the degree or seriousness of the injury.
Maiming
In practical terms it will involve mutilating, crippling or disabling a part of the body so as to deprive the victim of the use of a limb or of one of the senses.
Disfigurement
To “disfigure” means “to deform or deface; to mar or alter the figure or appearance of a person”.
R v Rapana and Murray (1988) 3 CRNZ 256 The word ‘disfigure’ covers “not only permanent damage but also temporary damage”.
The Doctrine of Transferred Malice
It is not necessary that the person suffering the harm was the intended victim. Where the defendant mistakes the identity of the person injured, or where harm intended for one person is accidentally inflicted on another, he is still criminally responsible, under the Doctrine of Transferred Malice, despite the wrong target being struck.
Injury vs grievous bodily harm
Where the harm is at the lower end of the scale of seriousness it may amount to an injury.
Where it is higher on the scale it may amount to a wounding, maiming or disfiguring depending on the nature of it, or to grievous bodily harm depending on its seriousness.
Injure
The term “to injure” is defined in s2 of the Crimes Act 1961.
To injure means to cause actual bodily harm.
Actual bodily harm
Definition - “Actual bodily harm may be internal or external, and it need not be permanent or dangerous”.
CL - R v Donovan - ‘Bodily harm’ includes any hurt or injury calculated to interfere with the health or comfort of the victim. It need not be permanent, but must be more than merely transitory and trifling.
Recklessness
Acting “recklessly” involves consciously and deliberately taking an unjustifiable risk.
Reckless disregard for the safety of others
While it is necessary to prove that the defendant foresaw the risk of injury to others, it is not necessary that he recognised the extent of the injury that would result.
Two-fold test for intent (R v Tihi)
- The defendant intended to facilitate the commission of an imprisonable offence (or one of the other intents specified in paras (a), (b) or (c), and
- He or she intended to cause the specified harm, or was reckless as to that risk.
Facilitate
To “facilitate” means to make possible, or to make easy or easier.
Facilitate the commission of any imprisonable offence
Under s191(1)(a) the offender intentionally or recklessly causes the specified harm in order to make it easier to commit the intended imprisonable offence.
Provided he has the necessary intent at the time he causes the harm, it is immaterial whether he actually commits the intended offence or not.
Imprisonable Offence
Any offence which is punishable by a term of imprisonment
Avoid detection
To prevent himself or another person from being “caught in the act”.
Facilitate flight
The specified harm is caused to enable the offender or offenders to more easily make their escape, or to prevent their capture.
Stupefies
Where a person is rendered senseless or incapable.
R v Sturm - ‘cause an effect on the mind or nervous system of a person, which really seriously interferes with that person’s mental or physical ability to act in any way which might hinder an intended crime’.
Renders unconscious
To “render” means to “cause to be” or “cause to become”.
To render a person ‘unconscious’, the offender’s actions must cause the victim to lose consciousness.
Violent means
application of force that physically incapacitates a person.
However, the term “violent means” is not limited to physical violence and may include threats of violence, depending on the circumstances.
Rendered incapable of resistance
a mere threat may not in itself be sufficient to constitute “violent means” however in circumstances where GBH or death are likely, it can be said to render a person incapable of resistance.
Aggravated injuring
Under section 191(2) the offender has one of the intents listed under section 191(1)(a), (b) or (c), however the outcome to the victim is injury.
