Duress Flashcards
What is duress by threat ?
D commits a crime bc a threat made by another person
What are the only 2 offences duress cannot be a defence to ?
murder (Howe), attempted murder (Gotts) & poss. treason
What is the 2 part test for duress set out in R V Graham & case (first element) ?
1) was D forced to commit bc beloved death/injury follow (Hasan)
2) who threat directed at
How do we decide if the D was forced to commit bc he believed injury would follow & example/case?
consid. nature & seriousness of threat
threat of cut up counts (Hudson & Taylor)
What threats aren’t sufficient & cases ?
financial ruin (M’Growther)
reveal sexuality (Valderrama-Vaga)
reveal affair (Singh)
What is the second thing we must look at (still pt. 1 of Graham test) ?
who are the threats directed towards ?
Who can the threat of violence be towards (cases) ?
himself (Graham)
immediate relative (Ortiz)
someone D is responsible for (Shaylor)
What is the 3rd thing to look at (still part 1 of graham test) ?
D told to commit a specific offence
What does R V Horne say about D having to commit a specific offence ?
too vague- told to ‘sort out’ even tho told to commit fraud
What happened in R V Cole ?
threats of serious injury made but no specific instruction on what to do
What else must the threat be for defence to be available ?
unavoidable, it could take evasive action- not work
How does R V Gill show threats which aren’t imminent won’t work ?
stealing a lorry in a weeks time- had time to raise the alarm
How does Abdul-Hussain set out imminent ?
must be peril of death to them/others and must play on mind of D at time committing act & execution need not b immediately in prospect
What must D expect if threat imminent (Hasan 2005) ?
must reasonably expect retribution t happen almost/immediately
What does Hassan add to self-induced duress ?
if induced bc member of violent criminal gang should’ve foreseen risk of compulsion and defence unavailable
What cases show the difference between a violent criminal gang and a non violent criminal gang ?
violent (Sharp)
non-violent (Shepherd)
What does the 2nd part of the Graham Test mean ?
whether person of similar characteristics would react same as D
What cannot be considered in the 2nd part of Graham test ?
if D sober (Flatt)
if D is vulnerable ‘reasonable firmness’
low IQ (Bowen)
What will the court consider in the 2nd part of Graham Test ?
age, gender, pregnancy, & disability
