Duress by Threats Flashcards
what is duress by threats?
a common law defence where the defendant has been threatened by someone to commit a crime
what case example established duress by threats?
Graham - D and his secret boyfriend killed his wife. D argued that boyfriend threatened him to do so. defence claimed.
what is the two part test to establish duress by threats?
- Was D forced to act as he reasonably believed he feared death or serious injury?
- Would the sober man of reasonable firmness sharing Ds characteristics have acted the same?
what are the 7 areas of part 1?
death, aimed, voluntary association, immediate, escape and specific
what does ‘death’ mean?
threat must be of death/GBH/extreme violence
what does ‘aimed’ mean?
threat must be aimed at someone D is responsible for e.g a child/partner/sibling
what does ‘voluntary association’ mean?
e.g living with an ex convict or being a gang member
what case example can be used for ‘voluntary association’?
Hasan - D part of a gang and committed burglary. Tried to use defence but failed due to voluntary association.
what does ‘immediate’ mean?
Threat must be immediate or imminent
what does ‘escape’ mean?
If D has chance to escape they must take it
what does ‘specific’ mean?
the threat must be of a specific thing
what case example can be used for ‘specific’?
Coke - D was threatened by a loan shark he owed money to so he robbed several banks. No defence claimed as the threat was not for criminal activity, just for money return.
what case example can be used for Part 2 ‘sober man of reasonable firmness’?
Bowen - D was committing fraud and argued he was pressured to do so because of his low IQ. No defence claimed as this test is only based on age and gender.
what two crimes can duress by threats never be a defence to?
murder and attempted murder
