Duress Of Circumstance Flashcards
What would any other pressure on someone fall under
Defence of necessity which is rarely used
Where has duress of circumstance developed from
A blurred distinction between duress and necessity
What is the defence like
A limited Duress of threats and operates like it
Case facts of r v willer
Convicted of reckless driving when a group of youths surrounded his car and threatened to kill him, he mounted the pavement to drive away he was charged with reckless driving at first instance as not allowed defence of necessity but on appeal it was decided he could have a defence of duress
In r v willer what was decided
The use of duress of circumstance although it was not named as this
Case facts of r v Conway
Convicted of reckless driving because he mistakenly believed two men who approached his car were going to kill his passenger
What was decided from Conway
Followed willer and named the defence as duress of circumstance
It decided that the threat could be to a third party
In Conway how does the court see the defence
A form of necessity but threat was from a human rather than starvation
When is the defence available
If from an objective view d was acting as he did to avoid a threat of death or serious injury to himself or another person
D of c is a from of necessity but it can be argued that it is
Excusatory rather than justificatory
What did r v Martin indicate
That the graham test should be used
Is d of c available to murder
No
Facts of DPP v bell
Driving under the influence of alcohol because he feared harm from those chasing him
Allowed defence as proved that it was a real threat and it was reasonable
He had driven a short was and stopped rather than driving the full way home
Facts of DPP v pittaway
He feared he would be beaten up at a party so drove home under the influence when she had not been pursued
There was no longer any immediate threat so no defence was allowed
Case facts of r v pommell
D found in bed with a loaded shot gun when police found he he claimed he had gotten e he was going to use it to hand it over, he intended to hand it into the police the next day
