Elements to murder and indictable offences Flashcards
Indictable offense
serious crimes heard in the County Court and Supreme court. If the accused pleads guilty to a crime, the case would-be put-on trial, and a judge and Jury will hear the matter in court. The jury will the decider of facts. That is the Jury will determine the verdict based on the evidence provided.
The Victorian Crime Statistics Agency
(CSA) gathers statistics and reports on the incidents of crime in Victoria.These statistics are collected and may be compared with those in other states and countries so the government can determine the amount of crime in our community, measure the effectiveness
of law enforcement agencies and plan for the best use of resources so our society is as crime-free
as possible.
Effects of indictable offenses
- shatter community trust, make us question our shared values and reduce our enjoyment of a peaceful
- Victims and their families may feel helpless, angry and anxious for months, or years after a serious crime is committed against them
- These crimes often affect a victim’s physical and psychological health and their ability to cope at home and at work.
- some victims never recover from the trauma associated with a serious crime.
- These last for a lifetime. These consequences have practical effects, too – having a criminal record may limit a person’s ability to work and travel overseas.
Six elements of Murder
. the killing was unlawful • the victim was a human being • the accused was a person over the age of discretion • the accused caused the victim’s death • the accused was a person of sound mind • there was malice aforethought.
What does the persecution have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt?
Six elements of Murder
malice aforethought
the intention to kill or cause serious injury to a person. This malicious intention is the mental element (i.e. an intention to inflict harm) necessary for murder
Element 1 – The killing was unlawful
The prosecutor must prove that the accused did not have a lawful reason for causing the other person’s death.
Element 2 – The victim was a human being
The victim must be a living person who has been born (i.e. not an unborn baby or an animal).
Element 3 – The accused was a person over the age of discretion
The accused must be at least 10 years of age. The law presumes that people under the age of 10 are incapable of forming the intent to commit a crime (i.e. doli incapax).
Element 4 – The accused caused the victim’s death
Causation means there must be a direct or unbroken causal link between the accused’s actions and the death of the victim. :‘Would the death have occurred, when it did, without the accused’s actions?
Element 5 – The accused was a person of sound mind
This is a person who knows right from wrong and understands the nature of what they have done. The law presumes that a person of unsound mind cannot form the intent to commit a crime (men’s rea).
Element 6 – There was malice aforethought
the prosecution must prove there was malice aforethought (i.e. an intention to cause serious harm).
• attempted murder – Trying to murder someone or a failed attempt at murder
• conspiracy to murder – Planning with at least one other person to murder someone
• incitement to murder – Encouraging or authorising someone to commit a murder
• manslaughter – The unintentional killing of a person due to a reckless, dangerous act or
negligent behaviour
• infanticide – The killing by a mother of a child under 2 years old while suffering a mental
condition caused by the effects of that child’s birth
• child homicide – The killing of a child under 6 years of age in circumstances that would
normally be manslaughter
Possible defenses to murder
self-defence • mental impairment • duress • sudden or extraordinary emergency • involuntary actions.
Intoxication
Under common law, gross intoxication is a way of proving that the accused acted involuntarily or without intent
self-induced intoxication –
the court must compare the accused’s belief or actions to those of a reasonable person who is not intoxicated
• not self-induced intoxication
The court must compare the accused’s belief or actions to those of a reasonable person intoxicated to the same level as the accused.
Automatism Zombie like state
a person has a total loss of control over their bodily movements.• while sleeping or sleepwalking
• while suffering concussion
• during an epileptic seizure
• as a result of a medical condition or because of a side effect of the proper use of medication.
Accident
An accused may claim that their actions were accidental and that he or she acted without intention
to commit the crime.
Possible impacts of murder
● The most obvious impact of murder is the loss of the victim’s life.
● has a devastating and lasting impact on the victim’s family and friends.
● This trauma may be long-lasting, particularly if the police cannot find the offender or if it takes the legal system several years to bring the offender to court
● They may also be subject to media scrutiny, making their private lives public.
● Murder also impacts on public confidence in the police and the legal system to keep the community safe.
● Murder also impacts on public confidence in the police and the legal system to keep the community safe.
Impacts on the offender
Guilt or shame in causing a death ● Legal costs ● Custodial sentence ● lost labour and income in the ● household ● Impact on the family’s social ● standing, finances and health and ● well-being ● Negative influences as a result of ● exposure to prison
Criminal law
The purpose of the law is to maintain a peaceful society. Through agencies like the courts and the police, criminal law
maintains order. It protects individuals and their property, and safeguards rights.
the presumption of innocence
The right of a person accused of a crime to be presumed not guilty unless proven otherwise
Protecting the presumption of innocence:
○ The burden of proof is on the prosecution
○ The case against a person must be proven beyond reasonable doubt
○ Most crimes require a person to have acted of their own will
○ Police must reasonably believe a person has committed a crime before they can arrest them
- Jury, an independent group of people chosen at random to decide on the evident in a large case and reach a decision (verdict).
- Elements of a crime-
The burden of proof means that the onus is on the specific party to prove the facts of the case
the standard of proof is the strength of evidence needed to prove a legal case.