General Elements of Liability

Question 1

What is mens rea?

Answer 1

“guilty mind’ - the mindset/thoughts/intention itself

Question 2

What is an omission

Answer 2

A failure to act (a negative act)

Question 3

Give an example of conduct crimes

Answer 3

Driving a vehicle dangerously
Theft
Driving without a licence
‘Breaking and Entering’
Trespassing

Question 4

What is factual causation and how is it used?

Answer 4

Process of establishing whether a specific action directly caused a particular outcome. Uses the ‘But for” test.

Question 5

What is a conduct crime?

Answer 5

The act itself is a crime - the actus reus requires proof of a particular behaviour/conduct. There is no requirement to prove harmful consequences.

Question 6

What happened in R v Pagett

Answer 6

The defendant used his pregnant girlfriend as a shield from incoming bullets, and she had died. He was found guilty using causation in fact

Question 7

What is a state of affairs crime?

Answer 7

Offences that criminalises a defendant being found in a particular circumstances at a particular time, irrelevant of how they got there

Question 8

Give a case for the coincidence of actus reus and mens rea and outline the case facts

Answer 8

Fagan v MPC:
Defendant reversed his car, but rolled it onto the foot of the PO, who told Fagan to remove his care, which at this point, the defendant refused to move the vehicle.

Question 9

Define negligence

Answer 9

A breach of an objective standard of behaviour expected of a defendant

Question 10

What is a result/consequence crime

Answer 10

A crime which causes/results in specified consequences

Question 11

What is actus reus?

Answer 11

‘guilty act’ - the action itself

Question 12

Give an example of a result/consequence crime

Answer 12

Murder
GNM
Assault
Battery
ABH
Manslaughter
Criminal Damage

Question 13

Cases that outline subjective recklessness

Answer 13

R v Cunningham
DPP v Majewski
R v Latimer
R v Woolin

Question 14

How do you establish liability for a result/consequence crime?

Answer 14

Factual causation
Legal causation

Question 15

What are the two cases for factual causation

Answer 15

White
Pagett

Question 16

What is a strict liability offence?

Answer 16

The prosecution is not required to prove mens rea for one or more elements of the offence.

Question 17

Give a case to explain the involuntary nature of certain acts that do not lead to liability

Answer 17

Hill v Baxter

Question 18

What is transferred malice, give a case for this concept

Answer 18

Where the mens rea of a crime can be transferred to an unintended victim. R v Latimer (1886) - D aimed his belt at his intended victim, but the belt ricocheted off and hit a woman in the face; in this case, the mens rea he had to cause harm to the man was transferred to the woman

Question 19

How does an involuntary act lead to no conviction of the specified offence that was resulted?

Answer 19

There is no mens rea for the offence, thus no intention to commit - no ‘guilty mind’.

Question 20

What happened in R v White (1910)

Answer 20

The defendant was not guilty of the murder of his mother by the poisoning of her drink, she had not ingested the poison and had died of a heart attack beforehand - found not guilty using causation in fact

Question 21

Give an example of a state of affairs crime

Answer 21

Being drunk on a public highway
Possessing illegal drugs or firearms
Being present in a prohibited area

Question 22

What is the coincidence of actus reus and mens rea?

Answer 22

A principle where the actus reus and mens rea must coincide - they must happen at the same time for someone to be held liable

Question 23

Define subjective recklessness

Answer 23

The taking of an unjustified risk that leads to unlawful harm or damage

Question 24

Define legal causation

Answer 24

The defendant’s act must be an operative and substantial cause of the consequence. In other words, there should be a ‘slight, trifling link’ (Kimsey)

Question 25

Cases for legal causation

Answer 25

‘The act must be more than minimal (Cato), but needn’t be substantial (Kimsey)’

Question 26

What is the thin skull rule?

Answer 26

The defendant must take their victim as they find them. In other words, evidence for liability would be stronger if the victim has a condition that made the offence much worse.

Question 27

Case for the thin skull rule

Answer 27

R v Blaue:
The defendant entered the home of an 18-year-old girl, and had taken advances at her. When she refused, he stabbed her 4 times, and needed a blood transfusion to save her life. However, she was a devout Jehovah’s Witness, and, thus refused the operation based on her religious requirement, and the defendant was found guilty of murder, even if she would’ve survived had she taken the blood.

Question 28

What is a novus actus interveniens?

Answer 28

A break in the chain of causation. Essentially, an intervening act that had seperated the act of the defendant to the result of the victim

Question 29

Cases for novus actus interveniens

Answer 29

Cheshire, chain of causation had broken

Jordan, chain of causation had broken

Smith, chain of causation did not break

Roberts, chain of causation had broken

Question 30

What are the 6 omissions as actus reus

Answer 30

1. A statutory Duty
2. A contractual Duty
3. A duty arising because of a relationship
4. A duty that has been taken voluntarily
5. A duty through one’s official position
6. A duty arises because D has set in motion a chain of events

Question 31

Give an example of omission of statutory duty

Answer 31

Failing to stop at a traffic light
Failure to report a road traffic incident
Failure to provide a specimen of breath

Question 32

Give an example of a contractual duty

Answer 32

R v Pittwood:
A railway crossing keeper failed to shut the gates of the crossing, killing a person crossing the line when a train was due (manslaughter)

Question 33

Give an example of a duty because of a relationship

Answer 33

Gibbons and Proctor:
Neglecting their duties as parents; the omission not to feed the child was the AR for murder

Question 34

Give an example for a duty which has been taken on voluntarily

Answer 34

Stone and Dobinson:
Elder sister who had mental problems was being taken care of by Ds, but she died from malnutrition. They owed a duty of care to her as they brought her in (convicted of manslaughter)

Question 35

Give an example of a duty through one’s official position

Answer 35

Dytham:
PO witnessed a violent attack on a victim but did not help, so was guilty of neglecting to perform his duty.

Question 36

Give an example of a duty which arises because D set in motion a chain of events

Answer 36

Miller:
D fell asleep whilst smoking, woke up and found his mattress of fire. He did not attempt to put out the fire or summon help so as a result, the house caught fire (Convicted of Arson).