Gross Negligence Manslaughter Flashcards
When is gross negligence manslaughter committed?
When an individual owes a duty of care to another and breaches it in a very negligent way
What does the civil law define negligent as?
When a personal fails to take the care as a reasonable person would in that situation
What is negligence defined under?
Civil law
What did the civil case of Donoghue v Stevenson (1932) establish?
The neighbour principle
What type of case of Donoghue v Stevenson (1932)?
Civil
What case happened in 1932?
Donoghue v Stevenson
In what year did the case of Donoghue V Stevenson take place?
1932
What established the neighbour principle?
The civil case of Donoghue V Stevenson (1932)
What is the neighbour principle?
The principle that one must take care to avoid acts it omissions that could injure another
What is gross negligence?
Where the death of a person is caused by another’s negligence which is so severe as to deserve punishment under criminal law
What can give rise to a gross negligence conviction?
Gross negligence
What established the three requirements for a gross negligence manslaughter conviction?
The case of Adomako (1994)
What case took place in 1994?
Adomako
In what year did the case of Adomako take place?
1994
What did the case of Adomako (1994) establish?
That a gross negligence conviction requires three requirements:
The defendant must owe a duty of care
The defendant must have breached the duty which in turn caused the death
The defendant must have been grossly negligent
What are the three requirements for a gross negligence manslaughter conviction?
The defendant must owe a duty of care
The defendant must have breached the duty which in turn caused the death
The defendant must have been grossly negligent
What is the problem with the requirements established by Adomako (1994)?
Much of the terminology is vague, leaving little guidance for the jury when coming to a decision so it’s too subjective. People may have differing views of ‘owe’ and how far is gross negligence? It’s subjective to pick a point when it’s no longer negligent but gross negligence
How does gross negligence manslaughter differ from other types of involuntary manslaughter?
Initially the defendant is not committing any sort of crime
What duty situations does the criminal law recognise?
A contract of employment
Undertaken a duty of care for another
Is the duty wide or narrow?
Very wide
What does the duty being very wide result in?
The scope of the offence is very wide too
What is an example of the duty of care being very wide?
Wacker (2003)
What does the case of Wacker (2003) demonstrate?
That the scope of the duty required for gross negligence manslaughter offences is very wide
What case happened in 2003?
Wacker
In what year did the case of Wacker take place?
2003
What happened in the case of Wacker (2003)?
The defendant was a lorry driver who tried to smuggle 60 immigrants into Britain. On the ferry crossing he closed the air vent in the container so it was more difficult for them to be discovered. It was impossible to open the vent or door from the instead and 58 of the immigrants died.
What was the outcome of the case of Wacker (2003)?
Wacker tried to argue because they were all involved in criminal activity he did not owe a duty of care to them. The court of appeal upheld his conviction and said
‘we see no justification for concluding that the criminal law should not hold a person liable simply because the two were engaged in unlawful activity as the same time’
What did the court of appeal say in the case of Wacker (2003)?
‘we see no justification for concluding that the criminal law should not hold a person liable simply because the two were engaged in unlawful activity as the same time’
What is a breach of duty?
If someone of the same job who was reasonably confident would not act that way
What case is relevant to breach of duty?
Litchfield (1998)
What is the case of Litchfield (1998) relevant to?
Breach of duty
What year was the case of Litchfield?
1998
What case happened in 1998?
Litchfield
What happened in the case of Litchfield (1998)?
The defendant was a boat owner and master and sailed too close to the rocks causing the death of 3 crew members
Where was the concept of gross negligence first explained?
Bateman (1925)
What did the case of Bateman (1925) do first?
Explain the concept of gross negligence
What case was in 1925?
Bateman
When was the case of Bateman?
1925
What happened in the case of Bateman (1925)?
The defendant was a doctor that did not send a woman in child birth who was having complications to hospital for 5 days.
What was the outcome of Bateman (1925)?
His conviction was quashed as it was thought he had carried out the normal procedures a normal doctor would have.
How did the court of appeal explain the concept of gross negligence?
They held the prosecution must prove the defendant negligence was so gross that compensation was insufficient and the defendant showed such disregard for life they deserved a criminal punishment.
EVALUATIONS
Evaluations
What is the test for gross negligence manslaughter?
‘Was negligence so gross as to be deemed negligent’
Can gross negligence manslaughter be committed by omission?
Yes
