Homicide Flashcards
What is the definition of murder?
Unlawful homicide with malice aforethought.
where unlawful homicide is defined as ‘unlawful killing a reasonable person who is in being and under the King’s peace’
What is the MR of murder?
Intention to kill or intention to cause grievous bodily harm.
What is the definition of Diminished Responsibility?
A person who kills or is a party to the killing of another is not to be convicted of murder if D was suffering from an abnormality of mental functioning which
a) arose from a recognised medical condition
b) substantially impaired D’s ability to do one or more of the things mentioned in
subsection 1A, and
(c) provides an explanation for D’s acts and omissions in doing or being a party to the
killing.
What is contained within ss1A for Diminished Responsibility?
a) understand the nature of D’s conduct
b) form a rational judgement
c) to exercise self control.
What is an abnormality of mental functioning?
‘state of mind so different from that of an ordinary human beings that the reasonable man would term in abnormal’.
what is the meaning of substantial in ‘substantial impairment of D’s ability’
more than trivial.
What is Loss of Control?
Not to be convicted of murder if
a) D’s acts and omissions in doing or being a party to the killing resulted from D’s loss of self control
b) loss of control had a qualifying trigger
c) a person of D’s sex and age, with a normal degree of tolerance and self restraint and in the circumstances of D, might have reacted in the same or a similar way to D.
What is the meaning of loss of self control?
Must be unable to restrain themselves. Need not be sudden, but the longer the delay the less likely they lost self control.
What is the meaning of qualifying trigger?
This subsection applies if D’s loss of self-control was attributable to D’s fear of serious violence from V against D or another identified person.
(4) This subsection applies if D’s loss of self-control was attributable to a thing or things done
or said (or both) which-
(a) constituted circumstances of an extremely grave character, and
(b) caused D to have a justifiable sense of being seriously wronged.
Can a sense of being seriously wronged be used as an excuse to use violence or act in revenge?
NO
What is the situation with loss of control and sexual infidelity?
- Where sexual infidelity is integral to and forms an essential part of the context in which to make a just evaluation whether a qualifying trigger properly falls within the ambit of ss55(3) and 55(4), the prohibition in s 55(6)(6) does not operate to exclude it,
Connection with intoxication and loss of control?
- D is not precluded from using the defence just because he is drunk.
- his intoxication will be ignored if it has no connection with the things said or done which make up the qualifying trigger and
- there is a connection between the things said or done which make up the qualifying trigger then the jury can take that into account.
Intoxication and diminished responsibility?
was the D, despite the drink, suffering from a mental abnormality and this mental abnormality substantially impaired his mental responsibility for his fatal acts?
IS alcohol dependency syndrome a recognised medical condition?
Yes, he must have this at the time of the killing and must have substantially impaired his ability.
What is the 4 stage test for unlawful act manslaughter?
- the D intentionally did an act
- the act was unlawful.
- the unlawful act was dangerous and
- the unlawful act caused the death of the victim.
what is an unlawful act?
- criminal act- AR AND MR must be proven.
- intrinsically unlawful act.
- act rather than an omission.
what is the criteria for the act to be dangerous?
must be such as all sober and reasonable people would inevitably recognise must subject other people to, at least, the risk of some harm resulting therefrom, albeit not serious harm.
what are the factors which are taken into account for a dangerous act?
- must be physical, not emotional.
- the harm that is foreseen does not need to be the harm that was actually caused.
- circumstances are taken into account.
- sober and reasonable person has any special knowledge that the D has or ought to have known.
causation and unlawful act manslaughter?
factual- but for.
legal- operating and substantial cause. with no novus actus interveniens.
causing death by supplying drugs?
difference between
1. directly administering the drug to the victim.
2. supplying them with them or filling the syringe and then passing it to D who injects himself= if the D is an adult who is fully informed and responsible then the supplier WILL NOT BE LIABLE.
what is the five stage test for gross negligence manslaughter?
- duty of care.
- breach of that duty.
- breach causes death.
- risk of death.
- breach of duty was so bad as so amount to gross negligence.
risk of death criteria?
whether a reasonable and competent person would have seen an obvious and serious risk at the time of the breach of duty. must be clear and unambiguous.
gross negligece defined?
conduct was so bad in the circumstances as to amount in their judgement to a criminal act or omission.
such a disregard for the safety of others as to amount to a crime.
