Homicide Offences Flashcards
Different homicide offences
Murder (inc. voluntary manslaughter if partial defences apply)
Involuntary manslaughter
Corporate Manslaughter and Homicide Act 2007
Murder (common law offence)
AR: D must cause: - unlawful killing (R v Coke) - of a human being (not unborn children (Poulton)) - under the Queen's peace (R v Coke)
MR:
Murder with malice aforethought (Homicide Act 1957)
- intention to kill; or
- intention to cause GBH;
- NOT recklessness (R v Moloney)
- Irrelevant if D kills with benevolent intentions (ie mercy killings)
Death occurs when there has been irreversible death of the brain stem
R v Malcherek and Steel
What is causation?
Ds act/omission must accelerate death and be a substantial/significant cause of death
If partial defences to murder apply…
…offence will be reduced to voluntary manslaughter
Factual causation
Up to jury to determine
- ‘but for Ds actions, victim would not have died as and when he did’ (R v White)
- Acceleration must be significant (more than minimal (R v Cheshire))
Legal causation
No legal causation if:
- event intervenes between Ds conduct and end result, unless event was foreseen/foreseeable
- act by another person intervenes between Ds conduct and end result unless injuries inflicted by D still ‘operating and substantial’ cause
Ds acts need not be sole cause of victims death (for legal causation)
- it need only contribute significantly
- Can be multiple defendants
R v Pagett
Take victim as you find them
R v Blaue
Medical negligence will only break legal causation if ‘so independent of the Ds acts, and in itself so potent in causing death, that Ds acts were insignificant contribution to death’
R v Cheshire
Possible defence of intoxication for murder
Must distinguish between involuntary and voluntary intoxication
Involuntary intoxication
D had no knowledge of consumption of alcohol/drug
- including administered drug which produces adverse effects (R v Hardie)
If MR absent, may succeed as defence for murder, voluntary manslaughter or constructive manslaughter
Voluntary intoxication
Anything not involuntary, including if D knew they were drinking but underestimated effect (R v Allen)
If MR is absent, will only succeed for crimes of specific intent ie. murder and voluntary manslaughter
For involuntary intoxication, even if MR is present, D may get a reduced sentence with this defence
R v Kingston
Voluntary Manslaughter
Offence of murder can be reduced to VM if partial defence of diminished responsibility OR loss of control are present
Burden of proof on D on balance of probabilities
Diminished Responsibility
s. 2 Homicide Act
D suffered from:
- abnormality of mental functioning
- which arises from a recognised condition
- substantially impaired Ds ability to understand nature of conduct, make rational judgement or exhibit self-control
Loss of Control
ss. 54 & 55 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
3 elements to consider:
- Ds acts and omissions in doing or being party to killing resulted from Ds loss of self-control
- loss of control had QUALIFYING TRIGGER
- would a person of Ds sex and age with a normal degree of tolerance and self-restraint, and in the circumstances, act the same as D
Recognised medical conditions (for Diminished Responsibility) include:
- World Health Organisations International Clarification of Diseases
- Diseases not included in WHO list if they are generally recognised but not yet included
- includes alcohol dependence syndrome
Qualifying triggers (for loss of control)
- D fears violence from victim against D or another identified person (s. 55(3) Coroners and Justice Act 2009)
- things done or said that:
constituted circumstances of an extremely grave character
caused D to have justifiable sense of being seriously wronged
combination of both above
Judge will allow defence to be raised only if there is enough evidence
- if jury could reasonably conclude that defence might apply
s. 54(6) Coroners and Justice Act 2009
Sexual infidelity will not amount to qualifying trigger (for loss of control) unless part of context of other possible relevant triggers, in which case it will be considered
R v Clinton, Parker and Evans
Involuntary Manslaughter
Consists of:
Constructive Manslaughter
Gross Negligence
Road Traffic Act 1988
Constructive Manslaughter (intention/recklessness, not negligence)
AR:
Do an unlawful act
the unlawful act is dangerous
the unlawful act causes the victims death
MR:
MR of unlawful act
Authority for ‘do an unlawful act’ AR of Constructive Manslaughter
- crime requires proof of intention/recklessness (R v Lamb)
- can be any unlawful act
- can’t be omission (R v Lowe)
Authority for ‘unlawful act is dangerous’ AR of Constructive Manslaughter
- must carry risk of SOME harm (objective test)
- would sober and reasonable person who watched act being carried out think it would be dangerous? (R v Ball)
Gross Negligence Manslaughter
AR:
5 elements (R v Adomaku):
- Duty of care owed by D to victim
- Breach of duty
- Risk that Ds conduct COULD cause death (objective test)
- Evidence that breach DID cause death
- Jury’s conclusion that D fell so far below standards of reasonable person in that situation
NO MR
For gross negligence manslaughter, whether duty of care exists is a matter for the jury
R v Willoughby
For gross negligence manslaughter, ‘would a reasonable man be able to foresee risk of death?’
- Risk of injury or serious injury will not be enough
R v Singh
Road Traffic Act 1988
- Causing death by dangerous driving
- Causing death by careless driving
Causing death by dangerous driving (s. 1 RTA 1988)
10 yrs
Causes death of another whilst driving a mechanically propelled vehicle dangerously on a road or other public place
For causing death by dangerous driving, no need to establish risk of death, only ‘dangerous’
Dangerous =
- way he drives falls far below a competent and careful driver; and
- would be obvious for competent and careful driver that it would be dangerous
Causing death by careless driving (s. 2b RTA 1988)
5 yrs
Driving a motor vehicle on a road or other public place;
without due care and attention or without reasonable consideration for other road users
Key cases for homicide offences
R v Malcherek & Steel (death occurs when brain stem irreversibly dead)
R v Pagett (Ds act need not be sole cause of victims death)
R v Cheshire (medical negligence)
R v Clinton, Parker and Evans (sexual infidelity)
R v Singh (test for gross negligence manslaughter)
