Mens Rea Flashcards
What are the 3 levels of mens rea
High level- Intension
Mid level- Recklessness
Low level- Negligence
What is the case supporting the beginning of specific intention
Mohan 1975
What did the judge say in Mohan 1975
Intention is a decision to bring about a consequence no matter whether the accused desired the consequence or not
What is Direct intention
Where the consequence is desired
What is Oblique intention
Where another consequence is considered but that person still does it
What test is oblique intent
Subjective
What must the court be satisfied by to improve oblique intent
1) Subjectively by defendant
2) Foresaw consequence
3) The risk was VERTUAL certainty
Then the jury may be entitled to find intention
List the cases in the timeline for intension
CJA (1967) Hyam Moloney 1985 Handcock and Shankland Nedrick Scalley Woolin RE A Mathews and alleyene
What does the criminal justice act state for oblique intention?
The jury should INFER whether the defendant had foreseen the consiquence through the subjective test
Describe the facts of Moloney 1985
D shot his father in a race to load and shoot a gun, he didn’t point it but the bullet hit.
What did the HOL state in the case of Moloney 1985
foresight of consequences is only evidence of intention. Lord bridge stated jurors should consider two questions: was it of NATURAL CONSEQUENCE
FORESIGHT IS ONLY INTENSION
Describe the facts and decision in Handcock and Shankland
D pushed a concrete bolder from a bridge onto the road to stop a taxi. The block killed the driver.
The judge followed the guidelines of monoley and Lord scarman stated that the guidelines were unsafe and misleading and require a reference to probability.
THE GREATER PROBABILITY OF CONSIQUENCE, THE MORE LIKELY THE CONSIQUENCE WAS FORESEEN’
USES WORD FORESEEN A02
Describe the facts and decision in Nedrick
D had poured parafin through the letter box of a house and set it alight to harm a woman and the child died.
What was the consiquence in Nedrick
To make it easier for jurors to understand they had to suffice two questions:
DID D SEE AS VERTUAL CERTAINITY
THE JURY CAN SAY HE MUST HAVE INDIRECTLY INTENDED DEATH
The jury can not infer unless it is a virtual certainty
Describe the facts of woolin
D threw a 3 month old baby towards its pram and the baby hit the wall and died.
Describe Recklessness
A lower level of mens rea “where the defendant knows the risk of the consequence but does it anyway”
List the names of the 4 cases for Recklessness
Cunningham
Caldwell
Elliot v C
R v R and G
Describe the facts in Cunningham
D ripped a gas meter off the wall to steal the money. The gas leaked to the woman next door and killed her.
What was the decision in Cunningham 1957
Judge said the subjective test should be used because you’ll be reckless if you foresee the risk not if anyone else see’s it
Describe the facts in Caldwell 1981
Caldwell set fire to a hotel whilst intoxicated causing criminal damage.
Give the decision in Caldwell
Caldwell overruled cunningham and said an objective test should be used. There were two levels of recklessness before and this confused jurors on which approach to take.
State the facts of elliot v C 1983
14 year old girl set fire to a shed by accident and was convicted of arsen.
Describe the facts in R v R and G
Two kids set fire to a bin which set fire to a building causing criminal damage and endangering life. They were not guilty because the objective test is incorrect. The defendants themselves were not aware o the risk.
What is negligence
If D fails to meet the standards of a normal man
Give an example of an act and a case that prosecutes for negligence.
S.3 of the road traffic act
Adomako
Name the cases for negligence
Sweet v Parsley Prembilton Lattimer Gango Thabo Meli
Describe the facts in sweet v parsley
D charged with the concern of canabis resin being grown on her property. HOL found her not guilty because she did not have the knowledge it was being grown.
Describe the facts of prembilton
A man threw a stone intending to hit someone and it broke a window. His mens rea for an offence against the person could not be transferred to a property offence as they are entirely different offences.
Describe the facts of lattimer and the area it applies to.
Transferred mallace.
D aimed to hit a man with a belt but he missed and hit a woman. Lattimer was charged of assault to the woman although he intended to hit the man.
describe the facts and ratio of Prembliton
D threw a stone intending to hit a woman but it broke the window. Transfered malace was established in the case of attorney G ref
Describe the facts and ratio of Gango
Gango and bandanna man were shooting at eachother and they shot a woman. Both convicted on murder and attempts on eachother
Describe the facts and Ratio of Thabo meli v R
D attacked a man and thought he was dead. He actually died of exposure to the cliffside. AR and the MR must be present at the same time.
which case did Moloney overulle?
Hyam
what was the mens rea for murder in Hyam
Intension to kill/ GBH
Foresight that death/GBH was highly probable
what was the name of the judge that contridicted Hyam through orbiter and what did he state
Williams ‘ on a night out drinking you foresee a hangover but you dont intend it
Give a criticism of the law in Hyam
Unfair because those who foresee death/ serious injury as highly probable are not as blameworthy as those who intend it
Describe the law of R in relation to the case of elliot and Camplin
The judge tried to include characteristics of the defendant like what camplin did for dim resp but it didnt pass.
Describe the law in Scalley
The judge directed the jury that if you foresee in tension you have to convict which is not what the CJA says.
Bullet point the A02 for intension
- No definition in an act of parliament, it is common law and has lead to many appeals
- People are said to have the mens rea for murder when they only intended GBH which isnt fair
- dificult for juries to distinguish probabilites
- Scalley is a better interpritation than woolin because juries would have to convict more
- Law commission said to change to have only direct intent for murder
- discriminate sentencing rather than mandatory which supports CJA that all facts should be taken into account
What was the law on recklessness before caldwell
case law was subjective, objective was only used for negligence
Describe the case of Seymour
Drove a lorry into lovers car
Orbiter stated they should always follow caldwell and not cunningham
which cases support the decline of the caldwell test
Adomako and Lidar
How does adomako support the decline of the caldwell test
HOL overulled seymour and said in furure of manslauter, negligence should be considered rather than recklessness
How does Lidar support the declinde of the caldwell test
Man trapped under car wheel
Subjective recklessness manslauter could still exist based on cunningham since R v R and G
state the A02 for recklessness
Law commission want to include characteristics into the test
r v R and G means that all development is now redundant
cunningham test is applied to rape and caldwell criminal damage which suggests that propety is more protected than people.
L-diplock said caldwell simplified the task for jurors but they had no problem before it was simply the clarity of the act
