Mens Rea Flashcards
What is men’s rea?
The guilty mind. Should not be confused with motive. Men’s rea is the state of mind of someone when they commit a crime.
Intention is defined in the case of Mohammed 1975 as what?
A decision to bring about, in so far as it lies within the accused power, no matter whether the accused desires that consequence in his act or not.
Is the test for intention subjective or objective?
Test is subjective. It’s not what we think someone should have thought it’s what they actually thought at the time of act. Made clear in Criminal Justice Act 1967
There are two types of intention
Direct intention
Indirect intention
What is direct intention.
The defendants sets out to achieve a particular result and they achieve this. No problems occur.
What is indirect intention?
Otherwise known as oblique intention it’s where the defendant may try argue they meant something else. Shown in leading case Rv Woollin 1998.
What happens in case of Hyam
Blazing newspaper through the letterbox of a women who was going on holiday. two children killed but argued she only wanted to frighten the women. HOL said if she forsake the consequences of her actions as highly probable it meant she intended it. So her murder conviction was upheld.
Case of Hyam later overruled in Maloney. What happened.
Defendant and step father drinking at family party and engaged in game of who could load gun fasted. Moloney shot and killed step father. No implications to say they didn’t get on. This formed the moloney guidelines. Murder was quashed and manslaughter given.
What are the moloney guidelines?
Was death or serious injury a natural consequence of defendants acts
Did defendant foresee it
Handcock and Shankland where the moloney guidelines taken into account by HOL
Block thrown off bridge onto a taxi. Killed driver. Defendants claimed they wanted to just block the road and discourage strike. Convicted of murder after moloney guidelines. HOL held this incorrect and substituted manslaughter saying guidelines were misleading. They made no reference to probability.
Case of Nedrick and the virtual certainty test.
Defendant held a grudge against a women and poured paraffin though letter box setting slight and killing children in house. HOL quashed murder and convicted manslaughter. Said jury must consider
Was death and injury of virtual certainty
Did defendant foresee virtual certainty
Case of wool in 1998
Defendant lost temper with 3 month baby when choking on food and threw baby across the room and the child died. Through intention it was seen there was a substantial risk that serious harm would be cause. Convicted of murder and appealed based on judge not using phrase virtual certainty over substantial risk. Deducted to manslaughter.
Case of Matthews and Alleyne 2003
18 year old A level student thrown off bridge into river. Had already told attackers he could not swim but he drowned convicted of murder but appealed. Virtual certainty was applied and the court of appeal held the finding of intention was irresistible
Evaluation of intention
- no statutory definition
- it’s subjective concept
- if foresight were equated with intention we could not distinguish between intention and subjective recklessness. No clear divisions.
- juries may still equate foresight in emotive cases e.g children
- difficult to produce a test of intention acceptable to all
- juries could fall to distinguish intention from motive
- case woollin supports juries deciding intention to meet justice of particular case.
- not clear is nedrick woollin applies to murder or all crimes where intention must be proved
- leaving it undefined gives judges more flexibility - Clarkson said flexible friend
Reform proposals
Time for parliament to intervene (clarkson)
Law commission states it is in the interests of clarity and consistent application of criminal law to define intention.
