Module Flashcards
Homicide defined
Homicide is the killing of a human being by another, directly or indirectly, by any means whatsoever
Killing of a child
s159
(1) a child becomes a human being within the meaning of this act when it has completely proceeded in a living state from the body of its mother, whether it has breathed or not, whether it has an independent circulation or not, and whether the navel string is severed or not
(2) the killing of such a child is homicide if it dies in consequence of injuries received before, during, or after birth
Culpable homicide
s160
(1) Homicide may be either culpable or not culpable
(2) Homicide is culpable when it consists in the killing of any person
(a) By an unlawful act; or
(b) By an omission without lawful excuse to perform or observe any legal duty; or
(c) By both combined; or
(d) By causing that person by threats or fear of violence, or by deception, to do an act which causes his death; or
(e) By wilfully frightening a child under the age of 16yrs or a sick person
R v Myatt
Before a breach of any act, regulation or bylaw would be an unlawful act under s160 for the purpose of culpable homicide it must be an act likely to do harm to the deceased or to some class of persons of whom he was one
In common law, allegations of culpable homicide have been supported where the offender has caused death by:
Committing arson
Giving a child an excessive amount of alcohol to drink
Placing hot cinders and straw on a drunk person to frighten them
Supplying heroin to the deceased
Throwing a large piece of concrete from a motorway overbridge into the path of an approaching car
Conducting an illegal abortion
What does the term ‘legal duty’ mean
Legal duty refers to those duties imposed by statute or common law including uncodified common law duties.
Provide examples of legal duties under the CA 1961
Provide the necessaries and protect from injury
Provide necessaries and protect from injury to your charges when you are a parent or guardian
Provide necessaries as an employer
Use reasonable knowledge and skill when performing dangerous acts, such as surgery
Take precautions when in charge of dangerous things, such as machinery
Avoid omissions that will endanger life
Murray Wright Ltd
Because the killing must be done by a human being, an organisation cannot be convicted as a principal offender
R v Tomars
- ) Was the deceased threatened by, in fear of, or deceived by the defendant?
- ) If they were, did such threats, fear or deception cause the deceased to do the act that caused their death?
- ) Was the act a natural consequence of the actions of the defendant, in the sense that reasonable and responsible people in the defendant’s position at the time could reasonably have foreseen the consequences?
- ) Did these foreseeable actions of the victim contribute in a significant way to his death?
Threats, fear, or deception can result in culpable homicide. Examples of culpable homicide caused by actions prompted by threats, fear of violence or deception are when a person:
Jumps or falls out of a window and dies because they think they are going to be assaulted
Jumps into a river to escape an attack and drowns
Who has been assaulted and believes their life is in danger, jumps from a train and is killed
Define willfully frightening
Willfully frightening is regarded as intending to frighten or at least be reckless as to this
Killing by influence on the mind
S163
No one is criminally responsible for the killing of another by any influence on the mind alone, except by wilfully frightening a child under the age of 16 years or a sick person, nor for the killing of another by any disorder or disease arising from such influence, except by wilfully frightening any such child as aforesaid or a sick person
To establish proof of death you must prove:
The death occurred
The deceased is identified as the person who has been killed
The killing is culpable
R v Horry
Death should be provable by such circumstances as render it morally certain and leave no ground for reasonable doubt - that the circumstantial evidence should be so cogent and compelling as to convince a jury that upon no rational hypothesis other than murder can the facts be accounted for
Some acts are justified even when they result in death. Section 2 provided that when an act is justified the perpetrator is exempt from both criminal and civil liability. Examples include:
Homicide committed in self defence (s48)
Homicide committed to prevent suicide or commission of an offence which would be likely to cause immediate and serious injury to the person or property of anyone (s41)
Murder defined
S167
Culpable homicide is murder in each of the following cases:
(a) If the offender means to cause the death of the person killed
(b) If the offender means to cause to the person killed any bodily injury that is known to the offender to be likely to cause death and is reckless whether death ensues or not
If you are charging an offender with murder under s167 you must show that the defendant:
Intended to cause the death, or
Knew that death was likely to ensue, or
Was reckless that death would ensue
Cameron v R
Recklessness is established if the defendant recognised that there was a real possibility that his or her actions would bring about the proscribed result, and/or that the proscribed circumstances existed and having regard to that risk those actions were unreasonable
To show that the defendant’s state of mind meets the provisions of s167(b) you must establish that the defendant:
Intended to cause bodily injury to the deceased
Knew the injury was likely to cause death
Was reckless as to whether death ensued or not
Define grievous bodily injury
Grievous bodily injury means harm that is very serious, such as injury to a vital organ. To come within subsection 1(c), the stopping of the victim’s breath must be done wilfully.
Definition of attempts
S72 (1)
Everyone who, having an intent to commit an offence, does or omits an act for the purpose of accomplishing his object, is guilty of an attempt to commit the offence intended, whether in the circumstances it was possible to commit the offence or not
R v Murphy
When proving an attempt to commit an offence it must be shown that the accused’s intention was to commit the substantive offence. For example, in a case of attempted murder it is necessary for the Crown to establish an actual intent to kill
What is the test for proximity
Simester and Brookbanks suggests the following questions should be asked in determining the point at which an act of mere preparation may become an attempt:
Has the offender done anything more than getting himself into a position from which he could embark or an actual attempt? or
Has the offender actually commenced execution; that is to say, has he taken a step in the actual offence itself?
Proximity is a question of law; it is a question that is decided by the judge based on the assumption that the facts of the case are proved
Attempt to murder
S173
Everyone who attempts to commit murder is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years
