Murder Flashcards
What is murder P7 and P10 of book 2
In the 1600 Lord Coke defined murder as the unlawful killing of a reasonable person in being and under the Queen’s peace with malice aforethought express or implied.
Remember that this can also be an omission such as R V Gibbins and Proctor 1918.
Murder can also be transferred malice.
What is the AR for murder W9P1
Unlawful killing, person in being and under the Queen’s peace.
R V Clegg (1995) Law E-Resources and the murder sheet on Moodle
The defendant was a soldier serving in Northern Ireland. He was manning a vehicle check point along with four other soldiers. A car approached the checkpoint and slowed down. It then accelerated at great speed with its headlights on full beam. The defendant fired three bullets as the car was approaching and a final bullet as the car was driving away. The final shot proved to be fatal, hitting a passenger who was in the back seat of the car.
Held: He was convicted of murder and appealed to the Court of Appeal. This was rejected as firing the last shot after the danger had passed.
R V Bland murder sheet on Moodle
Tony Bland was left in a persistent vegetative state after the Hillsborough disaster. He had been in this state for three years and was being kept alive on life support machines. His brain stem was still functioning, which controlled his heartbeat, breathing and digestion, so technically he was still alive. However, he was not conscious and had no hope of recovery. The hospital with the consent of his parents applied for a declaration that it might lawfully discontinue all life-sustaining treatment and medical support measures designed to keep him alive in that state, including the termination of ventilation, nutrition and hydration by artificial means.
Re A Conjoined Twins murder sheet on Moodle
Mary and Jodie were conjoined twins joined at the pelvis. Jodie was the stronger of the two and capable of living independently. However, Mary was weaker, she was described as having a primitive brain and was completely dependent on Jodie for her survival. According to medical evidence, if the twins were left as they were, Mary would eventually be too much of a strain on Jodie and they would both die. If they operated to separate them, this would inevitably lead to the death of Mary, but Jodie would have a strong chance of living an independent life.
Who is a person in being W9P1 and P8
Anyone who has been born (so not a foetus) or is brain dead.
The point of being brain dead was shown in R V Malcherek.
R V Malcherek murder sheet on Moodle
In Malcherek the defendant had stabbed his wife. The victim had been taken to hospital and placed on a life support machine. The doctors later switched off the life support machine as the victim was not showing any activity in their brain stem. The defendant tried to argue that the doctors’ actions constituted a novus actus interveniens which broke the chain of causation.
What is the meaning of under the Queen’s peace W9P1
A soldier does not commit murder if they are engaged in combat and they act within the terms of engagement. The Geneva Convention says it is illegal to fire on a surrendering soldier or a hospital.
The police can use reasonable force to stop a crime or to arrest someone, this may involve the use of lethal force. An example of this is the Mark Duggan case.
Mark Duggan murder sheet on Moodle
Judges have heard how armed police had intercepted a minicab Mr Duggan was travelling in after intelligence indicated that he was part of a gang and had a gun. He was shot twice and killed. The police were investigated by the IPCC (Now IOPC) and found to have acted lawfully as they genuinely believed the treat was real and later a gun WAS discovered in a park where Mark Duggan had thrown it from his moving vehicle.
MR
Filler
What is express malice aforethought W9P1
Intent to kill.
This was shown in the case R V Adebolajo.
R V Adebolajo
The defendants attacked and killed a soldier in a London street. Initially they hit him with a car and then hacked him to death with a machete and an axe in front of passers-by.
What is implied malice aforethought W9P1 and P9
This is the intent to do serious harm, so GBH S.18 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 but the victim dies.
This was shown in R V Vickers 1957.
R V Vickers 1957 P9
Vickers broke into the cellar of a sweet shop. He knew the lady who ran the shop was deaf but she saw him and he attacked her and she later died.
Held: Where a defendant intends to inflict GBH and the victim dies this is implied malice aforethought.
What is indirect intent or oblique intent P9 and W9P1
This is when the defendant’s main aim was quite different but it caused death.
They do not have the MR for murder unless they could see foresight of consequence.
On the PowerPoint is knowing the outcome is virtually certain but not necessarily desiring it as shown in R V Woollin 1998
