Murder and Manslaughter Offences Flashcards
Murder defined
Sec.167 Crimes Act 1961
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.
(c) If the offender means to cause death, or, being so reckless as aforesaid, means to cause such bodily injury as aforesaid to one person, and by accident or mistake kills another person, though he does not mean to hurt the person killed.
(d) If the offender for any unlawful object does an act that he knows to be likely to cause death, and thereby kills any person, though he may have desired that his object should be affected without hurting any one.
Further definition of murder
Sec.168 Crimes Act 1961
(1) Culpable homicide is also murder in each of the following cases, whether the offender means or does not mean death to ensue, or knows or does not know that death is likely to ensue:
(a) If he means to cause grevious bodily injury for the purpose of facilitating the commission of any of the offences mentioned in subsection (2) of this section, or facilitating the flight or avoiding detection of the offender upon the commission or attempted commission thereof, or for the purpose of resisting lawful apprehension in respect of any offence whatsoever, and death ensues from such injury.
(b) If he administers any stupifying or overpowering thing for any of the purposes aforesaid, and death ensues from the effects from such injury.
(c) If he by any means wilfully stops the breath of any person for any of the purposes aforesaid, and death ensues from such stopping of breath.
Intent to cause death
If you are charging an offender with murder under Sec.167 you must show that the defendant:
Intended to cause death, or
Knew that death was likely to ensue,
Was reckless that death would ensue.
Killing by influence on the mind
Sec.163 Crimes Act 1961
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.
Punishment of murder
Sec.172 Crimes Act 1961
(1) Every one who commits murder is liable to imprisonment for life.
(2) Subsection (1) is subject to section 102 of the Sentencing Adt 2002.
Effect of the Sentencing Act 2002
Sec.102 of the Sentencing Act 2002 states:
102 Presumption in favour of life imprisonment for murder
(1) An offender who is convicted for murder must be sentenced to imprisonment for life unless, given the circumstances of the offence and the offender, a sentence of imprisonment for life would be made manifestly unjust.
(2) If a court does not impose a sentence of imprisonment for life on an offender convicted of murder, it must give written reasons for not doing so.
Sections 103 and 104 of the Sentencing Act 2002 also give the court discretion as to the minimum term to be imposed on a person convicted of murder.
