Murder and Voluntary Manslaughter Flashcards
Murder definition
Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being under the King’s peace with malice aforethought (express or implied by law)
What type of offence is murder?
Common law offence
Authority for murder definition
Lord Coke
Actus Reus of Murder
The unlawful killing
AR of murder committed through…
A postive act or an omission
Omissions
Parent/ child = Gibbons & Proctor
Voluntarily assumed reaponsibility = Stone & Dobinson
Contractual duty = Pittwood
Public duty = Dytham
Started a chain of events = Miller
Statutory = s.170 Road Traffic Act 1988
When is a killing lawful?
Actions such as turning off life support (Malcharek) or operating to save one patient but killing another (Re A)
Second element under AR of murder
A foetus is not a human being (AG’s Ref No. 3)
Third element of AR of Murder
Under the Kings peace - D has not killed in battle (Page)
Causation for Murder
Factual and legal causation
Factual causation
‘But for’ D’s unlawful killing V would have died
Case for factual causation
White
Legal causation
D’s actions contributed to the death in a more than minimal way and is the operating and substantiating cause of death
Case for legal causation
R v Smith
Novus Actus Interveniens =
Intervening act
Intervening acts
Act of third party/ medical negligence (Smith/ Cheshire)
V’s own actions (Roberts)
The act of the third party must what in order to break the chain of causation?
More than a minimal cause/ operating and substantiating cause
The V’s own actions must what in order to break the chain of causation?
Reasonably forseeable
Thin skull rule
D must take the V as they find them
Case for thin skull rule
R v Blaue
Mens Rea of Murder
Malice aforethought
Malice aforethought is…
Malice = hatred
Aforethought = pre planned (on the spot killings included)
Express Malice
D intends to kill V.
Direct intent - aims/ desires V’s death.
Case for express malice
R v Mohan/ Belfon
Express malice can also include…
Oblique intention
Oblique intention
V’s death is a virtual certainty due to D’s actions and D realises this
Case for oblique intention
R v Woolin
Malice aforethought can also be…
Implied malice
Implied malice
D intends to cause ‘really serious harm’ and V dies
Case for implied malice
R v Vickers
Implied malice can also include…
Direct intention (Mohan/ Belfon)
Oblique intention (Woolin)
Partial defences to murder
Dimished responsibility and loss of control
What do these partial defences do to the charge of murder?
Reduce it to voluntary manslaughter if successfull
Act of Parliament for diminished responsibility
S2 of the Homicide Act 1957 as amended by S52 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009.
Diminished responsibility definition
D was suffering an abnormality of mental functioning from a recognised medical condition which substantially impaired his ability to do one of three specified things and explains his act or omission in killing.
First element of test
D must have/ suffer with an abnormality of mental funtioning
S52 1 (A)
Abnormality of mental functioning
Byrne case definition
A state of mind so different from that of ordinary human beings that the reasonable man would term it abnormal.
AMF must be caused by…
A recognised medical condition
Case examples of AMF
Chronic depression (Seers)
Batterered wife syndrome (Ahluwalia)
Mental deficiency (Speake)
Post natal depression (Reynolds)
Alcohol dependency (Wood)
Pre- menstrual tension (Smith)
Sexual psychopath (Byrne)
Second element of the test
D must be substantially impaired
S52 1 (C)
D’s ability to do one or the 3 things must be substantially impaired
The 3 things
A) understand nature of his conduct
B) form a rational judgment or
C) exercise self control
The impairment must be
‘Important or weighty’ (Gold)
Substantial impairment cannot come from
Intoxication alone (Egan/ Dowds)
Third element
Explains D’s act or omission in killing
S52 1 (C)
AMF must explain D’s conduct in killing V
The test
- Factual causation - ‘but for’ (White)
- Legal - AMF more minimal cause of killing (Smith)
Partial defence succeeds
D’s murder charge drops to voluntary manslaughter
Partial defence fails
D will still be charged with murder
Section for test 1 for DR?
S52 1 (A)
Section for test 2 for DR?
S52 1 (B)
Section for test 2 for DR?
S52 1 (C)
