Omissions Cases and Legislation

Question 1

R v Gibbins and Proctor (Darling J)

Answer 1

• Gibbins = Blood relationship and in house
• Proctor - No duty to care for the child but chose to do so, primary carer, accepted money from Gibbins for food and clothes for the child

Question 2

R v Stone and Dobinson [1976] (English CCA)

Answer 2

Geoffrey Lane LJ:
- Descriptions of defendants
- 3 manslaughter criteria in circumstances
- Blood relation/washed and fed her
- Inadequate action
- Philimore LJ in Reg v Lowe and Lord Atkin in Andrews
- Prosecution must prove recklessness, mere inadvertence insufficient

Question 3

DPP v Joel [2016] (CoA)

Answer 3

• Facts of case
• Omissions liability - Parent/child, V AoR, contractual duty
• Relationship – Child or children and a dependent parent and voluntary assumption of responsibility
• Costen – Only AoR potentially applicable. Always said he wanted to leave the house (My question = Did he care for her despite this desire?)
• Judge’s charge = Should have asked the jury to determine whether there was a duty of care owed, whether Jonathon had involved himself in Evelyn’s care and raised the question with the jury if assumed responsibility as a couple if his efforts to get Evelyn out of the house would be a relevant consideration
• Defence misstated – Not even if there was a duty, tried to get out of it but that NEVER was a duty on Jonathan

Question 4

R v Dytham [1979] (English CCA)

Answer 4

Lord Widgery CJ:
-Stephen’s digest of the criminal law – “Every public officer a misdemeanour who wilfully neglects to perform any duty which he is bound either by common law or by statute to perform provided that the discharge of such duty is not attended with greater danger than a man of ordinary firmness and activity may be expected to encounter.”
- Current case – Could have called for assistance
- Not just corruption or dishonesty – Misconduct harmful to public interest based on evidence – Dangerous driving or obscene publications analogies from R v Quinn
Come back to this

Question 5

R v Pittwood

Answer 5

Railway-gate keeper case

Question 6

R v Miller

Answer 6

Need to read

Question 7

DPP v Bartley

Answer 7

Need to read

Question 8

s12 Road Traffic Act 2010

Answer 8

Failure to provide a breath sample to a Garda is punishable by a fine of up to €5,000 or a prison sentence of up to 6 months or both

Question 9

s52 Offences Against the State Act 1939

Answer 9

Refusal to give an account of your movements if detained under the Offences Against the State Acts an offence punishable by up to 6 months in prison

Question 10

Criminal Law Act 1997

Answer 10

Abolition of misprision of a felony

Question 11

s9 Offences Against the State (Amendment) Act 1998

Answer 11

9 .— (1) A person shall be guilty of an offence if he or she has information which he or she knows or believes might be of material assistance in—

(a) preventing the commission by any other person of a serious offence, or (before the offence)

(b) securing the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of any other person for a serious offence,
and fails without reasonable excuse to disclose that information as soon as it is practicable to a member of the Garda Síochána.
9.—(2) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable on conviction on indictment to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or both.

Question 12

s8 Offences Against the State (Amendment) Act 1998

Answer 12

8.—(1) “serious offence” means an offence which satisfies both of the following conditions:

(a) it is an offence for which a person of full age and capacity and not previously convicted may, under or by virtue of any enactment, be punished by imprisonment for a term of 5 years or by a more severe penalty, and

(b) it is an offence that involves loss of human life, serious personal injury (other than injury that constitutes an offence of a sexual nature), false imprisonment or serious loss of or damage to property or a serious risk of any such loss, injury, imprisonment or damage

Question 13

Sweeney v Ireland

Answer 13

HC - Baker J = Section 9(1)(b) unconstitutional - Vague and self incrimination
SC - Charleton J = Constitutional - Ingredients of offence clear and section does not apply to self incrimination

Question 14

s19 Criminal Justice Act 2011

Answer 14

19.— (1) A person shall be guilty of an offence if he or she has information which he or she knows or believes might be of material assistance in—

(a) preventing the commission by any other person of a relevant offence, or

(b) securing the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of any other person for a relevant offence,

and fails without reasonable excuse to disclose that information as soon as it is practicable to do so to a member of the Garda Síochána.
19.— (2) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable –

(a) on summary conviction, to a class A fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or both

Question 15

s2 Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012

Answer 15

2.— (1) Subject to this section, a person shall be guilty of an offence if—

(a) he or she knows or believes that an offence, that is a Schedule 1 offence, has been committed by another person against a child, and
(b) he or she has information which he or she knows or believes might be of material assistance in securing the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of that other person for that offence, (focus on past offences)
and fails without reasonable excuse to disclose that information as soon as it is practicable to do so to a member of the Garda Síochána.
Section 7 of the Act provides for penalties for withholding information.