Part 1 Culpable Homicide Flashcards
Homicide Defined
S158
Homicide is the killing of a human being by another, directly or indirectly, by any means whatsoever
Murray Wright Ltd (Case law - Principal Offender)
Because the killing must be done by a human being, an organisation (such as a hospital or food company) cannot be convicted as a principal offender
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 child is homicide if it dies in consequence of injuries received before, during or after.
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
(b) By an omission without lawful excuse to perform or observe any legal duty or
(c) both combined
(d) By causing that person by threats or fear of violence, or by deception, or to do an act which causes his death
(e) By wilfully frightening a child under the age of 16 or a sick person
(3) Except as provided in s178 of this Act, culpable homicide is either murder or manslaughter
(4) Homicide that is not culpable is not an offence
Unlawful Act
s2
Means a breach of any Act, regulation, rule, or bylaw.
R v Myatt (Case law - Unlawful Act)
(Before a breach of any Act, regulation or bylaw would be an unlawful act under s160 for the purposes 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.
Standard of care - legal duties
s150A
Unlawful act requires proof of negligence, or is a strict or absolute liability offence. The person is criminally liable if the unlawful act is a major departure from the standard of care expected from a reasonable person in the particular circumstances.
Standard of care - legal duties (examples)
s150A
Culpable homicide supported where the offender has caused death by:
- committing arson
- child given excessive amount of alcohol
- placing hot cinders on drunk person
- supplying heroin to a person who overdoses
Omissions to perform legal duty
s160(2)(b)
- Death caused by an omission, without lawful excuse, to perform or observe any legal duty.*
- Legal duty - imposed by statute or common law including uncodified common law duties these include:*
- provide the necessaries and protect from injury
- provide necessaries and protect from injury (a parent or guardian)
- provides necessaries as an employer
- avoid omissions that will endanger life
Unlawful Acts and Omissions of Duty
s160(2)(c)
- Sometimes both unlawful acts and omissions to perform a legal duty are applicably the same.*
- For example: to drive a car recklessly that you kill a pedistrian is both an unlawful act and an omission to observe your duty to take precautions when you are in charge of a dangerous thing - s156*
Threats, Fear of Violence and Deception
s160(2)(d)
- A person is guilty of culpable murder if they cause the victim by threats, fear of violence or deception to do an act that results in the victim’s death.*
- “the victim ‘s conduct must be such that it could be reasonably foreseen, is proportinate to the threat or is within the ambit of reasonableness”.*
Threats, Fear of Violence and Deception (examples)
s160(2)(d)
Examples of culpable homicide caused by actions prompted by threats, fear of violence or deception:
- Jumps or falls out of a window and dies in fear of being 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.
R v Tomars (Case law - Threats, Fear & Deception)
- 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 consequence?
- Did these foreseeable actions of the victim contribute in a signficant way to his death?
Frightening a child or sick person
s160(2)(e)
- Caused by any act that frightens the child or sick person, so long as it is done wilfully.*
- Child - Under 16 years*
- Sick person - Physical or mental illiness or disease*
- Wilfully frightening - intending to frighten or at least be reckless as to this*
Killing by Influence of 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 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 foresaid or a sick person.*
- This applies to someone who mentally tortures another person who is already mentally or physically sick.*
