unlawful act manslaughter Flashcards
what is unlawful act manslaughter
where someone is killed when the defendant was in the course of committing another crime
what is involuntary manslaughter
occurs when the defendant lacks the mens reaction for murder, they had no intention to kill and may not have any intention to harm the victim
what does it have to be to be classed as unlawful act manslaughter
a lesser crime
what criteria does it have to hit to be an unlawful act manslaughter
-committed was deliberate and criminally unlawful
-committed was dangerous
-committed caused death of the victim
what are the four different elements of unlawful act manslaughter
-unlawful act
-dangerous act
-duty causing death
-MR of the unlawful act
what is an unlawful act
doing something that isn’t in line with the law
what cases related to unlawful act
R v Franklin
R v Lowe
what happened in the case R v Franklin
unlawful act must be a crime and not a tort
what happened in the case R v Lowe
must be an act and not an omission
who decides if the act was dangerous
the jury and test its objectively
where can the dangerous act be aimed at
property
not at the victim
what case relates to dangerous act
R v Church
what happened in the case R v Church
the unlawful act is dangerous if the sober and reasonable man would realise that it would subject the victim to he risk of some harm, all reasonable people must recognise the danger
what will need to be explained in element 3 duty causing death
factual and legal causation
what happens in factual causation
the but for test but for th act happening would the outcome for the victim be the same?
What case relates to the but for test
R v White
what is legal causation
the chain of causation can be broken if other things affect the death of the victim
what are the different things that oddly break the chain of causation
victims own actions
palpably wrong medical treatment
actions of a third party
natural but unpredictable event
what are the different tests for legal causation
de minimis test- R v Paggett
operating and substantial cause- R v Smith
novus actus intervenes
thing that don’t break the chain of causation-( thin skull rule, switching off the life support)
what is the think skull rule in legal causation
must take the victim as you’ve found them, this means that even if death isn’t reasonably foreseeable the law still considers the defendant liable even if victim suffered from physical or mental conditions
what is the mens tea for a unlawful act manslaughter
D only need the mens raw for the unlawful act and not the death
what case related to the mens tea of unlawful act manslaughter
DPP v Newbury and jones
what happened in the case DPP v Newbury and jones
The defendants were convicted of constructive manslaughter, but they appealed on the grounds that they did not foresee the danger of their actions. The House of Lords dismissed the appeal, emphasising that in constructive manslaughter, the test for whether the unlawful act is likely to cause harm is objective
what will be put in the conclusion of unlawful act manslaughter
law commission believed that dangerous test should be subjective and not object
-unlawful acts can var from minor to major- level as blameworthiness therefore it varies
