Voluntary Manslaughter

Question 1

What is Voluntary Manslaughter?

Answer 1

Murder + Loss of Control or Diminished Responsibility

Question 2

What Act defined the defence of DR and it’s components?

Answer 2

S2 Homicide Act 1957 (as amended by the Coroners and Justice Act 2009)

Question 3

What are the 4 parts of DR?

Answer 3

1. Abnormality of Mental Functioning
2. Recognised Medical Condition
3. Substantially impairs D’s ability to do one of three things
4. Explanation for D’s acts or omissions

Question 4

What case defined what an Abnormality of Mental Functioning (AMF) is and what was the definition?

Answer 4

Byrne - A state of mind (mental functioning) so different from that of an ordinary human being that a reasonable man would call it abnormal.

Question 5

What must the AMF come from?

Answer 5

A Recognised Medical Condition (RMC), either a physical or psychiatric condition.

Question 6

How does D show that they are suffering from a condition?

Answer 6

Expert medical evidence

Question 7

What are some examples of an RMC and their case?

Answer 7

Martin - Paranoid Personality Disorder
Ahluwalia - Battered Woman's Syndrome
Seers - Depression
Boots - Postnatal Depression
Brown - Extreme Stress
Edgington - Schizophrenia

Question 8

What case showed when intoxication is not a RMC?

Answer 8

Di Duca - Immediate effects of alcohol or drugs (being intoxicated) is not a recognised medical condition.

Question 9

What are the cases that show when intoxication can lead to a RMC?

Answer 9

Wood - Alcohol/Drug Dependency syndrome is a RMC

Tandy - Brain damage caused by alcohol/drug abuse is a RMC.

Question 10

What did Golds say what ‘substantially impaired’ means?

Answer 10

The abnormality makes a ‘real difference’

Question 11

What are the 3 things the RMC can impair D’s abililty to do?

Answer 11

1. Understand the nature of his conduct
2. Form a rational judgement
3. Exercise self control

Question 12

What Act defined when D’s abnormality provides an explanation for D’s conduct?

Answer 12

S2(1B) of the Homicide Act 1957 - The abnormality of mental functioning provides an explanation for D’s conduct if it causes, or is a significant contributory factor in causing D to carry out that conduct.
I.e. the symptoms don’t have to be the only reason of killing, just a big part.

Question 13

What did Dietschmann say?

Answer 13

The AMF doesn’t need to be the only reason of killing, just a big part, and intoxication can also play a part.

Question 14

Where is Loss of Control defined?

Answer 14

S54 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009

Question 15

What is the first part of LoC?

Answer 15

D must be suffering from a loss of control at the time of killing - S54(1)(A)

Question 16

What did Jewell define a loss of control as?

Answer 16

When D is acting without considered judgement or has lost normal powers of reasoning.

Question 17

What did S54(2) say?

Answer 17

D’s loss of control need not be sudden. However, the sooner the loss of control is after the trigger, the easier it is to prove loss of control.

Question 18

What did Dawes say?

Answer 18

A reaction to circumstances of extreme gravity may be delayed and that different individuals will react differently.

Question 19

What is the exclusion to the 1st part of the defence

Answer 19

S54(4) - D cannot use the defence if he acted out of a ‘considered desire for revenge’

Question 20

What is the second part of LoC?

Answer 20

D’s loss of control must come from a ‘qualifying trigger’ - S54(1)(B)

Question 21

What is the first trigger?

Answer 21

Fear Trigger - S55(3) - D’s loss of control must come from D’s fear of serious violence from V against D or another identified person.
Clinton showed that the trigger is not whether D was in fear of violence, but it must be serious violence.

Question 22

What is the second trigger?

Answer 22

Anger Trigger - S55(4) - When there are things said or done, of an extremely grave character, that give D a justifiable sense of being seriously wronged.

Question 23

What are the exclusions to the 2nd part of LoC?

Answer 23

Sexual infidelity - S55(6)(C) - The fact that the things said or done constituted sexual infidelity must be disregarded. - Clinton - Where things said or done, other than the infidelity, can be known in order to understand the infidelity.
Incitement - S55(6)(A) and S55(6)(B) - If D incites the fear or anger trigger in order to provide himself with an excuse for violence.

Question 24

What is the third part of LoC?

Answer 24

A person of D’s age and sex, with a normal degree of tolerance and self-restraint and in the circumstances of D, might have reacted in the same or in a similar way to D - S54(1)(C)

Question 25

What did S54(3) show?

Answer 25

That the ‘circumstances of D’ refers to everything other than those whose only relevance are that they affect D’s tolerance/restraint in general.

Question 26

What did Asmelash say?

Answer 26

D’s drunkenness could not be considered because it only affected his general tolerance and had no relevance to the things said or done.

Question 27

What is the flowchart to know if certain circumstances can be considered?

Answer 27

Is the circumstance other than D’s age and sex?
- No - D’s age and sex will be considered.
- Yes:
Is the circumstance something that generally makes D less tolerant or able to restrain themselves?
- No - Circumstance can be considered
- Yes:
Is the circumstance linked to the things said or done?
- No - Cannot be considered
- Yes - Can be considered