Voluntary Manslaughter Flashcards
What are the two partial defences
Diminished Responsibility
Loss Of Control
Breakdown of DM
- D must be suffering from an abnormality of mental functioning
- Abnormality arose form a recognised medical condition
- It must substantially impair…
- It must provide an explanation for the D’s behaviour
Abnormality of mental functioning
Where the D’s mental functioning is so different of that of an ordinary human beings that the reasonable man would term it as being abnormal
Abnormality arose from a recognised medical condition
Covers both psychological and physical conditions
Medical evidence given in trial
Intoxication does not apply Dowds Di-Duca
Psychological conditions
Psychosis
Paranoia
Depression - Martin
Battered Womens Syndrome - Ahluwalia, Thornton
Physical conditions
Epilepsy
Sleep disorders
Diabetes
It must substantially impair…
- D’s ability to understand the nature if his conduct
- D’s ability to exercise self control
- D’s ability to form a rational judgement
Substantial does not mean total but more than trivial - Lloyd
D’s ability to understand the nature of his conduct
Where D did not know what he was doing due to their automatic state ie. mental age
D’s ability to form a rational judgement
Those suffering from schizophrenia or paranoia may suffer from this. D doesn’t think things through properly, he just does it.
D’s ability to form self control
Where D can not stop themselves from what they are doing.
Must provide an explanation for D’s conduct
An explanation must be provided that the abnormality causes or was at least significant contributing factor to the cause of the D carrying out the act.
S1B Homicide Act 1957
Breakdown of LOC
- D must have lost self control
- Must have been caused by a Qualifying Trigger
- Excluding matters
- Standard of self control
- Circumstances of the D
Must have lost self control
This does not mean sudden, so the D does not need to snap.
Explained in s54(2) CJA 2009 and in Dawes
Qualifying triggers
-Fear
-Anger
(One will be relevant)
Fear trigger
Where the D must be in fear of SERIOUS violence from the victim. It can be aimed at the victim or another identified person. Explained in s55(1) CJA 2009
Relevant cases: Ward. Lodge. Dawes
Anger Trigger
Where there are things said or done to the D which must be:
-Of an extremely grave character
-And cause the D to have a justifiable sense of being wronged
Explained in s55(4) CJA 2009
Of an extremely grave character
Cumulative effect is relevant here -Dawes
Breakdown of a relationship is not acceptable- Hatter
Justifiable sense of being wronged
Where the D believed that his actions were acceptable to deal with these things said or done
- Muhammad
Excluding matters
Sexual infidelity - s55(6) CJA 2009
Considered desire for revenge - s54(4) CJA 2009
Sexual infidelity
There is no legal definition for sexual infidelity.
For the jury to decide
Case of Clinton states it can be considered as part of the picture
Considered desire for revenge
If the D has even an incline of a considered desire for revenge then the defence will fail
Standard of self control
The D must reach the same standard if self control of that of a person of the same age an sex. They must have the same degree of tolerance of that of a reasonable person.
- Gregson
Circumstances of the D
A history of the following can be considered here: Abuse - Ahluwalia, Thornton, hill Depression - Martin Unemployment - Gregson Sexual infidelity - Clinton
The jury must then consider whether a normal person would have acted in the same way considering all these circumstances. If not then the defence will fail.
