Voluntary Manslaughter - Diminished Responsibility - ADS

Question 1

Introduce diminished responsibility - alcohol dependency syndrome (ADS).

Answer 1

• ADS is for situations where D’s long-term alcohol / drug abuse has led to recognised medical condition which causes abnormality of mental functioning.
• Person can’t control their drinking - can amount to AMF in its own right + be used as basis for defence of DR.
• Wood: leading case - had ADS but question was had this damaged D’s brain?
  1) If yes, could use DR
  2) If no, brain damage was drink voluntary? If not, can use DR. If was voluntary can’t use it.
• Tandy: was drinking voluntary or not?
• Stewart: 3-stage test - needs to be followed to claim for DR through ADS.

Question 2

Explain the first element of diminished responsibility - ADS, D must suffer from AMF at time of killing.

Answer 2

• CJA 2009: defined AMF.
• R v Byrne: prior to this, term ‘abnormality of mind’ was used.
• Test For AMF: ‘Was D’s mental functioning so different to that of ordinary human that reasonable man would term it abnormal?’
• Confirm it was at time of killing.
• Court pointed out that just having ADS doesn’t automatically amount to abnormality - nature + extent must be considered.

Question 3

Explain the second element of diminished responsibility - ADS, was D’s abnormality caused by ADS.

Answer 3

Confirm it was.

Question 4

Explain the third element of diminished responsibility - ADS, AMF must impair D’s ability to do 1 (or more) of specified things.

Answer 4

• Must ‘substantially impair’ not just ‘impair’.
• Byrne: meaning was one of degree - for jury to decide.
• Lloyd: ‘substantial’ doesn’t mean total, nor trivial or minimal. Something in between + for jury to decide.
• R v Golds: judge isn’t required to define meaning of ‘substantially’ to jury + confirms prior cases.
  AMF Must Substantially Impair D’s Ability To:
  1) Understand Nature Of Their Conduct: (e.g. automatic state, legal drugs, delusions, psychotic episodes)
  2) Form Rational Judgement: (e.g. battered woman syndrome, OCD, paranoia, PTSD, schizophrenia)
• R v Byrne
  3) Exercise Self-Control (e.g. battered woman syndrome, OCD, paranoia, PTSD, schizophrenia)
• R v Byrne