Week 2 - Introduction, Structure of an Offence, Actus Reus Flashcards
What is the difference between Civil and Criminal law?
Criminal law - involves the state, the Crown and punishes rather than compensating for wrongs.
Civil law - relates to contracts, or redress or compensate when an individual is injured in the absence of a contract between the wrongdoer and injured.
What is the jurisdiction of a Magistrates’ Courts?
Summary offences and triable either-way offences unless D elects to be tried at the Crown Court or the Magistrates’ Court decides so.
What is the composition of a Magistrates’ Court?
No jury; magistrates - (lay people) who are either volunteers with assistance of a legal advisor, or District judge.
What can a Magistrates’ Court do?
Decide on questions of both law and fact and determine guilt.
Low sentencing powers (below 12 months imprisonment).
What is the jurisdiction of the Crown Court?
Indictable offences and either-way offences where D has elected to be tried or has been sent by the Magistrates’ Court.
What is the composition of the Crown Court?
Trial by professional judge and jury, CPS and defence barrister.
What can a Crown Court do?
Role of judge is to decide matters of law; to direct the jury; to decide on sentence.
Role of jury; to decide matters of fact and determine guilt of defendant.
Sentence limited only by the prescribed maximum for the offence.
What is the Crown’s role at trial?
To prove “beyond all reasonable doubt” that D committed the offence in question.
What principle did Woolmington v Director of Public Prosecutions create?
The burden of proof: obligation of the prosecution to prove its case “beyond reasonable doubt.”
What is the role of the defence at trial?
To show there is sufficient evidence to allow the defence to go to the jury - known as “evidential burden.”
Who are the main actors within the criminal justice system?
Police; CPS; the Defence (defendant); the Jury; the Judge
What specific requirements must be proven in order to establish liability?
Actus Reus and Mens Rea.
What is the difference between AR and MR?
AR - elements external to D’s mental state (D’s actions, omissions, required circumstances, required results and causation).
MR - mental element requirement, or D’s state of mind.
What are the requirements of AR?
Conduct - the act or omission.
Circumstances - the surrounding facts necessary for liability.
Result - particular consequences required for liability.
Causation - the link between conduct and result.
What is the difference between conduct and result crimes?
Conduct - does not include the result element, the AR of the offence is complete as soon as D performs a certain conduct.
Result - require result element, rules of causation must be applied.
What is the definition of murder?
An unlawful killing of a human being under the Queen’s Peace with malice aforethought.
Where will liability for an omission be found?
Where D has a recognised duty to act and unreasonably fails to do so.
What are the 5 categories of duty to act?
Offence-specific duties; contractual duties; familial duties; voluntary assumption of care duties; creation of a dangerous situation duty.
What are offence-specific duties? What is the main legal authority?
Duty to act is imposed in a particular statute or by common law.
Dytham [1979]: D a police officer who had failed to intervene in an attack outside a nightclub where V was kicked to death by a bouncer.
What are contractual duties? What is the main legal authority?
Where D has a contractual duty to act.
Pittwood (1902): D was a gatekeeper at a railway who had opened the gate to allow a cart through then forgot to close said gate. Another cart was hit by a train and the train driver was killed. D was liable for manslaughter based on his failure to perform his contractual duty to close the gate.
What are familial duties?
They are present in marriage or parent to child relationships (providing the child is under the age of 18).
What are some examples of cases which present the familial duty?
Hood [2004]: husband found guilty of manslaughter upon failing to summon medical attention for wife.
Gibbons and Proctor (1918): failure to feed child, liable for murder.
Evans (Gemma) [2009]: failure to summon medical aid when daughter overdosed on heroin, liable for GNM.
What does Sheppard (1862) illustrate?
That a familial duty may not extend to adult children - D had no duty to 18 year old daughter.
When does a voluntary assumption of responsibility arise?
Where D has voluntarily undertaken to care for V in a situation where V is unable to care for themselves.
What are 2 main legal authorities for voluntary assumption of care?
Stone and Dobinson [1977]: V came to live with her brother (S) and his partner (D). V suffered from anorexia nervosa and became bedridden. S & D attempted to help but eventually V died. Convicted to GNM.
Nicholls (1874): D, V’s grandmother, took care of V after mother’s death. D neglected V and V died. D charged with GNM.
