defences contained in homicide act 1957 Flashcards
(24 cards)
what are the defences contained in homicide act 1957?
- diminished responsibility
- loss of control (provocation)
- suicide pact
- infanticide
what is the 3 stage test for diminished responsibility?
- abnormality of mental function
- explanation for the defendants acts
- substantially impair mental ability
what is meant by abnormality of mental function in the 3 stage test?
defendant has an abnormality of mental function caused by a recognised medical condition. abnormality of the mental functioning is assessed by reference to what a reasonable man would regard as abnormal
what is meant by explanation for the defendants acts or omissions in the 3 stage test?
abnormality must provide an explanation for the defendants acts or ommissions in being party to the killing. there must be a link between the mental issues and killing (act)
what is meant by substantially impair mental ability in the 3 stage test?
abnormality must substantially impair the mental ability to either:
- understand the nature of the conduct
- form a rational judgement
- exercise self control
what are some causes of the abnormality of mental functioning?
- recognised medical condition
- psychological and physical condition
- the abnormality must be caused by an inside source and outside factors such as alcohol or drugs could not be taken into account unless the abnormality was a result of a disease of alcoholism or drug addiction or long term damage caused by intake of intoxicants
what are some factors that could restrict the ability to understand the nature of his conduct?
- automatous state- if the defendant is in an automatous state and does not know what he is doing (sleep walking)
- automatism due to pavor nocturnus (night terrors)
- delusions- believing he killing the devil, or defending himself from perceived attackers
- severe learning disabilities- unable to comprehend the nature of actions
what is the ability to form rational judgement?
even if the defendant does know the nature of his conduct he may not be able to form rational judgement (paranioa, schizophrenia)
what is battered woman syndrome (bws)?
battered woman syndrome is a mental disorder that develops in victims of a domestic violence as a result of serious, long term abuse
what happens in the case of R V Ahluwalia (1992)?
the defendant had an arranged marriage and her husband had been violent towards her for years. he assaulted and threatened her repeatedly. on one night he stated to her that if she did not pay a bill he would beat her. when he was asleep he poured petrol over her and set him alight. he had severe burns and died 6 days later. the defendant was convicted of murder but appealed on grounds of diminished responsibility and provocation. she was convicted of manslaughter. the legal principle of this case is that provocation had to be sudden and temporary and temporary and did not allow for a so called slow burn.
what is adjustment disorder (PTSD)?
your reaction is stronger than expected for the type of event that occured.
what happened in the case of byrne (1960)?
sexual psychopath, medical evidence was that his condition meant that he was unable to control his perverted desires, defence of diminished responsibility was available
what happened in the case of R V Gittens (1984)?
Defendant was charged with murdering his wife and step-daughter while suffering from depression combined with the effects of drink and drugs. The trial judge told the jury they had to decide whether it was depression or intoxication that was the substantial cause of diminished state of mind.
what happened in the case of R V Cambell (1987)?
the defendant killed a female hitch hiker he had picked up when she refused his sexual advances towards her. He pulled up in a remote spot and made a pass at her. She hit him in the eye and he punched her in the throat. She began gurgling and blood came from her mouth. Realising the force at which he must have struck her he panicked and began to strangle her. He eventually killed her. The defendant had frontal lobe damage and epilepsy. At his trial he raised the defence of provocation which was rejected by the jury and he was convicted of murder. The defence of diminished responsibility was not advanced at trial as medical opinion was that his abnormality of the mind had not substantially impaired his mental responsibility due to his ability to recall events lucidly and the length of time of the sustained attack.
what is diminished responsibility and intoxication?
defence of diminished responsibility becomes more complicated when the defendant was also intoxicated at the time of the killing. the clear rule is that intoxication alone cannot support diminished responsibility
what happens in the case of Dowds (2012)?
the defendant killed his partner with a knife by inflicting 60 wounds on her. dowds claimed that he was a binge drinker and was so drunk at the time of the killing and he couldnt remember any of it. claimed drinking was a medical condition by not allowed. guilty of murder
what happened in the case of lipman 1970?
Robert Lipman was convicted of manslaughter for killing his friend while on a bad LSD trip. She suffered two blows to the head and died of asphyxia. He appealed against the conviction. LSD means no diminished responsibility, but allows lack of intent to be proved
what happened in the case of dietschmann (2003)?
defendant was upset that the victim was disrespectful to the memory of the defendants aunt who had just died. the defendant kicked the victim repeatedly and stamped on him. psychiatrists called by both prosecution and defence agreed that he was suffering from depressed grief however they disagreed on whether this has substantially impaired his mental responsibility. defendant had also drunk whisky and cider before the killing and appealed. the appeal won so the charge was reduced to voluntary manslaughter
what happened in the vase of hendy (2006)?
the appellant stabbed and killed a stranger. He had been out drinking when he kicked a friend in the face. He immediately appologised and shouted “I don’t deserve to live. I should be dead”. He then tried to jump in front of a car but was held back by his friends. He then said “I always hurt the people I like I might as well be dead.” Later that night the appellan stabbed a man in an alleyway in an unprovoked attack. At his trial he admitted the killing and raised the defence of diminished responsibility. He had suffered a head injury in early childhood. Medical experts differed in their assessment of his mental condition.
what is a legal problem with the use of diminished responsibility on appeal?
in some cases defendant only raises the case of diminished responsibility on appeal persuing a lesser charge in the first instance. DR as a defence shows admission of actus reus and mens rea. courts are not favourable to this due to tactical change of plea.
what happens in the case of R V Hobson (1997)?
he appellant stabbed and killed her abusive alcoholic partner. At her trial the defences of self defence and provocation were rejected by the jury and she was convicted of murder. At the time of her trial Battered Women’s Syndrome was not included in the standard British classification of mental diseases. The appellant appealed contending that at the time of her trial Battered Women’s Syndrome would not have been readily considered by practising psychiatrists. She now had reports from two psychiatrists that she was suffering from Battered Women’s Syndrome at the time of the killing.
what is the case of R V Martin (2000)?
Martin had shot two people that were trying to burgle his home. He killed one of them and wounded the other. At the initial trial, Martin attempted to claim self-defence but was unsuccessful. He was convicted by a majority of 10 to 2 for murder and wounding with intent. Martin was subsequently found to have a long standing, paranoid personality disorder. He later contended that his illness had affected how he measured the risk in the situation and appealed his conviction.
what happened in the case of R V Neaven (2006)?
The appellant stalked and fatally stabbed a man who had given evidence against him in a previous trial for wounding and criminal damage for which the appellant had been sentenced to 12 months imprisonment. The appellant had psychiatric problems. He had suffered long term personality disorder. He was dependant on alcohol and drugs. He had made several suicide attempts due to his intrusive thoughts of killing his girlfriend. the appellant told his psychiatrist he was having violent fantasies and experienced sexual arousal from violence. At his trial he advanced a plea of self-defence. His counsel discussed the issue of diminished responsibility but the defendant and his counsel believed that if this was also raised it would prejudice the outcome with regards to self-defence and reveal that he was dangerous. He therefore refused the prosecution access to his medical records. The jury rejected his plea of self-defence and convicted him of murder.
what is meant by loss of control?
loss of control is another partial defence to murder, it replaces the defence of provocation. the defendant must prove that they lost control, there was a qualifying trigger and a person of the same sex and age would have reacted in the same way
