Manslaughter Flashcards
(35 cards)
What are the three types of involuntary manslaughter under common law
1) Constructive/unlawful and dangerous act 2) Gross negligence 3) Reckless manslaughter
What concern did the Law Commission express about involuntary manslaughter in 2006
Risk of becoming a ‘residual amorphous “catch-all” homicide offence’
What is the first step in establishing constructive manslaughter
Identify the unlawful act (base offence) - what charge would D have faced if V had not died?
What did the court in Andrews v DPP establish about the unlawful act in constructive manslaughter
Must be a criminal act requiring a subjective mens rea (not a ‘lawful act with a degree of negligence that the legislature makes criminal’)
What was the ruling in R v Lamb about the elements of the base offence
All elements of the base offence must be satisfied (mens rea and actus reus) - L pointed revolver at friend as joke with no intention/foresight of harm so mens rea for unlawful act was missing
What did Lowe establish about omissions in constructive manslaughter
An accident or omission is insufficient; D must have intended to do the base act (omission to care for a child insufficient)
What did Newbury and Jones establish about foresight in constructive manslaughter
Unnecessary for D to have foreseen risk of causing harm as a result of the unlawful act (D threw paving stone off railway bridge hit train and killed guard)
What is the test for a “dangerous act” in constructive manslaughter
Objective test: unlawful act must be such as all sober and reasonable people would inevitably recognise that it must subject the other person to at least the risk of some harm albeit not serious harm
Does the danger in constructive manslaughter have to involve physical harm
Previously limited to physical harm but now being expanded to include psychiatric harm
What did the Carey case establish about the foreseeability of danger to the victim
Danger to V must be foreseeable; affray not dangerous when V with diseased heart died while running away (assault = dangerous but not cause of death)
Does the thin skull rule apply to the dangerousness requirement in constructive manslaughter
No the thin skull rule doesn’t apply to dangerousness element (though it does to causation)
What did Kennedy (No. 2) establish about drug supply and causation in constructive manslaughter
Self-injection breaks causal chain from supplier (if supplier injects it doesn’t)
What did Dhaliwal (2006) establish regarding suicide and causation
Is original offence still operating cause that led them to take own life? Causation easier if physical injuries
What is gross negligence manslaughter
Death is a result of grossly negligent (though otherwise lawful) act or omission with no conscious choice to cause harm
Who was the defendant in the leading case of Adomako
An anaesthetist who failed to notice tube had disconnected from ventilator during operation resulting in patient’s cardiac arrest and death
What is the first step in the test for gross negligence manslaughter
Establishing a duty of care
Is there a general duty of care between citizens in the UK
No there is no general duty of care owed by one citizen to another (No good samaritan rule in UK)
How does duty of care arise according to Winter 2010
We owe a duty of care not to injure anyone whom we could reasonably foresee injuring
What did Donoghue v Stevenson (1932) establish about duty of care
One must avoid acts or omissions that could foreseeably harm others closely and directly affected by their actions
What did Wacker (2003) establish about duty of care between parties in criminal enterprise
No civil duty between parties in criminal enterprise (stowaways suffocated in lorry)
What was established in R v Pittwood (1902) about duty of care
Duty can arise from a contract of employment
Who decides whether a duty of care exists according to Evans
Duty of care is a legal concept for judge to decide
What is the standard for breach of duty in gross negligence manslaughter
Those with established duty of care must act as a “reasonable person would do in their position” - failure to do so = breach of that duty
How are a defendant’s actions judged if they have particular skills or knowledge
Actions should be judged against a reasonable person with that attribute (e.g. would qualified anaesthetist have made the same mistake)
