Murder Flashcards
(10 cards)
What is murder
A common law offence with a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment.
Lord Coke in 17th century said “The unlawful killing of a reasonable creature under the Kings peace with malice aforethought, express or implied.
Aka unlawfully causing death of human being with intention to kill or cause serious injury
What is Actus Reus and Mens Rea in murder?
Actus Reus - unlawful killing of a human being under the Kings peace within any country of the realm
Men’s Rea - intention to kill or intention to cause serious injury
What is unlawful killing?
An act or Immission that is decided to be the factual and legal cause of the death.
Factual causation decided by - but for D’s conduct, V wouldn’t have died
Legal causation - D’s act/omission was more than a minimal cause of death and there was no break in the chain.
E.g. Gibbins & Proctor (1918) parents failed to feed daughter who starved, decided as an AR
Sometimes lawful in self-defence, doctors may discontinue treatment in exception cases e.g. Bland 1993
E.g. in Re A (conjoined Twins) (2000), it was lawful for doctor to operate on conjoined twins to save one, knowing it would kill other
What are the parameters for a human being?
It excluded a foetus or a person who is brain dead.
E.g. A-G’s Reference (No. 3 of 1994) foetus killed in womb cannot be victim of specific offence of murder. Child must have an existence independent of the mother to be considered a human being. Not possible to have legal intent to kill or seriously injure a foetus. Transfered malice cannot be used where MR is at pregnant women and foetus dies
E.g. Malcherek (1981) doctors switched off life support machine as victims not showing any brain activity in brain stem. D’s argued this broke chain of causation, court decided doctors can switch off as brain dead person is no longer a reasonable creature
What is the meaning if being under the kings peace?
This excludes killing an enemy in battle when country is at war. However, enemy soldiers taken as a prisoner or whom have surrender are protected by the law on murder
E.g. Blackman (2017) killing enemy after they were seriously injured and no longer a threat WAS a killing under Kings peace
What does “within any country of the realm” mean
Includes killing a person anywhere in UK. Exceptionally, a British citizen can be tried in English courts for a murder committed overseas
What is “malice aforethought (express or implied)”
Express means intention to kill
Implied means intention to cause serious harm e.g. Vickers (1957) D struck V with several blows during burglary of V’s shop. Decided that if D intended to inflict GBH and V died, it’s enough for murder
(Premeditation not needed)
Is the test for intention objective or subjective?
Subjective, based on what D thought, not what the reasonable person would think i.e. jury must decide that D intended death or serious injury (established by s.8 Criminal Justice Act 1967
What are the two types of intent?
Direct intent - murder/GBH was D’s aim, purpose or objective e.g. Mohan (1976)
Indirect intent - D realised murder/GBH was virtually certain e.g. Woollin (1998)
When are jury entitled to find indirect intention for murder?
When beyond reasonable doubt the death or serious bodily harm was
1) a virtual certainty as result of D’s actions and
2) that D appreciated it was.
If jury is satisfied D foresaw virtual certainty of death/GBH, may find D intended the result, but do not have to as intention and foresight of consequences are not the same.
E.g. Matthews & Alleyne (2003) D pushed V off bridge into river, knowing he couldn’t swim, fell 25 feet and drowned
Ratio: foresight of a consequence as virtual certainty is only evidence from which jury can find intention
