Unlawful Act Manslaughter Flashcards

1
Q

A person is guilty of unlawful act manslaughter if…

A

he commits an unlawful criminal act, which is objectively dangerous in that it is likely to cause ‘some harm’, and causes death with the MR of that criminal act

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2
Q

If D does not satisfy all 4 elements of the crime, the death is classified as what?

A

‘accidental’

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3
Q

Lowe 1973

A

must be an act, an omission is insufficient

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4
Q

must be an act, an omission is insufficient

A

Lowe 1973

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5
Q

Lamb 1967

A

The act must be unlawful

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6
Q

The act must be unlawful

A

Lamb 1967

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7
Q
  • The unlawful act can be committed against a person
  • The specific physical injury doesn’t have to be foreseen
A

JM and SM 2012

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8
Q

JM and SM 2012

A
  • The unlawful act can be committed against a person
  • The specific physical injury doesn’t have to be foreseen
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9
Q

The unlawful act can be committed against property

A

Goodfellow 1986

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10
Q

Case in which burglary was a sufficient unlawful act

A

Watson 1989

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11
Q

Goodfellow 1986

A

The unlawful act can be committed against property

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12
Q

Case in which arson was a sufficient unlawful act

A

Goodfellow 1986

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13
Q

What must the unlawful act be?

A

dangerous in that it is likely to cause ‘some harm’

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14
Q

Unlawful acts that have been successfully prosecuted

A
  • Arson
  • Criminal damage
  • Burglary
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15
Q

Case in which criminal damage was a sufficient unlawful act

A

Newbury and Jones 1976

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16
Q

Watson 1989

A

Burglary can be a sufficient unlawful act

17
Q

What criminal act is insufficient of being an unlawful act for the purposes of unlawful act manslaughter?

A
  • Supplying another person with drugs
  • If D didn’t administer the drugs, they did not commit the unlawful act
18
Q

Church 1965

A

The unlawful act must be dangerous

19
Q

The unlawful act must be dangerous

A

Church 1965

20
Q

What does ‘dangerous’ mean?

A

Likely to result in ‘some harm’

21
Q

Likely to result in ‘some harm’

A

Dangerous

22
Q

What must be established to determine whether the act was dangerous?

A

A sober, reasonable person would recognise a risk of some physical harm to a person

23
Q

Burglary could be considered objectively dangerous as soon as V’s frail condition became apparent to the sober and reasonable man

A

Bristow, Dunn and Delay 2014

24
Q

Bristow, Dunn and Delay 2014

A

Burglary could be considered objectively dangerous as soon as V’s frail condition became apparent to the sober and reasonable man

25
Q

Dawson 1985

A

Must be a risk of physical harm, not mental

26
Q

Must be a risk of physical harm, not mental

A

Dawson 1985

27
Q

D does not have to foresee or intend what?

A
  • the harm
  • they will be penalised for it because they should have foreseen it
28
Q

What must be applied when establishing whether the criminal act caused death?

A

legal and factual tests of causation

29
Q

Williams 1992

A

if the act was not aimed at V, this does not break the chain of causation as long as the person at whom they aimed behaved foreseeably

30
Q

If the act was not aimed at V, this does not break the chain of causation as long as the person at whom they aimed behaved foreseeably

A

Williams 1992

31
Q

Mitchell 1983

A

No need for direct contact, as long as V was killed as a ‘direct and immediate result of his act’

32
Q

No need for direct contact, as long as V was killed as a ‘direct and immediate result of his act’

A

Mitchell 1983

33
Q

V breaks the chain of causation when they take drugs that D has prepared for them

A

Kennedy 2007

34
Q

Kennedy 2007

A

V breaks the chain of causation when they take drugs that D has prepared for them

35
Q

NO need to prove beyond reasonable doubt that…

A

V would be alive but for D’s act, just that it was the operating and substantial cause of death

36
Q

Elements of unlawful act manslaughter

A
  • unlawful criminal act
  • dangerous act
  • criminal act must cause death
  • MR of the criminal act
37
Q

The harm does not have to be what?

A

Foreseen or intended

38
Q

Newbury v Jones 1976

A
  • criminal damage is a sufficient unlawful act
  • harm does not have to be foreseen or intended