week 2 Flashcards
(28 cards)
What does the Latin term ‘mens rea’ translate to?
Guilty mind
‘Mens rea’ refers to the mental state or intent of a person when committing a crime.
What are the two main components of criminal offences?
Actus Reus and Mens Rea
Actus Reus refers to the external elements of an offence, while Mens Rea refers to the internal elements.
What is the difference between subjective and objective Mens Rea?
Subjective: D’s actual state of mind; Objective: external standard of reasonableness
Subjective Mens Rea focuses on the individual’s awareness, while objective Mens Rea does not require insight into the individual’s state of mind.
What is high culpability in Mens Rea?
A state of mind that involves a higher degree of intent or awareness of wrongdoing
High culpability often involves intentional or reckless conduct.
What is the definition of direct intention according to Mohan [1976]?
A decision to bring about a particular consequence, regardless of desire
Direct intention does not require premeditation.
Does direct intention require premeditation?
No
Intention must be present at the time D acts, even if not premeditated.
What is the legal distinction between motive and intention?
Motive ≠ intention; motive can be evidence of intention
For example, mercy killings might still be classified as murder legally.
What defines indirect or oblique intention?
When the result is a virtually certain consequence of D’s conduct, and D realizes this
This was defined in Woollin [1998].
What is the significance of foresight of virtual certainty in establishing intention?
It is evidence from which the jury may conclude D had intention
Foresight does not equate to intention but can support a finding of intention.
What case established that recklessness is subjective?
R v G [2003]
This case overruled the Caldwell test and confirmed that recklessness must be based on the defendant’s actual state of mind.
What is the definition of recklessness according to Cunningham [1957]?
Unreasonable risk taking
Recklessness involves both the awareness of risk and the unreasonable decision to take that risk.
What are the two questions to determine if D acted recklessly?
- Did D foresee the risk of harm?
- Did D unreasonably take that risk?
The degree of risk does not matter; any degree of foresight is sufficient.
What is negligence in the context of Mens Rea?
Focus on D’s behavior rather than state of mind
Negligence involves failing to meet the standard of care expected of a reasonable person.
What is the test for establishing negligence?
- What was D’s duty of care?
- To whom does D owe a duty of care?
- What is the standard of care required?
- Did D breach that duty of care?
The test assesses whether D’s conduct fell below the standard expected.
What is the correspondence principle in criminal law?
Each AR element should have a corresponding MR element
This principle ensures that the mental state aligns with the physical act in criminal liability.
What are exceptions to the correspondence principle?
- Strict liability offences
- Constructive liability offences
- Ulterior mens rea
These exceptions allow for criminal liability without the traditional correspondence between AR and MR.
What is transferred malice?
When D intends to harm one person but unintentionally harms another
For example, if D shoots at Bob but accidentally hits Kate, D may still be liable.
What is transferred malice?
The legal principle that allows the mens rea (MR) directed at one victim to be applied to another victim if the actus reus (AR) was directed at a different target.
Example: If D intends to shoot Bob but accidentally kills Kate, the MR directed at Bob can be transferred to Kate.
In the case of Latimer (1886), what was the outcome regarding transferred malice?
D was found guilty as the MR directed at V could be transferred to V2, who was injured by the belt.
The court ruled that the MR and AR were directed at different targets but could still be connected.
What are the limitations to transferred malice?
MR can only be transferred if it relates to the same crime as the AR, and no double transfer of malice is allowed.
Example: If D shoots at X and misses, hitting a window instead, the MR for causing death cannot be transferred to the act of criminal damage.
What was the ruling in AG’s Ref (No3 of 1994) regarding foetal murder?
The court ruled that a foetus is not considered a person under the law, and therefore, there could be no murder or manslaughter charge for the death of a foetus.
The case involved D stabbing his pregnant girlfriend, leading to the foetus’s death.
What is the coincidence principle in criminal law?
The principle that the actus reus (AR) and mens rea (MR) must coincide at the same time for liability to arise.
If the MR does not coincide with the conduct element of the AR, the defendant cannot be held liable.
What is the continuing act approach?
A legal solution where the AR and MR are considered part of a single continuous act even if they occur at different times.
This approach allows for liability when the MR exists at the time of the AR, even if there is a temporal gap.
What is the single transaction approach as illustrated in Thabo Meli [1985]?
The court found D guilty by analyzing a series of acts as part of a general plan to cause death, linking them within one transaction despite the MR not existing at the time of the act causing death.
This approach allows for the connection of acts that are part of a planned series.
