Murder

Murder

Actus Reas
1. Act or Omission
  1. Omission
    1. Only guilty if it falls under the 6 exceptions
      1. Gibbins & Proctor
  2. Act
    1. Kill someone
2. Reasonable Creature in Being
  1. Human
  2. A foetus is not considered a reasonable creature in being
    1. AG Ref No 3 of 1994
  3. A brain dead person is not a reasonable creature in being
    1. Life support
      1. Bland
      2. Malcherek v Steel
3. Queen's Peace
  1. Killing someone in war is not murder
  2. Killing a prisoner of war is murder
    1. They have surrendered and serve no threat
4. Causation
  1. Legal
    1. Main or significant cause
      1. Cheshire
  2. Factual
    1. But for test
      1. White
5. Reasonable Force
  1. D reasonably and honestly thought it was necessary
    1. Subjective test
    2. Jury have to decide
      1. Beckford
        quashed
      2. Jury may make decision based on emotions rather than facts
        Clegg
        Excessive force
  2. Unclear: difficult to direct jury
6. House Holders
  1. Crime and Courts Act 2013
  2. Wide definition
    1. Believes victim to be tresspasser
    2. D must not be a tresspasser
    3. D must be in or partially in building which is a dwelling
7. Year and a Day rule
  1. Old Law
    1. Victim must die within a year and a day of the act to be guilty of murder
  2. Medical advances: life support machine
    1. People were living past a year and a day
      1. Limit was lifted
Definition
1. Unlawful killing
2. Reasonable creature of being
3. Disrupting the Queen's peace
Defences
1. Self defence
  1. Full defence
  2. Reasonable
  3. Excessive
    1. Could argue loss of control
      1. Partial defence
    2. Clegg
    3. Martin
2. Necessity
  1. Full defence
  2. With courts approval
    1. Re A
3. Duress
  1. Defence not allowed for murder or attempted murder
    1. Howell
Mens Rea
1. Intention
  1. Malice aforethought
  2. Express intent
    1. Kill
  3. Implied intent
    1. GBH
      1. Vickers
  4. Direct intent
  5. Oblique intent
    1. Virtual certainty
      1. Woollin
2. Transferred Malice
  1. Transferred mens rea
  2. Gnango
    1. Murder: victim
    2. Attempted murder: intended victim
  3. Latimer
Law Reform (Law Commission)
1. American Law
  1. First degree murder
    1. Intent to kill
  2. Second degree murder
    1. Not premeditated
2. 2006: Murder, Manslaughter & Infanticide
  1. Rickety structure set up on shakey foundations
  2. Uncertain: lacks clarity and has long been acknowledged that it is in dire need of reform
  3. No defence of self defence if excessive force is used
  4. Duress is not available
  5. Has been developed bit by bit in individula cases and is not a coherent whole
  6. Can be guilty if they intend GBH
  7. Mandatory life sentence doesn't allow flexibility in sentencing
3. Serious Harm Rule
  1. Homicide Act 1957
    1. Parliament never intended a killing to amount to murder unless D realised their conduct might cause death
  2. Defence of murder is too wide
  3. Cunningham 1981
    1. Lord Edmund Davis believed the defendant had mens rea

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