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Introduction to English Law
Lecture 4: Criminal Law
9th December 2008
Dr. Ian Curry-Sumner
UCERF, School of Law, Utrecht University 2
Structure of the Lecture
1. General principles of criminal law
2. Elements of a crime
3. Murder
4. Manslaughter
Section 1
General principles of criminal
law
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General Principles (1)
Nature of the crime
* Offences against the State
* Queen brings the case: R v. Smith
* Need a "guilty mind"
* Level of proof: beyond reasonable doubt (c. 90-99% sure)
* Adversarial and not inquisitorial: Clip from Kavanagh QC
* Aims:
­ Punishment
­ Reduce re-offending
­ Rehabilitation
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General Principles (2)
Custodial and community sentences
Custodial sentence ­ prison (court must state reasons)
Community sentence:
­ A curfew order
­ A probation order
­ A community service order
­ A combination order (probation order + community service)
­ A drug treatment order
­ An attendance centre order
­ A supervision order
­ An action plan order
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General Principles (3)
Indictable and summary offences
Summary ­ can be tried by courts having summary jurisdiction (w/out a jury)
Indictable ­before the Crown Court with jury
Reflects seriousness of the crime. Difficult, often depends on facts:
- offences triable only summarily
- offences triable only on indictment
- offences triable either way
Does England have the death penalty?
Abolished for murder in 1965
Abolished for treason and piracy with violence in 1998
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General Principles (4)
­ Actus reus
­ Mens rea
­ Strict Liability
­ Parties to a crime
­ General defences
­ Vicarious liability
­ Inchoate offences (e.g. attempt)
These we will
discuss
These we
won't discuss
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Particular Crimes (1)
­ Murder and manslaughter
­ Offences related to homicide
­ Non-fatal offences against the person
­ Sexual offences
­ Road traffic offences
­ Theft and related offences
­ Offences involving deception
­ Blackmail and Forgery
­ Burglary and related offences
­ Handling and related offences
­ Offences of damage to property
­ Computer misuse offences
­ Criminal libels and related offences
­ Offences against public order, etc. etc.
These we will
discuss
These we
won't discuss
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Particular Crimes (2)
Imagine the following:
Bart is a thief. He has been staking out a house in a residential area for
some time. He has chosen Tuesday night to burgle the house. He
enters via a window, which he breaks. He then steals a large some of
money and is in the process of disconnecting the video. At that moment,
Angela returns home and catches Bart in the act. Bart pulls out a gun
and threatens to kill Angela. A struggle ensues and Angela is killed. Bart
picks up the video and runs away. Less than 1 hour later he is arrested
in the local park.
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Particular Crimes (3)
Criminal damage
Murder/Manslaughter
Aggravated Burglary/
Robbery
Theft/Burglary
SAME FACTS
MULTIPLE CRIMES
Section 2
Elements of a crime
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Elements of a Crime: Overview
DEFENCE?
MENS REAACTUS REUS
CRIME!!
NB: Strict liability,
negligence, etc.
Woolmington v. DPP [1935] AC 462
NB: Omissions,
state of affairs
etc.
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Elements of a Crime: Actus Reus
Problem areas
1. State of Affairs
Larsonneur (1993)
2. Omissions
Fagan v. MPC (1969)
Airedale NHS Trust v. Bland (1993)
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Elements of a Crime: Mens Rea
Intention Moloney [1985] AC 905
Nedrick [1986] 3 All ER 1
Subjective Cunningham [1957] 2 QB 396
Recklessness
Objective Caldwell [1981] 1 All ER 961
Recklessness
Negligence McCrone v Riding [1938] 1 All ER 157
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Section 3
Murder
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Particular Crimes: Homicide
MURDER INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER
Pure Voluntary Manslaughter
Suicide Pacts
Sec. 4, HA57Provocation
Sec. 3, HA57
Diminished
Responsibility
Sec. 2, HA57
Constructive
Manslaughter
Gross
Negligence
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Murder (1)
Definition
Murder is when a man of sound of sound memory, and of the age
of discretion, unlawfully killeth within any county of the realm any
reasonable creature in rerum natura under the king's peace,
with malice aforethought, either expressed by the party or
implied by the law
No statutory definition ­ This is all common law!
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Murder (2)
1. Who can commit it?
Anyone who is responsible for actions:
­ Age: Under the criminal age of responsibility (10, in Scotland iťs 8!)
­ Insanity: McNaghten rules
­ Diminished responsibility: This is, however, a defence
­ Real person: Because cannot suffer penalty ­ life in prison
2. Where can it be committed?
s.9 Offences against the Persons Act 1861 & s.3 British Nationality Act 1981
Jurisdiction over all British citizens, regardless of where committed
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Murder (3)
3. Who can be the victim?
Any human being, i.e. cannot murder a dog!
Problems:
­ At what stage is foetus a human? Not murder until born alive, but
­ s.58 Offences against the Person Act 1861
* prohibits attempts to procure miscarriage from conception to birth
­ s.2 Infant Life (Preservation) Act 1929
* Prohibits killing child capable of being born alive
4. Death within one year and one day
Pre 1996: must have occurred within 1 yr and 1 day
Now, murder regardless of time, although proof issues
­ Law Reform (Year and a Day Rule) Act 1996
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Murder (4)
5. Causing death
Factual Question: D, by his act or omission caused death.
Legal Question: Ds act/consequences of it operating at time of death
What about administration of drugs?
­ Airedale NHS Trust v. Bland [1993] 1 All ER 821
The established rule is that a doctor may, when caring for a patient who is, for
example, dying of cancer, lawfully administer painkilling drugs, despite the fact that
he knows that an incidental effects of that application will be to abbreviate the
patienťs life.
5 tests: sight, hearing, movement, pain and communication: Brain stem death test
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Murder (5)
6. Mens rea of murder
Technical term: malice aforethought, but
­ Neither ill-will or premeditation are required!
­ Crucially important since without MA then manslaughter.
DPP v. Smith [1961] AC 290
Objective test: not what the D contemplated, but what the ordinary reasonable man
would have contemplated.
Moloney [1985] AC 905
­ Intention to kill any person, or
­ Intention to cause grievous bodily harm to any person
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Intention for Murder (1)
Current Law
Intent to kill
Intent to cause serious bodily harm
Proposed Law
First degree murder
Intent to kill
Second degree murder
Intent to cause serious bodily harm
and foreseeing death as
result
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Intention for Murder (2)
Current Law
Advantages
Allows borderline cases to still be
convicted under murder
Disadvantages
Lack of clarity
Mandatory sentence
Proposed Law
Advantages
Clearer distinction between cases,
although still allows for
seriousness
Disadvantages
Could end up with borderline cases
Correspondence principle v. Subjectivity principle
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Murder (6)
7. Sentence
Life in prison: Always!
Death penalty removed in 1965:
­ Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965