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LLB1 CRIMINAL law Study Guide Verified A+, Exams of Law

Duke UniversityLaw

LLB1 CRIMINAL law Study Guide Verified A+ LLB1 CRIMINAL law Study Guide Verified A+

Typology: Exams

2024/2025

Available from 04/17/2025

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LLB1 CRIMINAL law Study Guide
Verified A+
Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) - The organisation in charge of bringing criminal
cases to court
magistrates' court - a court that deals with crimes that are not serious
Crown Court - a law court in England or Wales where criminal cases are judged by a
judge and jury
actus reus - The prohibited act, omission, consequence or state of affairs.
The external element of the offence, or its external manifestation - the accused's
conduct causing specified circumstances which amount to the offence. Includes all the
elements in the definition of the crime except the accused's state of mind.
mens rea - the mental attitude required by law; the state of mind (fault element) in
respect to the actus reus, such as intent or recklessness as to whether the actus reus
occurs.
George P. Fletcher's view of the reasons for holding someone responsible for their
actions - Absent valid claims of excuse, we are accountable for what we do. The
criminal law should express the way we live.
Tony Honoré's view of responsibility - We tend to assume something determines
people's decisions. It is rational to treat people as the authors of their own actions
N. Lacey - Actions for which we hold a person fully responsible are those in which her
usual character is centrally expressed. The finding of a mental element such as
intention or recklessness on the character model provides an important piece of
evidence from which the existence of character responsibility may be inferred, given
that single acts do not always indicate settled dispositions'?
Why the criminal law tend to be suspicious of character defences? - The law would be
concerned if someone were to escape punishment when they had inflicted a serious
harm when they were able to show that they acted 'out of character'.
J.F. Stephens: - Mens rea varies according to the crime. You can only understand the
mens rea of a crime by a detailed examination of the requirements of that crime
Sentencing Advisory Panel has said appropriately indicate degrees of criminal
culpability. - Intention, recklessness, knowledge, and negligence
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LLB1 CRIMINAL law Study Guide

Verified A+

Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) - The organisation in charge of bringing criminal cases to court magistrates' court - a court that deals with crimes that are not serious Crown Court - a law court in England or Wales where criminal cases are judged by a judge and jury actus reus - The prohibited act, omission, consequence or state of affairs. The external element of the offence, or its external manifestation - the accused's conduct causing specified circumstances which amount to the offence. Includes all the elements in the definition of the crime except the accused's state of mind. mens rea - the mental attitude required by law; the state of mind (fault element) in respect to the actus reus, such as intent or recklessness as to whether the actus reus occurs. George P. Fletcher's view of the reasons for holding someone responsible for their actions - Absent valid claims of excuse, we are accountable for what we do. The criminal law should express the way we live. Tony Honoré's view of responsibility - We tend to assume something determines people's decisions. It is rational to treat people as the authors of their own actions N. Lacey - Actions for which we hold a person fully responsible are those in which her usual character is centrally expressed. The finding of a mental element such as intention or recklessness on the character model provides an important piece of evidence from which the existence of character responsibility may be inferred, given that single acts do not always indicate settled dispositions'? Why the criminal law tend to be suspicious of character defences? - The law would be concerned if someone were to escape punishment when they had inflicted a serious harm when they were able to show that they acted 'out of character'. J.F. Stephens: - Mens rea varies according to the crime. You can only understand the mens rea of a crime by a detailed examination of the requirements of that crime Sentencing Advisory Panel has said appropriately indicate degrees of criminal culpability. - Intention, recklessness, knowledge, and negligence

criminal liability (Kyd) - there must be actus reus and mens rea and the absence of a justification (defence) plus criminal capacity. Glanville Williams, For there to be criminal liability - there must be actus reus and mens rea (and the actus reus requirement includes absence of a defence). legal capacity. - Children under the age of 10 are rebuttably presumed to be incapable of criminal responsibility. Section 34 Crime and Disorder Act 1998 abolished the previous presumption that children aged between 10 and 14 are incapable of committing a criminal offence. The legal burden of proof - the persuasive burden on a fact in issue. The general rule is that the prosecution bears the legal burden of proving all the constituent elements necessary to establish guilt. The burden remains on the prosecution throughout the trial to prove guilt, subject to certain statutory exceptions and where the defence of insanity is raised. evidential burden - adducing evidence fit, or sufficient, to be worthy of consideration by the jury or magistrate exception to general rule of burden of proof - the burden reverses and is on the defence where: (1) defence pleads insanity (2) express or implied statutory exception (3) a general defence is raised: the accused may be required to satisfy an evidential burden on the balance of probabilities. The legal burden of disproving the defence falls back on the prosecution. the three elements of actus reus - (1) an 'act' (2) committed in legally relevant circumstances; and (3) (for result crimes) causing the prohibited result. approaches of interpretation - Purposive approach, Literal rule, Golden rule, Mischief rule involuntary movements - cannot ordinarily constitute the actus reus of any offence, not even one of strict liability. Where the actus reus is defined so as to require conduct on the part of the accused, the conduct must be willed or 'voluntary'. situations in which there is a duty to act (Kyd) - case law or statute specifically imposes a duty to act upon a person in a positive way so that a failure or omission to act may be deemed to constitute the requisite 'act'. (1) a special relationship (2) an assumption of responsibility (3) a contractual duty - contractual duties can arise from a public duty in an official capacity (4) a statutory duty (5) a dangerous situation created by the defendant. Factual causation - The accused cannot be considered to be the cause of an event if the event would have occurred in precisely the same way without the accused's act or

the accused possesses the requisite mens rea at any point during that course of conduct it will be sufficient. common states of mens rea. - intention, recklessness and negligence mens rea common law maxim - The deed does not make a man guilty unless his mind be guilty. intention - wanting to achieve something or having in mind a specific purpose or outcome oblique' or 'indirect' intent. - consequences which an accused might not want to follow but which the accused knows are virtually certain to do so, or are a by-product of the accused's principal purpose 'direct' intent - 'consequences which are wanted or desired Offences of 'basic intent' - offences where the mens rea required does not go beyond the actus reus; require only recklessness. Offences of specific intent - (1) offences where the required intent relates to a prohibited consequence rather than a prohibited act (murder, theft) (Majewski) (2) ulterior intent (Heard). ulterior intent - there is an element of mens rea that goes beyond the actus reus of the offence Examples of specific intent offences, prohibited consequence - (1) Grievous bodily harm/wounding - s18 Offences Against the Person Act 1861 (2) Murder (3) Theft and robbery (re element of dishonesty) Examples of specific intent offences, ulterior mens rea - (1) Aggravated criminal damage (2) Possession with intent to supply Examples of basic intent, prohibited act - (1) Sexual assault (2) Assault by penetration (3) Rape (4) Possession of drugs (4) Supply or offering to supply Examples of basic intent, can be committed recklessly - (1) Common assault (2) Actual bodily harm (3) s20 Offences Against the Person Act 1861 (4) Grievous bodily harm/wounding (5) Simple criminal damage (6) Constructive manslaughter Cunningham test of recklessness - subjective test to find recklessness: accused found to have acted recklessly where he had recognised the possibility of the prohibited consequence from occurring and carried on regardless.

The Caldwell test of recklessness - Between 1982 and 2003 the courts adopted a wider objective definition of recklessness for offences of criminal damage R v G [2003] test of recklessness - held that the test for recklessness was subjective. reinstated the test in Cunningham recklessness and self-induced intoxication - An exception from Cunningham test where a defendant puts himself in an intoxicated state, and thereby renders himself blind to the potential risks. Definition of recklessness - recklessness involves foresight of the possibility of an unjustified risk, so a person can only be found to have acted recklessly with respect to a circumstance (i) when aware of a risk that exists or will exist, and (ii) when aware that as a result of the risk it is, in the circumstances, unreasonable to take the risk. Transferred mens rea - the accused's intention to injure A can be transferred so as to make the accused liable for an injury accidentally inflicted on B., but the mens rea for one offence cannot be transferred so as to make an accused liable for a different offence, even if two offences happen to share similar terminology in their definition Strict liability - unnecessary to prove both actus reus and mens rea in order to establish liability. Lord Diplock's principles determining if an offence is one of strict liability - (1) If the statute says nothing there is a presumption in favour of mens rea, (2) look if words suggesting mens rea are used in other sections (3) the social context: the greater the social danger an offence is aimed at preventing, the more likely it will be a strict liability offence (4) Significance of penalty: pecuniary more compatible with the imposition of strict liability Defences to strict liability - (1) 'act of God' (2) automatism, provided that the degree of impairment is virtually absolute (3) duress by threats and duress of circumstances BUT Mistake will not serve as a defence to a strict liability offence as its effect is to negate mens rea. excuse - it is accepted that the accused committed the offence but is excused from its consequences. justifications - the wrongfulness of the accused's conduct is negated for that conduct is deemed to have been appropriate in the circumstances. general defences, two categories - (1) denial of proof of the basic constituent elements of mens rea or actus reus, such as the defences of intoxication, mistake and automatism (2) do not deny the constituent elements but rely on other circumstances of excuse or justification, as in the defences of duress and self-defence.

foresight of V's death or grievous bodily harm as a natural consequence of D's actions may be evidence that D intended that outcome. Outcome: conviction for murder quashed. R v Woollin [1999] 1 AC 82 - D threw his three-month-old son against a wall in a fit of temper. Definition of oblique intent: jury not entitled to infer intention unless D foresaw V's death or grievous bodily harm as a virtually certain result, barring some unforeseen intervention, of D's actions; the decision is one for the jury, based upon a consideration of all the evidence. Outcome: conviction for murder quashed. R v Nedrick [1986] 1 WLR 1025 - D set fire to house and killed a child; claimed he did not want anyone to die. Definition of oblique intent: jury not entitled to infer intention unless D foresaw V's death or grievous bodily harm as a virtually certain result, barring some unforeseen intervention, of D's actions. Outcome: conviction for murder quashed. R v Hancock and Shankland [1986] AC 455 - Striking miners pushed concrete from motorway bridge, aiming for middle lane of motorway, but killed taxi driver in nearside lane. Definition of oblique intent: Moloney guidelines defective: the probability of an outcome is only one factor in determining whether D intended to bring about that outcome. Outcome: convictions for murder quashed. direct intention - purpose, aim or object indirect intention - necessary means to an end; side-effect foreseen as virtually certain to occur whether desired or not causation in fact - but for the act of D, V would not have died causation in law - depends on whether there has been a novus actus interveniens that can reasonably be considered to have broken the chain of causation; free, deliberate and informed" intervention of a third party will break the chain of causation M'Naghten Rules to establish a defence on the ground of insanity - Proved that, at the time of the committing of the act, the party accused was labouring under such a defect of reason, from disease of the mind, as not to know the nature and quality of the act he was doing; or, if he did know it, that he did not know he was doing what was wrong.