Lecture on Murder and Voluntary Manslaughter

Introduction

• Covers murder and voluntary manslaughter
• Builds on previous lessons: actus reus, causation, mens rea

Murder

Definition

• Defined by Lord Coke, a 17th-century judge
• Actus reus: unlawful killing of a reasonable creature in being
• Mens rea: under the King's peace with malice aforethought, express or implied

Exam Tips

• Use abbreviations like AR (actus reus), MR (mens rea) sparingly
• Avoid unnecessary abbreviations
• Important to understand definitions of terms

Causation

• Murder is a result crime; causation must be proven
• Factual and legal causation are essential
• Thin skull rule: underlying conditions do not break causation

Situations Where Killing is Not Unlawful

• Self-defense
• During wartime by soldiers

Reasonable Creature in Being

• Defined in Attorney General's Reference No. 3 of 1994
• A fetus is not considered a reasonable creature until it has an independent existence
• Brain-dead individuals are not considered reasonable creatures

Voluntary Manslaughter

Special Partial Defenses

• Diminished responsibility
• Loss of control
• Result in a reduction of charge from murder to manslaughter

Diminished Responsibility

Legal Framework

• Set out in Section 2 of the Homicide Act 1957, amended by Section 52 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
• Four key elements:
  1. Abnormality of mental functioning
  2. Due to a recognized medical condition
  3. Substantially impairs the defendant's ability
  4. Provides an explanation for the killing

Key Cases

• Byrne: abnormality of mental functioning
• Golds: definition of substantial
• Gittens: recognized medical condition (severe depression)
• Alawalia: battered person syndrome

Intoxication

• Generally irrelevant unless Alcohol Dependency Syndrome applies

Loss of Control

Legal Framework

• Section 54 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
• Three elements:
  1. Defendant lost control
  2. Qualifying trigger (fear of serious violence, things said/done)
  3. A normal person might have reacted similarly

Key Cases

• Jewel: evidence of loss of control
• Clinton: exclusion of sexual infidelity as a trigger
• Dawes: exclusion if defendant incited violence

Exam Scenarios

• Various hypothetical scenarios presented to apply knowledge of murder and voluntary manslaughter

Conclusion

• The lecture prepares for exams on murder, voluntary manslaughter, and related defenses
• Next topic: non-fatal offenses

Study Tips

• Familiarize with key legal principles and cases
• Understand statutory requirements and common law influences
• Practice applying legal concepts to hypothetical scenarios