All Criminal Law Cases

AQA A-Level

Factual causation uses the “but for” test i.e. but for D’s conduct would the result have occurred? (____)

Pagett

Legal causation requires the Defendant’s conduct to be a more than minimal cause (____)

Kimsey

Individual characteristics of the victim will not break the chain due to the thin skull rule (take your victim as you find him) as in ____.

Blaue

The victim’s response may break the chain if it is “daft” as in ____ but not if it is reasonable as in Roberts.

Williams

The victim’s response may break the chain if it is “daft” as in Williams but not if it is reasonable as in ____.

Roberts

Following ____, acts of third parties would only break the chain of causation if D’s conduct can be seen as insignificant.

Cheshire

‘Conduct’ [in assault] may occur through acts (____), or through words (Constanza).

Logdon

‘Conduct’ [in assault] may occur through acts (Logdon), or through words (____).

Constanza

Words may also negate an assault (____).

Tuberville v Savage

“Immediate” means “imminent” i.e. the physical force is “hanging over” the victim (____).

Smith v Woking Police

The mens rea of assault is to intend or be reckless about making the victim apprehend immediate unlawful physical force (____).

Venna

Application [of unlawful physical force] can be direct or indirect as in ____.

Haystead

It [battery] can also be committed by an omission as in ____.

Santana-Bermudez

Where D has a lawful excuse such as self-defence (____) touching will not be unlawful.

Collins v Wilcock

Physical force was described in ____ as the “least touching in anger”.

Cole v Turner

In ____ Lord Goff confirmed that “any touching of another person, however slight” may amount to a battery.

Collins v Wilcock

It [battery] can be committed by touching the clothes a person is wearing (____).

Thomas

The mens rea of battery is to intend or be reckless about applying the force (____).

Venna

“Occasioning” means “causing”, so the defendant’s initial assault must be the factual and legal cause of the harm suffered (____).

Roberts

In ____ actual bodily harm was defined as anything more than trivial or insignificant, it can be psychological as in Constanza but fear is not enough.

Chan-Fook

In Chan-Fook actual bodily harm was defined as anything more than trivial or insignificant, it can be psychological as in ____ but fear is not enough.

Constanza

In ____ it [ABH] was defined as ‘anything intended to interfere with the health and comfort of the victim’.

Miller

As a result it [ABH] can include minor injuries such as a black eye; it can even include cutting the hair on one’s head (____).

DPP v Smith

The mens rea for s.47 is the mens rea for the initial assault, not for the harm itself (____).

Savage

Wounding requires there to be a break in the layers of the skin; a graze or scratch is insufficient, as is internal bleeding (____).

Eisenhower

For GBH, “grievous” simply means serious (____).

Saunders

This [GBH] can be physical (____), psychological (Burstow), or even biological (Dica).

Martin

This [GBH] can be physical (Martin), psychological (____), or even biological (Dica).

Burstow

This [GBH] can be physical (Martin), psychological (Burstow), or even biological (____).

Dica

The mens rea for s.20 is intention or recklessness about causing some harm (____). D does not have to intend or foresee serious harm.

Mowatt

The mens rea of s.18 requires intention to cause grievous bodily harm (____). Intention to wound is insufficient (R v Taylor).

Belfon

The mens rea of s.18 requires intention to cause grievous bodily harm (Belfon). Intention to wound is insufficient (____).

R v Taylor

It [intoxication] is not available merely where his inhibitions are lowered (____), nor where D used intoxication as Dutch courage (A.G. for Northern Ireland v Gallagher).

Kingston

It [intoxication] is not available merely where his inhibitions are lowered (Kingston), nor where D used intoxication as Dutch courage (____).

A.G. for Northern Ireland v Gallagher

Intoxication is involuntary either where the defendant was unaware he was taking an intoxicant (e.g. a spiked drink), or where taking prescription drugs had an unanticipated effect (____).

Hardie

If it is voluntary intoxication, the ____ rules apply i.e. intoxication is available as a defence for crimes of specific intent, but not for crimes of basic intent.

Majewski

Voluntary intoxication is a defence [to specific intent crimes] however where applicable the defendant may be charged with a basic intent offence as in ____.

Sheehan and Moore

If the intoxication is involuntary, the defendant will be acquitted of both specific and basic intent offences providing D did not form the mens rea (____).

Kingston

It does not matter that this belief [as to the facts; self-defence / prevention of crime] is mistaken: in ____, Lord Lane stated that the defendant must be “judged against the mistaken facts as he believes them to be."

Gladstone Williams

However, s.76(5) [self-defence / prevention of crime] upholds the rule in ____ that mistaken belief cannot be relied upon where the mistake was induced by intoxication.

O’Grady

But under s.76(7) [self-defence / prevention of crime], the defendant is not expected to “weigh to a nicety the exact measure of any necessary action”, adopting almost the words identically of Lord Morris in ____.

Palmer

In ____, however, killing an escaping intruder with a shotgun was considered unreasonable force [self-defence / prevention of crime].

Martin

Further there is no need to retreat (____) [self-defence / prevention of crime].

Bird

In ____, Lord Denning stated that this [involuntary acts] was limited to reflex actions committed as a result of unconsciousness or convulsions.

Bratty

It [automatism] would not therefore be available to a diabetic driving in a hypoglycaemic state who showed some control by veering away from other vehicles and braking (____).

Broome v Perkins

Nor is it [automatism] available where the defendant is responsible for causing his loss of voluntary control (____).

Bailey

Insanity makes available the special verdict of “not guilty but insane”. The principles upon which this defence is based were set out in the ____ rules.

M’Naghten

A defect of reason is more serious than mere forgetfulness (____).

Clarke

Examples [of diseases of the mind] would be epilepsy (), hyperglycaemia () and sleepwalking (____).

Sullivan

Examples [of diseases of the mind] would be epilepsy (Sullivan), hyperglycaemia (____) and sleepwalking (Burgess).

Hennessey

Examples [of diseases of the mind] would be epilepsy (Sullivan), hyperglycaemia (Hennessey) and sleepwalking (____).

Burgess

In ____ the defendant suffered from a form of insanity, but could not use the defence as there was evidence that he knew his actions were legally wrong.

Windle

It [duress] is a general and complete defence but is not available for murder (____) or attempted murder (Gotts).

Howe

It [duress] is a general and complete defence but is not available for murder (Howe) or attempted murder (____).

Gotts

It is not sufficient that the defendant has felt the need to commit a crime to meet a demand for money (____).

Cole

However, this appears to mean that the threat must be effective at the moment the crime is committed but not that the threats need to be able to be carried out immediately (____).

Hudson and Taylor

However, provided there are serious threats, then the cumulative effect of the threats (including revealing sensitive information) can be considered, as in ____.

Valderrama

Threats to family or friends can be a basis for duress, as in ____ and Conway.

Martin

Threats to family or friends can be a basis for duress, as in Martin and ____.

Conway

For the defence [of duress] to be successful, the jury must consider a two-stage test from the case of ____.

Graham

Characteristics [for duress] that can be taken into account were decided in ____ and include sex, age, pregnancy and mental illness but not a low IQ.

Bowen

Duress can only be used as a defence if the D has no “safe avenue of escape” (____).

Gill

If the source of the threat is an organisation (e.g. a criminal gang or terrorist group) which the D joined voluntarily with the knowledge that threats of this kind might be made (____), D will not normally have a defence.

Sharp

However, if (as in ____) the gang or associate is not normally known for violence the defence [of duress] may succeed.

Shepherd

The first case in which this [duress of circumstances] was recognised was ____.

Willer

After decisions such as ____ and Martin [duress of circumstances] it was assumed that this was only a defence to driving offences.

Conway

After decisions such as Conway and ____ [duress of circumstances] it was assumed that this was only a defence to driving offences.

Martin

However in ____ (a firearms case) the Court of Appeal stated that it [duress of circumstances] was available for all crimes except murder and attempted murder.

Pommell

It is a matter for the jury if the defendant is only getting ready to commit the offence (merely preparatory) (____) or is in the process of attempting to commit it (more than merely preparatory) (Toothill).

Geddes

It is a matter for the jury if the defendant is only getting ready to commit the offence (merely preparatory) (Geddes) or is in the process of attempting to commit it (more than merely preparatory) (____).

Toothill

Both direct as in ____ and oblique intent.

Mohan

In ____ it was held that for attempted murder the prosecution must prove that the accused intended to kill the victim.

Whybrow

This consists of an intention to kill (express malice), or an intention to cause grievous bodily harm (implied malice) (____/Cunningham).

Vickers

This consists of an intention to kill (express malice), or an intention to cause grievous bodily harm (implied malice) (Vickers/____).

Cunningham

Intention will usually be direct, i.e. the defendant desires the outcome (____).

Mohan

In ____ the House of Lords declared that if the consequence was virtually certain and D realised this, then the jury may find that he intended the consequences.

Woollin

The quote from ____ can be used, that it is a state of mental functioning so different from that of ordinary human beings that a reasonable man would term it abnormal.

Byrne

S.52(1)(a) says this [abnormality of mental functioning] must arise from a recognised medical condition (RMC), such as chronic depression (____/Ahulwalia/Smith/English/Reynolds/Speake).

Gittens

S.52(1)(a) says this [abnormality of mental functioning] must arise from a recognised medical condition (RMC), such as chronic depression (Gittens/____/Smith/English/Reynolds/Speake).

Ahulwalia

S.52(1)(a) says this [abnormality of mental functioning] must arise from a recognised medical condition (RMC), such as chronic depression (Gittens/Ahulwalia/____/English/Reynolds/Speake).

Smith

S.52(1)(a) says this [abnormality of mental functioning] must arise from a recognised medical condition (RMC), such as chronic depression (Gittens/Ahulwalia/Smith/____/Reynolds/Speake).

English

S.52(1)(a) says this [abnormality of mental functioning] must arise from a recognised medical condition (RMC), such as chronic depression (Gittens/Ahulwalia/Smith/English/____/Speake).

Reynolds

S.52(1)(a) says this [abnormality of mental functioning] must arise from a recognised medical condition (RMC), such as chronic depression (Gittens/Ahulwalia/Smith/English/Reynolds/____).

Speake

The impairment must be substantial, in ____ the Court of Appeal declared that “substantially” meant more than trivial but less than total impairment.

Egan

If D was intoxicated at the time of the killing, the jury has to decide whether, ignoring the intoxication, his abnormality substantially impaired his mental responsibility for his acts (____).

Dietschmann

In ____, it was stated that, “Loss of control is considered … to mean a loss of the ability to act in accordance with considered judgement or a loss of normal powers of reasoning”.

Jewell

The fear trigger is where the defendant lost self-control due to fear of serious violence from the victim against either themselves or another identified person. (____/Ward)

Lodge

The fear trigger is where the defendant lost self-control due to fear of serious violence from the victim against either themselves or another identified person. (Lodge/____)

Ward

In ____ where other factors count as a qualifying trigger, sexual infidelity may be taken into account in assessing whether things done or said amounted to circumstance of an extremely grave character and gave D a justifiable sense of being seriously wronged.

Clinton

The circumstances to be considered [in the objectivity test; loss of control] are depression, epilepsy, unemployment, past abuse and possibly sexual infidelity (____/Gregson/Hill); the jury will not consider short temper (Mohammed).

Clinton

The circumstances to be considered [in the objectivity test; loss of control] are depression, epilepsy, unemployment, past abuse and possibly sexual infidelity (Clinton/____/Hill); the jury will not consider short temper (Mohammed).

Gregson

The circumstances to be considered [in the objectivity test; loss of control] are depression, epilepsy, unemployment, past abuse and possibly sexual infidelity (Clinton/Gregson/____); the jury will not consider short temper (Mohammed).

Hill

The circumstances to be considered [in the objectivity test; loss of control] are depression, epilepsy, unemployment, past abuse and possibly sexual infidelity (Clinton/Gregson/Hill); the jury will not consider short temper (____).

Mohammed

Firstly, the defendant must commit a criminal act [for unlawful act manslaughter], a civil wrong is not enough (____); Further, the actus reus of the criminal act must be satisfied (Arobieke).

Franklin

Firstly, the defendant must commit a criminal act [for unlawful act manslaughter], a civil wrong is not enough (Franklin); Further, the actus reus of the criminal act must be satisfied (____).

Arobieke

Secondly, the unlawful act [in unlawful act manslaughter] must be dangerous i.e. likely to cause some harm (____).

Church

D will escape liability for manslaughter where the chain of causation cannot be established (____).

Watson

It [the unlawful act / unlawful act manslaughter] does not have to be directed at the victim (____) and it does not need to be directed at a person (Goodfellow).

Mitchell

It [the unlawful act / unlawful act manslaughter] does not have to be directed at the victim (Mitchell) and it does not need to be directed at a person (____).

Goodfellow