Road Traffic homicides and Corporate homicides

Road Traffic Homicide - Overall

Road traffic is the only area in which specific provisions are made for a particular way of bringing about the death of the victim.

Following the following 3 distinctions:

• Causing death by dangerous driving

• Causing death by driving without due care and attention

• Causing death by driving while unlicensed, disqualified
  or uninsured

Road Traffic Homicide - Causing death by dangerous driving & by driving without due care and attention

The leading case on the characterisation of the standard of driving for the purposes of the statutory offence is still Allan v Patterson, despite the fact that it related to “reckless” driving and the offence now consists of “dangerous” driving.

Lord Justice-General Emslie stated:

“Judges and juries will readily understand, and juries might well be reminded, that before they can apply the adverb ‘recklessly’ to the driving in question they must find that it fell far below the standard of driving expected of the competent and careful driver and that it occurred either in the face of obvious and material dangers which were or should have been observed, appreciated and guarded against, or in circumstances which showed a complete disregard for any potential dangers which might result from the way in which the vehicle was being driven.”

Road Traffic Homicide - Causing death while unlicensed, disqualified or uninsured

Defined by the Road Traffic Act 1988 S3ZB

A person is guilty of an offence under this section if he causes the death of another person by driving a motor vehicle on a road and, at the time when he is driving, the circumstances are such that he is committing an offence under–

(a)  section 87(1) of this Act (driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence),[ or]³

[...]³

(c)  section 143 of this Act (using motor vehicle while uninsured [...]⁴ ).

Corporate homicide

Basically applies to situations where a company’s activities have proved fatal.

Killings by organisations have been criminalised in their own right under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007. (In Scotland only)

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007

S. 1(1):
“An organisation to which this section applies is guilty of
an offence if the way in which its activities are managed
or organised–
(a) causes a person's death, and
(b) amounts to a gross breach of a relevant duty of care
owed by the organisation to the deceased.”

S. 1(4) “For the purposes of this Act – ...
(b) a breach of a duty of care by an organisation is a
‘gross’ breach if the conduct alleged to amount to a
breach of that duty falls far below what can reasonably
be expected of the organisation in the circumstances.

(5) The offence under this section is called – ....
(b) corporate homicide, in so far as it is an offence under
the law of Scotland.”

Transo PLC v HM Advocate (No. 1) - Background

Charge of culpable homicide against a company.

The case involved a fatal gas explosion in Larkhall, Scotland that killed a family of 4. The explosion was caused by a gas pipe leak that Transco PLC, the company responsible for maintaining the infrastructure, failed to address despite being aware of the risks.  

Transo PLC v HM Advocate (No. 1) - Ruling

The court held that corporate culpable homicide could not be established under existing Scots law (1999) because it required proving individual liability within the company.

Contributed to the enactment of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007, which introduced clearer liability for corporations.