Guilty or Not Guilty of Murder?
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It is not Murder
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NO
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Is there a dead body?
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YES
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It could be Murder
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Actus Reus: Factual Causation :
Did the act (or omission) of the defendent cause death in fact? (Following the 'But For' Test)
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NO
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It is not Murder
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YES
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The Defendent is not liable for murder
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NO
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Actus Reus:
If the intervening act is an omission, was there a special relationship which made the defendent liable for murder?
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YES
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Actus Reus:
Is there an intervening act which might break the chain of causation?
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YES
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Actus Reus: Legal Causation:
Was the defendent's act significant enough for legal causation?
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NO
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It is not Murder
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YES
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NO
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It is not Murder
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NO
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The Victim:
Was the victim a 'reasonable creature in being' under Rerum Natura?
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YES
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The Victim:
Did the victim have a special condition?
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YES
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The Victim:
Even if the victim does have a special condition, it is not relevant under the 'Thin Skull Rule'
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NO
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The Defendent may not be guilty of murder
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NO
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Mens Rea:
Was the death a natural and probable consequence of the defendent's act?
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NO
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Mens Rea: Did the Defendent intend to cause GBH?
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NO
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Mens Rea:
Did the Defendent intend to kill the Victim?
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NO
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Mens Rea:
Did the Defendent intend to kill someone else?
If so, Transferred Malice Applies
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YES
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YES
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YES
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YES
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The Defendent may not be guilty of murder
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NO
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Mens Rea: Did the Defendent foresee that death was the natural and probable cause of death?
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It could be an example of Murder
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YES
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Coinsidence of Mens Rea and Actus Reus: Did the Defendent have the Mens Rea at the moment of the attack?
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NO
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Was the attack part of a sequence of events which could be taken together for the purpose of Mens Re and Actus Reus?
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YES
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YES
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Defence: Consider what defences are available when considering the above facts.
Check Coke's Definition of Murder to make sure that the evidence suits the defence.
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Guilty or Not Guilty of Murder?
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