murder

• Rv Gibbons + Procter (1918) established that failure to feed a child can constitute actus reus of murder, whether through an act or omission
• Implied malice and grievous bodily harm (GBH) are factors in murder cases
• Dpp v Smith (1961) provides the definition of grievous bodily harm
• Rv Moloney (lass) case determined the absence of mens rea in a specific scenario
• R v Vickers (1957) case deals with the intention to cause harm
• Indictable offence:

  • Heard in Crown Court
  • Carries mandatory sentencing
• Definition of murder:

  • Actus Reus: the physical element of the crime, "unlawful killing of a reasonable person in being and under the King's Peace"
  • Mens Rea: the mental element of the crime, "with malice aforethought, express or implied"
• Murder is not unlawful if:

  • Self-defence is proportionate
  • In the prevention of a crime
  • In defence of another person, like a parent protecting a child
• Common law crime: perjury
• Murder is defined as the unlawful killing of a reasonable person in being and under the king's peace with malice aforethought, express or implied
• The mens rea of murder is with malice aforethought, express or implied
• Murder can be committed by act or omission
• Self-defense and the prevention of crime can be justifications for murder
• In murder cases, causation must be proven, and certain actions like self-defense can break the chain of causation
• Malice aforethought in murder cases refers to the intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm