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Causation in criminal law case study
Causation in criminal law case study
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Considering Arnold’s actions, the facts show that he had purposefully poisoned his wife which led to a series of events that eventually resulted in her death. In a practical sense, it is clear that Arnold’s actions were a factual causation because he satisfies the ‘but for’ or sine qua non test as established in White . But for him putting poison into Beryl’s porridge, she would not have been admitted to hospital and she would not have later died there. Even so, to claim that he committed the actus reus of the homicide offence, it is necessary to prove it had been a legal causation and that there had been no novus actus interveniens that rendered Arnold’s act irrelevant. The requirements for legal causation is that it must be a factual cause …show more content…
Another criteria in conjunction with this is the emphasis on the notion of a free, deliberate and informed act which is reaffirmed in Kennedy by the House of Lords. In the case of Caroline, her attack on Beryl clearly satisfies all three notions. First of all, it is assumed that the act of slashing Beryl’s face was made freely and in accordance with Caroline’s free will. Secondly, it seems to be clear that Caroline had deliberately hurt Beryl, given that the language she used towards her indicates that it was a conscious and voluntary decision. Finally, it is obvious that she was informed of the consequences of her actions because she took an active part in the attack. With this said, Caroline’s actions may have the capability to act as a novus actus …show more content…
The ratio decidendi for the decision in Smith was that, at the time of death, the original wound was still an operating and substantial cause. Furthermore, in Cheshire, the victim died because of a known, and perhaps foreseeable, complication in a surgery. Although in this case, the wounds were not the operative cause of death, medical intervention was not seen as an adequate defence for the defendant because it had to be ‘so independent of his acts, and in itself so potent in causing death’ . In both of these cases, it is not enough that there has been bad medical treatment. However, an exception to this is found in Jordan, where medical treatment was sufficient as a defence. In this case, the victim had been given a drug he was allergic to and there was evidence to suggest that the hospital should have known about the allergy. The court concluded that to break the causal chain medical treatment must be grossly negligent, or ‘palpably wrong’ and the original wound had virtually
Causation is the cause of death, and in criminal law it is the connecting of conduct and physiological behaviour with a resulting effect, typically a serious injury or death. The analysis of the actus rea and mens read of the accused will assist the investigators in pinpointing the causation of the murder. In criminal law it is absolutely necessary to prove causation in order to convict an individual for first degree murder.
Medical malpractice cases are difficult for the families who have lost their loved one or have suffered from severe injuries. No one truly wins in complicated court hearings that consist of a team of litigation attorneys for both the defendant and plaintiff(s). During the trial, evidence supporting malpractice allegations have to be presented so that the court can make a decision if the physician was negligent resulting in malpractice, or if the injury was unavoidable due to the circumstances. In these types of tort cases, the physician is usually a defendant on trial trying to prove that he or she is innocent of the medical error, delay of treatment or procedure that caused the injury. The perfect example of being at fault for medical malpractice as a result of delaying a procedure is the case of Waverly family versus John Hopkins Health System Corporation. The victims were not compensated enough for the loss of their child’s normal life. Pozgar (2012) explained….
Paramedics deemed the patient competent and therefore Ms. Walker had the right to refuse treatment, which held paramedics legally and ethically bound to her decisions. Although negligent actions were identified which may have resulted in a substandard patient treatment, paramedics acted with intent to better the patient despite unforeseen future factors. There is no set structure paramedics can follow in an ethical and legal standpoint thus paramedics must tailor them to every given
''Why blameworthiness is the wrong question'' is an informative article that exposes the reasons why the concept blameworthiness is the wrong word to ask in the legal argot. Eagleman proposes to replace the term with the word modifiability, which is a forward-looking term that will help build a social policy based on evidence. The relationship between human biology and the concept of free will, the reasons why blameworthiness is not the correct question and a forward-looking, brain-compatible legal system are the main points the author arguments on. I. Human biology and the concept of free will. Legal systems rest on the assumption that human beings have free will and are completely capable of making their own decisions.
Actus Reus: It was never unclear if the accused was responsible for the act occurring. There were several eye witness testimonies placing her as the offender which was backed up by CCTV footage from a camera in the lane. Furthermore, at the beginning of the trial the offender pleaded not guilty of murder but guilty of constructive manslaughter and that it was caused by reckless driving on her behalf. By claiming manslaughter the offender immediately takes full responsibility for the act regardless of what charge they are handed.
The Lewis Blackman Case: Ethics, Law, and Implications for the Future Medical errors in decision making that result in harm or death are tragic and costly to the families affected. There are also negative impacts to the medical providers and the associated institutions (Wu, 2000). Patient safety is a cornerstone of higher-quality health care and nurses serve as a communication link in all settings which is critical in surveillance and coordination to reduce adverse outcomes (Mitchell, 2008). The Lewis Blackman Case 1 of 1 point accrued
The refinement of this definition has significant legal implications, as it broadens the scope of those who can sue within blameless accidents. Prior to this, such victims would also face being labelled with “fault”. Supporting the findings of Axiak, by establishing non-tortious conduct as separate from “fault”, similar, future cases are more likely to proceed despite the plaintiff’s contributory
In this decision there is no difference between the ethics of current end of life practices such as withholding life sustaining treatment or providing pain management and physician-assisted death. The second key point is that Justice Smith holds that there is a way to protect the vulnerable from the loss of their s.7 right to life, liberty and security of the person in a physician assisted death regime through legal restrictions. Trial Judge at the BC Supreme Court, following an exhaustive review of empirical and expert evidence, Justice Lynn Smith found (and the Supreme Court accepted) that: “it was feasible for properly qualified and experienced physicians to reliably assess patient competence and voluntariness, that coercion, undue influence, and ambivalence could all be reliably assessed as part of that
The argument for the distinction is based on the cause of death. In the classic example of a doctor unplugging life-sustaining equipment, the cited cause of death is disease or...
The major implication of this decision is that each state decides the type of evidence required to withhold or withdraw medical treatment from an incompetent patient. The state ...
This case is about euthanasia and assisted suicide. On September 28, 1991, Dr. Boudewijn Chabot administered a sufficient amount of sleeping pills and a liquid drug mixture to a patient with the intentions of assisting the patient with death. The patient, Hilly Bosscher, was suffering from depression, and psychological pain. She was recently divorced from a 25 year abusive relationship, and her two son’s had died. The doctor determined she suffered from unbearable pain, genuinely desired to die, and freely and competently made such a request. On the same day Dr. Chabot administered the medici...
This is a fascinating case because it presents the distinction between a patient’s right to refuse treatment and a physician’s assistance with suicide. Legally, Diane possessed the right to refuse treatment, but she would have faced a debilitating, painful death, so the issue of treatment would be a moot point. It would be moot in the sense that Diane seemed to refuse treatment because the odds were low, even if she survived she would spend significant periods of time in the hospital and in pain, and if she didn’t survive she would spend her last days in the hospital. If Diane were to merely refuse treatment and nothing else (as the law prescribes) than she would not have been able to avoid the death which she so dearly wanted to avoid.
2. What is the difference between a and a? The statement must have been made contemporaneously (simultaneous, concurrent, happening during the same period of time) with the act, i.e., made either during, or immediately before or after its occurrence, but not at such interval (gap) as to allow for fabrication, or to reduce them to mere narrative (story or tale) of a past event. 3 Res Gestae, Topic 3, Law of Evidence. Prepared by Ikram Abdul Sattar 4.
Attempted murder, involved the voluntary act of Jack pointing a gun and firing it (act) at Bert that resulted in (causation) death of Pratt (social harm), which proves the elements of actus reus. ...
Oblique intention requires foresight of the consequences, finding oblique intent is difficult; as a result, there have been a number of cases, which have helped in clarifying the law of intention.