CASE STUDY

Case Study

Case Study

Introduction

The case of the murder of Kenny and Robbie by Steven, Fernando and Jamie is a case of manslaughter. When a defendant has caused a victim's death, and has been proved to have had the necessary mens rea for murder, he may be able to avoid a conviction for murder by establishing that he comes within the scope of the defence of either: Diminished responsibility, Provocation, Suicide Pact or Infanticide. In each case, if the defendant succeeds with the defence, his liability is reduced from murder to manslaughter, the sentence for which is at the discretion of the judge.

This form of manslaughter is described as "voluntary" because there will have been evidence that the defendant did intend to kill or cause g.b.h., but certain kinds of extenuating circumstances partially excuse his conduct. In the law of England the unlawful killing of a human being is either murder or manslaughter according as it is or is not accompanied by circumstances constituting the element of malice aforethought. That, according to the old definition of Coke, is the criterion by which murder is distinguished from manslaughter. Grievous bodily harm (GBH) is a term used under British law to refer to inflicting a serious wound on another person. The Offenses Against the Person Act of 1861 sets out penalties for grievous bodily harm offenses. Sections 18 and 20 of the Act deal with GBH offenses and set out penalties for them.

British law has specific wording for what constitutes a wound. Use of a weapon to inflict harm is not required. The statute is written to include injuries sustained from striking using the hands or kicking as possibly constituting grievous bodily harm. The skin must be broken and the victim must be bleeding to fit the definition of grievous bodily harm. A single drop of blood is sufficient to meet this standard.

Internal bleeding does not fit the legal definition required to meet the standard of GBH. The blood must flow outside of the body. Under the strict definition of grievous bodily harm, a broken bone that doesn't penetrate the skin, called an open fracture, doesn't meet the standard either.

Under the provisions of Section 18 of the Offenses Against the Person Act, an individual who intentionally inflicts grievous bodily harm on another person may be sentenced to life in prison. This section refers to a deliberate and malicious act by the offender. It goes on to include grievous bodily harm inflicted when the offender was attempting to thwart the arrest of a person.

Section 20 of the Act has similar wording to Section 18. It refers to an offense committed either with or without a weapon. A person convicted under this Section may be sentenced to up to five years in prison for his or her crime. The judge hearing a case involving an allegation of GBH can consider mitigating factors before handing down the sentence. An act committed spontaneously, as opposed a pre-meditated one, may lead to ...