Voluntary Manslaughter: Diminished Responsibility

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  • Created by: 10dhall
  • Created on: 22-01-17 21:44
What act is diminished responsibility under?
Homicide Act 1957
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What sentences can be given?
Hospital 50%, prison 20%, other 30%
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What is diminished responsibility?
An abnormality of the mind which impairs someones ability
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What does the abnormality need to impair the defendants ability to?
1) Understand the nature of the conduct. 2) Form rational judgement, 3) To exercise self control.
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What happens with substantial impairment such as voluntary intoxication?
This will not amount to a defence on its own
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What are the cases on diminished responsibility?
R v Byrne, R v Wood, and R v Stewart
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What happened in R v Byrne?
The defendant killed and ***** a young girl and mutilated her body due to irresistible impulses of the mind
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What happened in R v Wood?
The defendant woke up to find a man trying to perform oral sex on him, in which he attacked him and resulted in his death
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What happened in R v Stewart?
The defendant had chronic alcoholism when he killed a man during a fight
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Statistics?
Diminished responsibility is successful in 40% of cases
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Problems with the current law?
Causation issues, some people still not able to access the defence
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Positives of the new law?
It is more narrow
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Problems with the old law?
Juries dealing with medical definitions, the role of doctors and some conditions doubted by courts
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What sentences can be given?

Back

Hospital 50%, prison 20%, other 30%

Card 3

Front

What is diminished responsibility?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What does the abnormality need to impair the defendants ability to?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What happens with substantial impairment such as voluntary intoxication?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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