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Criminal Law
Defences
Defences
Self Intoxicati
Insanity
Defence on
Duress 1 Duress 2
Self Defence
Reasonable Use of
Force
vs
Use of Reasonable
Force
Reasonable Use of
Force
The accused must not have deliberately
provoked or created the situation for
which he intends to rely on the defence.
SUBJECTIVE
The Defendant can be labouring under
a mistake, but is to be judges by his
mistaken view of the facts.
Use of reasonable
force
An objective test
Palmer v R 1971 AC 814
Only common sense is needed for its
understanding. It is both good law and
good sense that a man who is attacked
may defend himself. It is both good law
and good sense that he may do, but may
only do, what is reasonably necessary.
Use of reasonable
force
R v Lindsay (2005) AER (D) 349,
Must not go too far
All or nothing?
Intoxication
The general rule of criminal law is such that the
effect of intoxication, from whatsoever source, acts
as a no defence. In fact, paying reference to it as a
defence at all is legally suspect. Being sufficiently
intoxicated that you dont know what youre doing, is
in theory, being sufficiently intoxicated you cannot
form any mena rea. A mens rea is of course essential
for most crimes.
Intoxicant
R v Lipman [1970] 1 QB 152
..no reason to distinguish between
drugs and drunkeness
Voluntary
Blakely and Sutton v DPP [1991] Crim LR 763
No need for collaboration
IF THE MR OF AN OFFENCE IS
INTENTION, SPECIFIC INTENT CRIME
IF THE MR OF AN OFFENCE IS
INTENTION OR RECKLESSNESS, THEN
A BASIC INTENT CRIME
Intoxication
Dutch courage
A-G for N. Ireland v Gallagher [1963] AC 349.
"If a man, whilst sane and sober, forms an
intention to kill and makes preparation for it,
knowing it is a wrong thing to do, and then
gets himself drunk so as to give himself
Dutch courage to do the killing, and whilst
drunk carries out his intention, he cannot
rely on his self-induced drunkenness as a
defence to a charge of murder, not even as
reducing it to manslaughter.
Intoxication
Therefore: