Flashcards
LOSS OF CONTROL s.54 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
Cards in this deck (22)
- 1Loss of controlLoss of control is a partial defence to murder. It is found under s.54 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009. It replaced the old defence of provocation.
- 2The defendant must lose controlUnder s.54(1), it was must be established that the defendant lost control. It states under s.54(2) that this no longer needs to be sudden and temporary, as was the old defence of provocation.
- 3R V DUFFYLoss of control was defined as being a moment in which the defendant becomes 'so subject to passion as to make him or her for the moment not the master of their own mind'.
- 4Loss of control and revengeThe defence will not be allowed in a situation in which it is clear that the defendant has acted as means of revenge. This reflects what the Law Commission in their report 'Partial Defences to Murder' 2004 established.
- 5R V IBRAMS AND GREGORY and R V BAILLIEThe defendant was unable to use the defence due to the fact that he acted in revenge.
- 6Loss of control and 'cooling off' periodsThe old defence of provocation stated that the loss of control experienced by the defendant must have been sudden and temporary. However, this was deemed as being sexist as it favoured men and not women. Therefore, this element was changed in loss of control.
- 7R V ALHUWALIAThe defendant was unable to use provocation as a defence as there had been a time period between the qualifying trigger and the moment at which she committed the killing. She was unable to use the defence despite suffering from battered woman syndrome - a condition that makes a cooling period more common. However, the longer the time between these two elements, the more unlikely it will be for the defence to be used.
- 8R V THONRTONSimilar to the case of Ahluwalia.
- 9Loss of control must be caused by a qualifying triggerThe loss of control must either be caused by a fear of serious violence OR it must be caused by a thing said or done that constitutes a grave character and gives the defendant a justifiable sense of being wronged
- 10Fear of serious violenceAnother qualifying trigger is that the defendant loses violence due to fearing serious violence. This is subjectively assessed. The defendant does not have to experience the violence, only experience a threat of it.
- 11R V ALHLUWALIAThe defendant in this case would have been able to use the defence of loss of control through this qualifying trigger
- 12R V (ANTHONY) MARTINThe defendant lost control due to fearing violence after the victim broke into his home.
- 13Lost control due to things said or done that constitute a grave character and gave the defendant a justifiable sense of being wrongedThis is where the things said or done by the victim cause the defendant to lose control.
- 14R V ZEBEEDEEThe jury are to decide whether the victims words/actions constituted a grave character and gave the defendant a justifiable sense of being wronged.
- 15Sexual infidelityThe defence of loss of control does not recognise sexual infidelity as a qualifying trigger.
- 16R V CLINTON; PARKER; EVANSSexual infidelity will not be recognised as a qualifying trigger. It may be taken into consideration where it is a contributing factor to the reason why the defendant lost control.
- 17Someone with a normal degree of self-restraint and of reasonable firmness sharing the same age and sex of the defendant would have reacted in the same circumstancesIt must be shown that a reasonable person would have acted in a similar way to the defendant
- 18R V CAMPLINThe age of the defendant is an important element to consider.
- 19AG FOR JERSEY AND HOLLEYCharacteristics such as depression and alcoholism are not relevant characteristics to be taken into account
- 20R V HUMRPHREYSA history of abuse will not be a relevant characteristic
- 21R V ASMELASHVoluntary intoxication will never be a relevant characteristic
- 22R V THORNTONBattered woman syndrome is a relevant characteristic
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- Undergraduate Criminal Law Flashcards on LOSS OF CONTROL s.54 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009, created by Chantal Briancon on 10/05/2016.
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- Chantal Briancon
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