Mens Rea Of Murder Case Study

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Recommended: Strict liability crimes

Critically evaluate the mens rea of murder. Within this coursework aiming to critically evaluate the mens rea of murder, focusing on each of the impacts which relate and combine with killing or causing grievous bodily harm to a person. The main issues I will focus on are, the intention of murder, recklessness, negligence and strict liability. Mens rea (MR) is the Latin phrase of ‘guilty mind. Mens Rea is the legal term used to describe the element of a criminal offence that relates to the defendants mental state. MR falls under many different crimes and has different forms of mens rea such as intention, recklessness, negligence or knowledge. The standard common law test of criminal liability is often expressed within the Latin phrase, actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea, which means "an act does not make a person legally liable unless the mind is legally blamable". However, in jurisdictions with due process, there must be an actus reus, or "guilty act," accompanied by some level of mens rea to constitute the crime with which the defendant is charged. As a general rule, criminal liability does not attach to a person who merely acted with the absence of mental fault. The exception is strict liability crimes. The MR of murder is to cause death or grievous bodily harm (GBH). Glanville Williams says mens rea refers to “the mental element necessary for the particular crime, and this mental element may be either intention to do the immediate act or bring about the consequence or (in some crimes) recklessness as to such act or consequence. In different and more precise language, MR means intention or recklessness as to the elements constituting the Actus Reus.” There are many different elements in relation to mens rea, firstly I ... ... middle of paper ... ...usion to this coursework, the mens rea of murder has many different elements such as within the element of intention which includes direct and oblique intent. It is clear that whether Nedrick or Woolin provides a definition or evidence of intention is undecided. In relation to recklessness, we understand that recklessness is not always an issue within the mens rea of murder. Recklessness is either Cunningham [1957] subjective and Caldwell objective. Finally I took negligence and strict liability into consideration with the mens rea of murder. Negligence within mens rea falls below the standard to be expected of the reasonable man. Strict liability does not require Mens Rea to be proved in relation to one or more Actus Reus elements. Finally to conclude the mens rea of murder is to kill or cause GBH, with the involvement of each of the above elements to be included.

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