Research on the Defence of Diminished Responsibility

Research on the Defence of Diminished Responsibility Research Proposal Provocation, diminished responsibility and the reasonable (wo)man; the implications of the Law Reform Commission’s recommendations. Introduction The crime of murder is one defined by the common law as the intention to unlawfully kill another human being with malice afore thought. Currently, in England and Wales the legal system does not differentiate between different ‘types’ of murder, such as first and second degree.[1] There are however, defences available to defendants, which could enable either an acquittal (some general defences), or a conviction of some lesser offence (specific defences). Under the Homicide Act 1957 an individual can plead the defences of provocation, diminished responsibility or claim that he or she was involved in a suicide pact. If such defences are successful, this will have the result of bringing a charge of murder down to one of manslaughter and thus, termed ‘voluntary manslaughter’. The first of the two defences have developed a considerable amount of case law and many of these decisions have related to abusive relationships where the abused has killed the alleged abuse r. The law relating to the defence of provocation has held that an individual must have been provoked (by either words or actions), resulting in a total loss of self control,[2] and that a reasonable person in the same situation would have acted in the same manner. The first two aspects of the defence have been referred to as the ‘subjective’ elements and the third part as ‘objective’. The so-called objective element has become more and more subjective in nature. In R v Camplin, Lord Diplock acknowledged that the test was not ‘wholly objective’[3] and in the case of R v Smith (Morgan James)[4] it was asserted that the characteristics of the defendant should be attributed to the ‘reasonable person’ and this includes not only characteristics that had bearing on the actual provocation, but also on the ability of an individual to maintain his or her self control. In context of the so-called ‘battered wife’ cases, the judiciary have also applied this principle.[5] The specific defences outlined above are justified on the basis that in some circumstances, the law should recognise that there are reasons as to why an individual should not be convicted of the more serious offence of murder and thus, subject to a mandatory life sentence. The issue with the provocation defence relating to an individual who has suffered long-term abuse, is that such individuals will not always be able to rely on it as there may be some aspect of pre-meditation. The law has also recognised that such individuals suffering from some ‘abnormality of mind’ may not be fully responsible for his or her conduct and therefore should be convicted of manslaughter instead of murder. The effect of abuse on an individual’s mental state can in certain circumstances, amount to an ‘abnormality of mind’ and thus satisfy the defence of diminished responsibility.[6] The purpose of the proposed research is to examine the current state of the law and look at the way in which abused women are dealt with when charged with murder. In line with the Law Commission’s proposals to reform the law of homicide, the research will also examine the extent to which the proposed change in the law will impact on this area. It is submitted that the current state of the law is not adequate in dealing with such individuals and it remains to be answered as to whether the proposals will make any real difference. The Law Commission’s Consultation Paper proposes to maintain the defence of diminished responsibility and comments that there are no grounds for abolishing the defence based upon arguments that it gender discriminatory. The paper comments at one point: â€Å"Was the abnormality of mental functioning really a substantial cause of the defendant’s conduct if other factors were at work? Or, were the other factors, jealousy, anger, a desire to dominate or punish, the real or predominant explanation, with the abnormality of mind being a minor background factor of inadequate moral significance to affect the verdict?†[7] The research will examine the defence of provocation and the so-called objective element in order to determine how this fits with the nature of a long term build up of abuse suffered by some women. Is there a true ‘loss of control’ in such circumstances and is it appropriate to attribute the full characteristics of such people to the reasonable (wo)man? Furthermore, by also enabling such individuals to plead the defence of diminished responsibility, as the above quote would seem to suggest, is the law simply ‘categorising’ these people to as their conduct is not viewed quite as seriously as a person who commits murder? Thus, the term ‘abnormality of mind’ is not one used in psychiatric terminology and the courts have been left to establish exactly what the phrase means on a case-by-case basis. It seems doubtful as to whether this is a sufficient approach for the law to take. Objectives Analyse the current law relating to the defences of provocation and diminished responsibility and establish how these apply to women in long-term abusive relationships. Present the justifications for the defences and apply them in context of the proposed research theme. Establish the proposed reforms in the area. Critically analyse the proposed reforms in line with the research topic in order to determine whether they are sufficient. Value of the Research Add to the current academic debate in this field. Establish the appropriateness of the Law Commission’s reforms. Personal interest to the researcher. Theoretical research based on literature search and critical analysis. Sources: Domestic legislation, cases in domestic and international jurisdictions Books and periodical articles. Law Commission Reports. Statistics from the Home Office (relating to domestic violence/fatal offences from domestic relationships). Preliminary Plan (Chapters) Abstract Introduction and overview of the topic Analysis of the existing law on provocation/diminished responsibility Analysis of the Law Commission’s proposals for reform Conclusion (including any further suggestions for the direction the law should take for the future). Essential Reading: (As well as the most current academic text books on the subject) Legislation: Homicide Act 1957 Family Law Act 1996 – see Part IV relating to domestic violence provisions Protection From Harassment Act 1997 See also the Law Reform’s paper: The Law Commission Consultation Paper No 177, A New Homicide Act For England And Wales? At http://www.lawcom.gov.uk/docs/cp177_web.pdf Cases: Jersey v Holley [2005] UKPC 23 R v Mohammed [2005] EWCA Crim 180 R v Ahluwalia (1992) 4 All.E.R 889 R v Bedder (1954) 2All.E.R. 801 DPP v Camplin (1978) A.C. 705 R v Duffy [1949] 1 All.E.R 932 R v Newell (1980) 71 Cr.App.R. 331 R v Roberts [1990] Crim.L.R 122 R v Thornton (No.2) (1996) 2 All.E.R 1023 R v Richens (1993) 4 All.E.R 877 R v Humphreys (1995) 4 All E.R 1008 R v Morhall (1995) 3 All E.R 659 R v Luc Thiet Thuan (1996) 2 All E.R 1033 R v Smith (Morgan James) (2000) 4 All. E.R. 289 R v Keaveney (2004) LTL 22.04.04 Extempore – unreported – find it on Lawtel Journals: Toczek, ‘The action of the reasonable man’, (1996) N.L.J. 146, 835 Toczek, ‘Self-control and the Reasonable Man’ (2000) NLJ 150, 1222 Oliver, ‘Provocation and non-violent homosexual advances’ (1999) J.Crim.L. 63(6) 586-592 Thomas, ‘Sentencing: manslaughter – manslaughter by reason of provocation – manslaughter of spouse of partner’ (2003) Crim.L.R. June 414-417 Neal Bagaric, ‘Provocation: the ongoing subservience of principle to tradition’, (2003) J.Crim.L 67(3) 237-256 Gardner, ‘The mark of responsibility’ (2003) O.J.L.S 23(2) 157-171 {N.B – Some psychology literature may be relevant on this topic – search the online journals for killing stemming from domestic violence. Further research will also be needed to obtain further literature – search www.ingenta.com and your university library should be able to order any articles of relevance that they do not have on site/access to online journal. Also search for any recent reviews of the Law Commission’s proposals You may also need to add to this proposal and include a timescale and any further information you wish to add – such as the length of the research (this is obviously information not available)} 1 Footnotes [1] However, see the proposals of the Law Reform Commission: [2] See R v Duffy (1949) 1 All.E.R 932 [3] (1978) AC 705 [4] [2000] 4 All. E.R. 289 [5] See R v Keaveney [2004] EWCA Crim 1091 [6] R v Thornton (No.2) [1996] 2 All.E.R 1023 [7] The Law Commission Consultation Paper No 177, A New Homicide Act For England And Wales? At http://www.lawcom.gov.uk/docs/cp177_web.pdf

Government Should Focus Its Budgets More on Environmental Protection Than on Economic Development. Essay

Nowadays, whether government should focus its budget more on environmental protection than on economic development has triggered a heated debate. Some people think that the government should concentrate more on economy. Because they believe that the only way to make people live and enjoy better is developing economic. However, from my own perspective, it’s necessary for government to put more budgets on improving environment. Reasons are as follows. First of all, environment and our life are closely bound up. If the environment is contaminated, we will be infected with several disease and even die. For instance, once I watch news in a website said that a group of students graduated from college in 1982.Thirty of them still stayed in Beijing while others chose to go abroad. Thirty years later, eight people who work and live in Beijing had cancers and finally die because of the contamination such as air pollution and water pollution. But people who live abroad still keep healthy . We can learn from the news that environment is close to our daily life, and sometimes pollution poses a potential hazard to health. It’s widely accepted that people’s life is more important than everything. If most people are ill and die due to inefficient environmental protections, development of economy will seem to be useless. Second, if we don’t attach more importance to environmental protection, there will be various catastrophes which may influence the society and do harm to economic development. Some developing countries are good case in point. To earn more money, they make numerous things which destroy the environment such as cutting down trees, overstocking, over-exploitation, discharging polluted water to the rivers but do not think about consequences. As a result, they suffer from many natural calamities ranging from mud-rock flow, sand storm to earthquake, which surely will influence the rate of economic growth. If they focus its budgets more on en vironmental protection and nip the potential hazard of natural disasters in the bud, maybe these kinds of things will not happen. In a nutshell, compared with developing economic, I think it’s essential to put more budgets on protecting our environment because environment plays an important role in human’s daily life and the development of finance and society.

Racial Prejudice And Racial Discrimination - 1637 Words

When referencing the topic of racism and racial discrimination in today’s society, one of the biggest questions that still remain unanswered is as such: Why does racial discrimination still exist? What factors take place within the human mind that might cause feelings of hatred and bigotry? What can result from an individual using racially discriminating language? From times predating even the most notable case of as much, pre-Civil War United States American slavery, discrimination has existed in many different forms throughout world history. To date, there is much debate still about what drove early colonists from Europe to begin â€Å"harvesting† and using Africans, Aborigines, and various Caribbean island based people of color for the purpose of hard labor and trade. Some feel that the justification for the actions of the Europeans is simply a case of cultural ignorance, tied in with at the time, a lack of understanding and empathy for world cultures. Some feel that Religion may have played a key role in their decisions. In these modern times, we may never know the full answer. Though the times of slavery, legal segregation in the 1950’s, and Jim Crowe Laws are long behind, deep-seated racism, bigotry, and hatred is still a major problem that plagues all levels of culture within the United States. From blue-collar workers, to law enforcement officers, even delving into the upper tiers of the United States government, racial prejudice may be readily found, and quite easily.Show MoreRelatedRacial Prejudice And Racial Discrimination Essay1347 Words   |  6 PagesRacial discrimination is one of many terms used to express the suppression of a race or many races, but more specifically, it refers to the ill-treatment a person or group receives as a result of differences in their race, color, descent, national, ethnic origin or immigrant status. (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2016). Racial discrimination can be perpetrated by individuals within society, and corporate institutions such as schools, the work force and the government, all of which we hav e seenRead MoreRacial Prejudice And Racial Discrimination974 Words   |  4 PagesFor many years prejudice have been dominant throughout American history. Prejudice refers to a negative attitude toward and entire category of people, such as a racial or ethnic minority, while discrimination refers to behaviors directly to an individual and groups because of prejudice or for other arbitrary reason. (Schaefer, 2010) When people hear the word prejudice, they already know it’s a Black in society today. 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Between the ages of 3 and 6, they begin to understand and use stereotypes† (Pappas, â€Å"Young Kids Take Parents’ Word on Prejudice†)Read MoreRacism : Racial Discrimination And Prejudice1556 Words   |  7 Pagesfor everyone to be racist? Eventually, we have to change this cycle we will continue this ignorance. We should never allow reverse racism, this term is used to describe acts of discrimination and prejudice perpetrated by racial minorities or historically oppressed ethical groups against individuals belonging to the racial majority or historically dominant ethical groups, according to Wikiped ia. Apparently, â€Å"reverse racism does not exist and a person who claims otherwise is outing themselvesRead MoreRacial Prejudice And Racial Discrimination During The 1920 S1585 Words   |  7 Pageshistory of segregation and discrimination that has long affected present policy. It is clear that racial minorities have been targets of this racial bias for years, and even after slavery was abolished, African-Americans continued to face the most racism due to the color of their skin. Thus, by looking at how John Franklin’s life experience as a boy scout during the 1920’s illustrates a small peek into the history of race and ethnicity in America, we can see how racial hostility, and the Anglo-SaxonRead More Prejudice and Racial Discrimination in America Essay2564 Words   |  11 Pagespower From African Americans when they most needed it. Even today it is diminished but not vanquished as linguistic and educational challenges combine with disagreements amongst those cal ling for integration to further stall our ability to achieve racial harmony. Hatred is an ancient evil that may yet be conquered through understanding. The place to begin is of course at the beginning, when first the white man came dominate and slander the African man. For our purposes this begins back in theRead MoreRacial Prejudice And Discrimination On Children s Self Esteem1891 Words   |  8 PagesIntroduction Racial prejudice and discrimination can negatively affect children’s self-esteem. In 1954, the Supreme Court of the United States enacted the Brown v. Board of Education to outlaw racial segregation from public schools in order to establish equality among children of different racial and ethnic backgrounds (Zirkel, 2005). However, racial prejudice and discrimination still exist within the educational system where children continue to experience these inequalities (Zirkel, 2005). ClarkRead MoreChristian Prejudice and Racial Discrimination of Marginalized in the Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare3691 Words   |  15 PagesIn Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, there are quite a few cases in which the non-Christian characters are marginalized and victimized of Christian prejudice and absolute racism. The Christian prejudice and racial discrimination transpires through the use of language and terms of reference. In sixteenth-century Europe, Jews were a despised a nd persecuted minority. England, in fact, went beyond mere persecution and harassment by banning Jews from the country altogether. In theory at least, there

Essay on Stereotypes in media - 1268 Words

â€Å"Bringing Down the House† featuring Steve Martin and Queen Latifah is a clever comedy that creatively showcases the sociolinguistic phenomena covered in this course. The film is about a tax attorney named Peter, played by Martin, who stumbles into an online lawyer chat room and meets Charlene, played by Latifah. The two chat frequently, mostly about court cases, and eventually decide to meet in person. When the day finally comes, Peter is greeted at the door with who he thought would be a middle-aged Caucasian woman, but happened to be Charlene, a black woman who just escaped from prison. Thinking this was a mistake, Peter tries to kick out Charlene but is later convinced she is the one who he was speaking with in the chat room. Charlene†¦show more content†¦In attempt to do so, he uses Sarah’s language that he believes she would be more inclined to listen to. The father’s usage of the modern hip-hop language is an example of generational conflict. Implied by other clips in the movie, we conclude the father’s environment as an attorney requires him to use a more conservative language that has been more or less designated to his generation. This contrasts with the daughters modern and hip-hop language that incorporates many slang terminologies, non-standard English sentences and phrases, and a very relaxed tone. Although we see the father is able to put a couple sentences together, everything from his tone and range clearly show his inexperience to the speech. An example to showcase his failure is when he attempts to say â€Å"an he try da get al’ up in dat.† The father used the same expression but with different pronunciation. Peter says â€Å"and he tried to get all up in that,† which is clearly too formal for this speech and loses the flavor of what makes the language so authentic to the hip-hop generation. Peter and Sarah both speak standard English, but this is another example of how it can vary . Even though the two are family and from the same class, their generation gap influences the variation of English they speak. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In this clip of the film, in attempt to help clear Charlene’s name, the fatherShow MoreRelatedStereotypes And Stereotypes Of The Media997 Words   |  4 Pagesbitch.† said Bette Davis. Stereotype is one of the big issue in our world right now. This quote refers to one of the categories of stereotype that is gender stereotype. As an chinese indonesian I have some experience of being stereotyped just because of my race. The media has 2 side view of media, on the one side it helps people educate about stereotype and on the other side it also promotes stereotype.Stereotype is something that needs to stop, this is because stereotype gives people a misinterpretationRead MoreStereotypes And Stereotypes Of The Media1734 Words   |  7 PagesIn our media-intensive culture, it is not difficult to find different opinions as well as stereotypes. Stereotypes are found in the media every day and affect our opinion as well as how we perceive others. Stereotyp es of the GLBT community in the media are most commonly found in movies or in TV shows but they rarely talk about their sexual identity. When their identity is being portrayed, it is shown with some form of stereotype. The identity of the homosexual seems to stem from a stereotype itself;Read MoreStereotypes And Stereotypes Of The Media2214 Words   |  9 PagesStereotypes are inaccurate depictions of a certain group of people based off a cliche addressed to them by anyone. This natural act which often feeds off of implicit biases that are unconsciously brought about by many aspects from past experiences to the environment you are within. Whether these ideas advertised by the media are used to fuel desires for the â€Å"greater good† or used to instil hate within a community, they have been a part of society for generations. Research and instances throughoutRead MoreStereotypes Of The Media1153 Words   |  5 PagesThe media has a huge influence on young people today it is a huge influence because it is about the stereotypes that they are using and how the use it. They use it to make you think that teens are always bad and doing bad things like partying getting drunk doing drugs etc in this essay I will be writing about the 2 stereo types the first one is going to be the plastics and the other one is jock from glee. Stereotypes are used in films to help change the media and make them think about others differentlyRead MoreStereotypes And Stereotypes Of Western Media1459 Words   |  6 PagesStereotypes have the ability to put a person down. To make them feel as if they do not belong. In this cruel society, there is an image being portrayed of every individual. Ethnicity, race, religion, gender, and many more. This image many not describe who you are as an individual, but it is how you are judged by this barbarous world. As more Chinese people came to America, the more they were stereotyped. They did not have the same advantages and treatment a s the majority. They were lookedRead MoreStereotypes in the Media2436 Words   |  10 Pagesand Ethnicity Professor Herman October 25, 2010 Over the past couple of decades the usage of offensive stereotypes have played a big role in popular films, TV shows, music videos, and comedy routines today. In fact one can only argue that these offensive stereotypes have increased considerably and will only continue to grow. There are many reasons as to why these stereotypes have only increased and have led to the creators of these films making millions and millions of dollars. The mainRead MoreMass Media and Stereotypes710 Words   |  3 Pages Mass media plays an important role of stereotypes in our present-day world, by broadcasting information and entertainment to a variety of audiences. Stereotypes act like codes that give audiences a common understanding of a person or group of people. Media ranges from television, press, books, radio, and the internet. Media propaganda is the other form of media that is described as manipulation. It is a powerful factor that influences our beliefs and attitudes about others. Race, gender, and economicRead MoreGender Stereotypes In The Media1207 Words   |  5 Pages Gender Stereotypes are everywhere in the world. This paper will focus on the formation of Gender stereotypes through different media sources. The media sources that will be used include television shows, movies and magazines. Thus the paper will also explore the effect that gender stereotyping may have on development of a person’s social and individual identity. There were many different media sources that I used to see where Gender Stereotypes were predominant. First of all I reviewed differentRead MoreStereotypes And Perceptions Of The Media Essay1917 Words   |  8 Pages Stereotypes in Media Ta’Kendra Elbert Indiana University  ¥ What is a stereotype that is used in the media? What are the consequences of those stereotypes? Use examples to illustrate your points. Support with research.  The United States is often referred to as a â€Å"melting pot†; a place where people of all races, genders, and colors can live together and have the same opportunities. That sounds good, but it’s not always how things necessarily pan out. There are drawbacks that come fromRead MoreGender Stereotypes In The Media1391 Words   |  6 PagesGender stereotypes are everywhere. Even before we can understand what this means, people are constantly exposed to them through advertisements, toys, clothes, and the media including television shows and movies. To evaluate the prevalence of gender stereotypes in television programs targeted towards young children, I chose to watch four different shows called Phineas and Ferb, Little Einsteins, Horrid Henry, and Sofia the First. When picking what shows to watch, I intentionally selected at least