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Criminal Law Tutorials
Criminal Law (University of Leicester)
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LEICESTER LAW SCHOOL
DEPT OR NAME OF FORM
CRIMINAL LAW
LW2220
TUTORIAL QUESTIONS
Sally Kyd
[email protected]
2017/18
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CRIMINAL LAW TUTORIALS
PREPARATION AND OBJECTIVES
To prepare for tutorials you should look over your lecture notes and read all the material set at the
top of each tutorial sheet. Further references can be found on the lecture handout. While it is
desirable that you read as widely as possible on each topic it is not compulsory that the further
literature be consulted before tutorials. However, further reading is available on the electronic
reading list found on the Blackboard page for Criminal Law. Reading of cases (from Westlaw etc.)
will also prove useful.
The required reading for this module is Clarkson & Keating: Criminal Law 9 th ed. (Sweet & Maxwell
2017 – available from the end of September 2017). There is also the requirement to read an article
for some tutorials, available through the library e-journal system (also on the electronic reading
list).
Drawing on your reading, you should prepare answers to each question in note-form so that, if
called upon, you will be able to answer the question. In relation to problem questions you should
think of arguments for and against liability in each case so that you can argue against any answer
given by another student. The object is that after one student has provided a solution to the
problem or issue there will be discussion/debate over the points raised by that answer. You must
remember that there is very seldom a right or wrong answer to the issues posed in the tutorial
questions. If there were, there would be no appeals from judicial decisions and no dissenting
judgements.
While you should prepare answers to every question set, not every question will be discussed in
tutorials. Whether every question is dealt with is left to the discretion of the tutor.
Please remember that the best way of learning and understanding is through active participation -
and that the more you contribute in tutorials the more benefit you will obtain from them and the
more you will enjoy them.
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TUTORIAL 1
CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, Ch.1
Ferguson, “’Smoke gets in your eyes...’ the criminalisation of smoking …” (2011) 31 Legal
Studies 257
1. " The punishment of criminals should be based solely on retributive principles with no
recourse to utilitarian considerations.”
Discuss with reference to recent developments in sentencing in England and Wales.
2. On what basis does society decide whether certain conduct should be criminal?
Drawing on the various theories you have studied, consider, in particular, whether the
following conduct ought to be criminal:
a) Sado-masochistic floggings
b) Smoking in all public places
In addition, come ready to suggest some controversial unlawful activities that offend one or
more of the principles/theories of criminalisation.
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TUTORIAL 2
ACTUS REUS
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, paras 2-001 to 2-119
Ashworth, “Manslaughter by Omission and the Rule of Law” [2015] Crim LR 563-577 (available on
Westlaw)
1. ‘In November last year the former Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Starmer QC, put his
weight behind proposals to introduce an offence of failing to report suspected child abuse,
applicable to professionals. The response from a spokesperson in the Department of
Education was that mandatory reporting was “not the answer” and that there was no
evidence to show that it would be more effective in protecting children. Both the proposal
and the response raise questions about the appropriate criteria for creating new criminal
offences.’ (Andrew Ashworth, Editorial [2014] Crim LR 1).
Critically discuss the questions that are raised by this proposal. Should criminal liability for
omissions be extended?
(NB this is a question from the 2014 Exam)
See http://www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk/should-turning-a-blind-eye-to-allegations-of-
child-abuse-be-made-illegal/
2. Anne is a heroin addict. Her boyfriend, Lucas, is a drug-dealer. One evening her friend,
Sangita, invites Anne and Lucas round for dinner. While Sangita is in the kitchen, Anne asks
Lucas for a “fix” of heroin. He prepares and fills a syringe and is about to inject her when
Anne says it will be easier if he holds a tourniquet (a device that will cause her veins to
protrude) round her arm and she injects herself. Lucas holds the tourniquet round her arm
and guides the syringe towards a protruding vein whereupon Anne injects herself.
The heroin is impure and Anne lapses into unconsciousness. Sangita wants to call an
ambulance but Lucas assures her that such a reaction is common and that Anne will soon
recover. By the time they have finished their dinner, Anne is still unconscious. Sangita
pours water over Anne and applies smelling salts to no avail. At this point, Lucas panics. He
tells Sangita to call an ambulance and he leaves the apartment and goes home. Sangita
calls an ambulance but, because all the roads are blocked, the ambulance takes two hours
to get there. Shortly, afterwards, Anne dies. Medical evidence is given that if the
ambulance had arrived immediately, it is likely that Anne’s life could have been saved.
Discuss the criminal liability of Lucas and Sangita for the death of Anne.
(If they are liable it would be for manslaughter; this will be dealt with later in the course. Do
not concern yourself at this stage with why it would be manslaughter. You will need to
revisit this question at a later date.)
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TUTORIAL 3
BLAMEWORTHINESS
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, paras 2-120 to 2-282
1. Derek burns down his shop in order to collect the insurance money. He knows that there is
a night watchman in the shop who usually sleeps throughout the night. He realises that if
this is so he will perish in the fire. However, he hopes very much that the night watchman
will be awake and thus avoid injury. The night watchman is asleep and is killed in the fire.
For the purposes of the law of murder, does Derek have an intention to kill?
2. Penny parks her car outside her house; the street is relatively narrow. She is in a hurry and
without thinking, flings open her car door to get out. The door strikes a passing cyclist,
damaging the bicycle and injuring the cyclist.
Discuss whether Penny has been reckless with regard to damage to the bicycle and the
injury to the cyclist.
Would it make any difference if Penny was in such a hurry that she had deliberately not
looked in the mirror because she thought it very unlikely anyone would be approaching
and, if they were, she regarded it as their responsibility to look out for car doors being
opened?
3. Be prepared to describe what is meant by cognitive and normative mens rea, and how
these concepts relate to mens rea terms such as intention, recklessness and negligence.
Have recent approaches by the judiciary and parliament preferred a more cognitive or
normative approach to be taken to establishing blameworthiness (provide examples)?
4. Alfred deliberately runs over Bert with his car, intending to kill him. He drives off, but later
returns. Bert is lying in the road. Alfred moves him to the verge of the road and in so doing
causes his death.
Discuss the criminal liability of Alfred.
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TUTORIAL 4
OFFENCES AGAINST THE PERSON/SEXUAL OFFENCES
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, Ch.7
1. Anil has a grudge against Vik and decides to embark on a campaign of harassment against
him. He telephones him and when Vik’s wife, Priya, answers he issues severe threats
against both Vik and her. Priya, who has a history of mental instability, becomes extremely
upset and depressed. She is referred to a psychiatrist, prescribed strong anti-depressant
drugs and is signed off work for six months due to this illness.
Several weeks later, Anil (who knows nothing of Priya’s illness) decides to visit Vik to explain
why he holds a grudge against him. Vik lets him into the house and a heated discussion
ensues. Vik refuses to accept Anil’s point of view, and in a fit of rage Anil picks up a nearby
vase and hurls it at Vik. The vase hits Vik in the face cutting him badly so that he later
requires stitches, and causing concussion, requiring an overnight stay in hospital.
Discuss the criminal liability of Anil.
2. Please answer the following question asked by the Law Commission in its Scoping
Consultation Paper on Offences Against the Person (CP217; 2014):
“We consider that there would be benefit in pursuing reform of the law of offences against
the person in the form of a modern statute replacing all or most of the Offences Against the
Person Act 1861. Do consultees agree?”
3. Barry (35) is the manager of a local bar. At the end of one night Barry invites a new member
of bar staff – Jenny (18) - back to his flat so they can get to know each other a bit better.
Jenny consumes a number of vodka and tonics. Concerned that Jenny is quite tense, Barry
secretly slips an ‘ecstasy’ tablet into her final drink in order, as he sees it, to make her more
relaxed. After consuming the last drink, Jenny feels very disorientated. When she finally
regains her senses some time later she finds that she in a bed and that Barry is engaging in
anal intercourse with her. She does not struggle as she feels too weak. Barry later claims
that Jenny went into the bedroom voluntarily with him and therefore he thought she was
consenting.
Discuss the criminal liability of Barry.
4. Discuss whether you think the Sexual Offences Act 2003 has improved the law of rape and
sexual assault.
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TUTORIAL 5
HOMICIDE
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, Chapter 8
1. Paul entered John’s house to see if there was any money he could steal. Not finding any, he
decided to force open the gas meter in case it contained some. He found it empty, but in
doing this he damaged it allowing gas to escape. Some hours later John returned home. As
soon as he entered the house he switched on the electric light, and a spark from the switch
ignited the gas. John was killed in the resulting explosion and his wife Katy was seriously
burnt and was left with severe scars. Six months later she went into hospital for plastic
surgery to her face. Tom, the anaesthetist, had been to a rugby club dinner the previous
night and was very tired and suffering from a bad hangover. During the operation a pipe to
the ventilator that supplied oxygen to the unconscious patient became detached. One of
the nurses told Tom that Katy seemed to be having breathing difficulties and looked in a
bad way. ‘She doesn’t look as bad as I feel’, replied Tom. By the time it was realised what
had happened, Katy had suffered severe and irreversible brain damage and was declared
dead.
Consider the criminal liability of Paul and Tom for the deaths of John and Katy. (This
question is from a past examination paper.)
2. “The current law of homicide, including the common law of murder and manslaughter as
well as statutory homicide offences, relies too much on the role of luck in determining
liability for death. The whole law of homicide should be reformulated to reduce the role
that luck plays.”
Discuss the extent to which you agree with the above statement and consider how the law
might be reformulated in accordance with it. Would the Law Commission’s
recommendations resolve the problems?
3. Amelia, who suffers from depression and alcoholism, has a 16-year-old daughter Beatrice
from a former relationship. Amelia and Beatrice have been living with Amelia’s partner
Mark for six months. Amelia is shocked to be told by Beatrice that she, Beatrice, is
pregnant. When Amelia asks Beatrice about the father of the baby Beatrice breaks down
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and tells Amelia that Mark has secretly been coming to her room at night and forcing her to
have sex with him.
Amelia is not convinced that Beatrice is telling the truth, however. That evening, she
confronts Mark about it. Amelia is shocked to find that rather than denying the story, Mark
admits that he has been having sexual relations with her daughter, commenting that “she’s
a little slut, that girl of yours”. Amelia leaves the house and goes to the pub. On her return
she finds Mark asleep in front of the TV and uses a cushion to smother Mark, killing him.
Discuss the criminal liability of Amelia.
Additionally, having prepared for this tutorial you should look back at question 2 from
tutorial 2. How would you now structure your answer to this question? You need to start
from the position of identifying what species of manslaughter might be relevant. (There will
not be time to discuss this in class, but you will benefit from engaging in this exercise in
your own time.)
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TUTORIAL 6
DEFENCES
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, Chapter 4
1. “It is odd that one cannot consent to actual bodily harm in the course of sadomasochistic
sexual activity, but is able to consent to the risk of grievous bodily harm in knowingly having
sexual intercourse with an HIV-infected person”.
Drawing on this statement, discuss when, if ever, you think conduct should be criminalized
despite the consent of the “victim”.
2. Mick, who suffers from extreme paranoia, wakes one night and hears a noise downstairs.
Armed with a poker he goes downstairs where he sees Keith, a burglar, helping himself to
the family silver. Mick hits him on the head with the poker. Keith falls to the floor. Mick
cannot see properly in the dark (and has left his glasses upstairs) and thinks Keith is carrying
a gun (in fact it is a silver candle-stick he has stolen). Mick beats Keith on the head several
more times causing the death of Keith.
Discuss the criminal liability of Mick.
3. Charlie is a citizen of Ruritania where he has been involved in political activities against the
ruling regime as a result of which he has fled to Utopia fearing that he will be executed. His
visa to remain in Utopia is due to expire on 1 March and he is unable to renew it. Fearing
that he will be sent back to Ruritania he enlists the assistance of Daniel, another Ruritanian
citizen, telling him that he too will be sent back to a certain death in Ruritania. This is not
true but Daniel, who has severe learning difficulties, believes it is because he once criticized
the Ruritanian regime. On 26 February Charlie and Daniel board a flight to Ruritania and
hijack the plane forcing it, at gun-point, to land at Heathrow Airport. They hold the
passengers hostage for two days. One passenger, Adam, dies and another, Bertha, suffers a
serious heart attack but recovers.
Discuss the criminal liability of Charlie and Daniel.
4. Grant, who is having marital problems (his wife has left him) takes refuge in a bottle of
whisky and becomes extremely drunk. His wife then unexpectedly returns. Grant, on
seeing her, goes berserk and stabs her several times with a kitchen knife. She suffers
serious injuries. Grant later remembers nothing of the incident. He is charged with :
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(i) attempted murder
(ii) s.18
(a) Discuss.
(b) Would it make any difference if the reason he stabbed her was that in his drunken
state he thought his wife was pulling a gun from her handbag in order to shoot him?
In reality she was removing a hairbrush from her bag.
(c) Would it make any difference if instead of being drunk through excessive alcohol, he
had had two drinks shortly after taking medication for a nervous condition. The
doctor had not warned him to refrain from alcohol when taking the pills. The bottle
of pills contained such a warning in small print on the back. Grant had not read this
warning.
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TUTORIAL 7
PROPERTY OFFENCES
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, Ch.9
1. Desmond was shopping in a supermarket. He saw a kettle in a box with two price tickets on
it. One, which was correct, stated £29.99; the other, which was on the opposite side of the
box, stated £19.99. He presented the kettle at the checkout, pointing the £19.99 ticket at
the cashier. He said nothing about the other ticket. The cashier, knowing that £29.99 was
the correct price and suspecting (wrongly) that Desmond had himself stuck the cheaper
ticket on, called the police. When questioned, Desmond admitted that he knew that £29.99
was the correct price, but said that he thought that when a shop made a mistake of this
kind the customer was entitled to take advantage of it.
Discuss.
2. "The effect of Gomez and Hinks is that juries no longer have to consider difficult issues of
civil law when deciding whether the defendant has appropriated property. However, it is
neither desirable, nor is it possible to cut the law of theft completely adrift from the civil
law of property."
Discuss
3. One day Tamal saw Peter’s house advertised by an estate agent. Using a false name he
made an appointment by telephone to see the house, pretending to be a prospective
purchaser. His aim was to have a good look about the house to see if there was anything
that might be worth taking on some subsequent occasion. While Peter was showing him
round the bedrooms the telephone rang and Peter went downstairs to answer it. Tamal
went into another bedroom, opened the drawer of the dressing table and rummaged
about, looking for jewellery. He did not find anything worth taking at the time, but he did
notice some valuable antique carpets. After being shown round the house he thanked
Peter and left.
Two weeks later he went to Peter’s house. He carried a baseball bat with him ‘just in case’.
While he was still outside he saw Peter and his wife leaving, dressed as if they were going
out to dinner. Thinking that he would now have several hours while the house was
unoccupied, he smashed a window and entered the house. While carrying a carpet to his
van, parked outside, he saw Peter return. When Peter saw him he picked up his mobile
phone and started to dial 999. Tamal pulled the cosh from his pocket and told Peter to
hand over the phone. Peter did so. Tamal took it, got into the van and drove away, leaving
the carpet behind.
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Discuss
TUTORIAL 8
INCHOATE OFFENCES & CORPORATE LIABILITY
Reading
Clarkson & Keating, paras 5-001 to 5-083 and paras 3-054 to 3-149.
Wells, “Corporate Criminal Liability: A Ten Year Review” [2014] Crim LR 849 (you need only read Part 1:
pp.849-862. This is available on Westlaw.)
1. Should attempts to commit a crime be punished to a lesser extent than the completed
crime?
2. Ken decides to burn down his former wife's flat. He is apprehended by the police late at
night approaching the front door with a can of petrol and a box of matches.
Discuss his criminal liability.
3. (a) Should the criminal law hold companies accountable or should it rather seek to punish
the culpable individuals within the company?
(b) If companies are to be held criminally liable, what is the best mechanism for achieving
this? In the light of your answer to this, assess the extent to which the Corporate
Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 employs this “best mechanism”.
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