LW104-4-FY UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX LL.B 1st Year Qualifying Examinations, 2013 _____________________________________________________________________ CRIMINAL LAW _____________________________________________________________________

Time allowed: 3 hours A case-list will be provided by the School of Law Candidates may take into the examination room:

Approved compilation of statutes, provided these are not annotated. Please answer THREE questions. You must answer TWO questions from Section A and ONE question from Section B. Each question counts equally to your final mark. The paper consists of SIX questions. Please do not leave your seat unless you are given permission by an Invigilator. Do not communicate in any way with any other candidate in the examination room. Do not open the question paper until told to do so. All answers must be written in the answer book(s) provided. All rough work must be written in the answer book(s) provided. A line should be drawn through any rough work to indicate to the examiner that it is not part of the work to be marked. At the end of the examination, remain seated until your answer book(s) have been collected and you have been told you may leave.

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LW104-4-FY SECTION A

1. Tyrone is in a relationship where Michel constantly beats him. Tyrone puts up with it because they have a 3 month old baby that he adores. One day Tyrone and Michel are fighting at the top of the stairs in their home. Michel falls down the stairs. Tyrone panics and drags her up the stairs and throws her into the bath. He throws water on the floor to make it look like Michel had an accident. Michel was still alive as Tyrone bashed her head several times against the bath taps. He then called an ambulance. The ambulance arrived later than the ten minutes promised and found that Michel had several open wounds and had lost a lot of blood. Lola who was a trainee paramedic administered an injection to stop the flow of blood but this made matters worse because the injection was designed to make blood flow. Michel got to the hospital and as it was a very busy night it took ages to examine her and by the time she was examined she died. Tyrone has recently been diagnosed with a mental disorder which means it is sometimes difficult for him to make rational judgements and to understand the consequences of his behaviour.

Discuss the criminal liability of the parties.

2. Dave is planning a night out with friends at a dog racing track, but is short of cash. He decides to borrow money from his brother, Will. When he arrives at Will’s house, Will is not in, but his flatmate Vicki invites Dave in to wait for Will’s return. When Will hasn’t returned after fifteen minutes, Dave decides to go to Will’s bedroom to see if any money is lying around. When he is in Will’s bedroom, he spots £50 and takes it, intending to pay Will back in the future. He also spots what appears to be a valuable watch, and decides to take it to pawn it with the intention of purchasing the watch back, and returning it to Will, with his winnings from the dog race.

When he returns to the living room, Dave and Vicki chat for a while. Finding Vicki very attractive, Dave tries to kiss her. When she pulls away, he grabs her arm and twists it behind her back. He then kisses her and puts his other hand under her tee-shirt. At that moment Will returns. Seeing what Dave is doing to Vicki, Will grabs a glass bottle and smashes it over his head, causing a deep gash. Dave lets go of Vicki. However, Vicki, thinking that Dave is going to hurt her again, grabs her hockey stick which is lying nearby and hits Dave on the arm several times. Dave attends the hospital where he receives stitches. He has also sustained a broken arm.

Assess the criminal liability of Dave, Will and Vicki.

3. Dominic, aged 15, hopes to become a professional football player. He occasionally socialises

with a local youth gang that is known to engage in anti-social behaviour and minor criminality. One day he is asked by Mandy, the gang leader, to steal a painting from an exhibition which is being held in their school. When he refuses, Mandy threatens to tell his football coach that Dominic takes drugs, and Dominic reluctantly agrees to do as she says. Later that evening, Dominic equips himself with the necessary tools to break into the school. When he arrives, however, there are still a lot of people around, so he hides at the back of the building. An hour later, he goes home. When Dominic meets Mandy at school the next day she tells him that if he

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LW104-4-FY

doesn’t get her the painting, “he can forget about ever playing football again”. Thinking that Mandy means to do him physical harm, Dominic agrees to try to take the painting later that day after classes have finished. Mandy tells him that Eddie, another member of the gang who is also in Dominic’s class at school, will help him carry out the deed. After classes have finished, Dominic and Eddie meet. While Dominic is in the classroom where the exhibition is being held, trying to take the painting from the wall, Eddie keeps watch outside. Seeing Mrs Brown, their maths teacher approaching, Eddie calls a warning to Dominic, who immediately stuffs the painting into a bag and leaves the room. When Mrs Brown reaches the boys and asks them why they are at still in the school, Eddie punches her in the face. Mrs Brown sustains a broken tooth. Assess the criminal liability of Dominic, Mandy and Eddie.

END OF SECTION A

SECTION B

4. Critically discuss the case law on concurrence and consider whether it is logical.

5. How does intoxication affect a defendant’s criminal liability? Do you think that the current law

on intoxication is satisfactory? Give reasons for your answer.

6. “The law on the availability of general defences to charges of murder is in need of reform”.

Discuss the statement with reference to relevant case law.

END OF SECTION B

END OF PAPER

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