Criminal law worksheet with answers

Necessity was rejected as a defence to murder in the famous shipwreck case of:

1. AR v Miller
2. BR v Brown
3. CR v Dudley and Stephens
4. DR v Collins

In English law, "voluntary manslaughter" refers to:

1. AA killing caused by gross negligence at work
2. BA killing with the mens rea for murder where a partial defence applies
3. CA killing caused by an unlawful and dangerous act, without intent to kill
4. DA killing that the victim consented to in advance

Which statute contains the main non-fatal offences against the person in England and Wales (ABH, wounding, GBH)?

1. AThe Offences Against the Person Act 1861
2. BThe Theft Act 1968
3. CThe Homicide Act 1957
4. DThe Criminal Damage Act 1971

D knocks over a candle by accident, sees a fire start, and walks away without doing anything. The house burns down. D is most likely:

1. ANot liable, because the fire started by accident
2. BLiable, because D created a dangerous situation and failed to act
3. CLiable only if D intended to start the fire initially
4. DNot liable, because the law imposes no duty to act to protect property

A, a lifeguard paid to watch a pool, reads a magazine while a child drowns. A could be liable for an omission because of:

1. AHaving created the dangerous situation
2. BA special relationship with the child's parents
3. CBeing the only person who saw the child
4. DA contractual duty to act

D drinks heavily to gain courage before killing V, as planned. Following A-G for Northern Ireland v Gallagher, D:

1. AHas a defence of involuntary intoxication
2. BCan rely on intoxication because murder is a specific intent offence
3. CCannot rely on intoxication, because the intent to kill was formed before drinking
4. DCan only be guilty of manslaughter

In R v Sullivan (1984), D injured a friend during an epileptic seizure. The House of Lords held:

1. AEpilepsy was an external factor, so the defence was automatism
2. BD was guilty because he knew he was epileptic
3. CEpilepsy was a "disease of the mind" in law, so the defence was insanity
4. DOnly psychiatric illnesses can be diseases of the mind

In Airedale NHS Trust v Bland (1993), the House of Lords held that withdrawing life-sustaining treatment from a patient in a persistent vegetative state:

1. AWas a positive act of killing, amounting to murder
2. BWas lawful because the patient had made an advance decision
3. CWas lawful only because the patient's family had given consent, which is required for any such withdrawal
4. DWas an omission that was lawful because continued treatment was no longer in the patient's best interests