Fright, Stress and Homicide
| Author | Anthony Busuttil,Alexander McCall Smith |
| DOI | 10.1177/002201839005400209 |
| Date | 01 May 1990 |
| Published date | 01 May 1990 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
FRIGHT,
STRESS
AND
HOMICIDE
Anthony Busuuil" and Alexander McCall Smith
The general observation that liability for homicide typically flows
from the application of direct force to the victim has its exceptions.
The issue has arisen recently both in England and in Scotland, in
prosecutions for manslaughter and culpable homicide respectively.
In the English case, R. v. Watmn,t the appellant, who had entered
a house with intent to commit theft, woke up and verbally abused
the 87 year old householder. Nothing was stolen and there was no
physical violence, but the householder nonetheless died of a heart
attack half an hour later. In the very similar Scottish case of Lourie
v. H.M. Advocate.' two young men had confronted an elderly and
infirm woman in her own home and were convicted of culpable
homicide by the trial court. Otherintruders have escaped prosecu-
tion: in another Scottish case involving the death of the victim of
a non-violent crime, the Crown Office declined to prosecute for
homicide in the circumstances where a householder, hearing
burglars at work, got out of bed and armed himself with a weapon,
but died on hisway downstairs before setting eyeson the intruders.3
The distinction between the first two cases and the third is clear.
In Watson and Lourie there were unlawful acts committed in the
vicinity of the victim; in the latter case no such hostile acts had
been committed. Yet the policy issues which are raised here merit
further analysis. In what circumstances should there be liability
for causing the death of another through acute emotional stress,
and how,
if
such liability is to be imposed, are the medical issues
of causation to be approached?
• Regius Professor of Forensic Medicine, University of Edinburgh; Senior
Lecturer, Faculty of Law, University of Edinburgh.
1[1989]2 All E.R. 865.
2Lourie v. H.M. Adv. 1988S.C.C.R. 634.
3The post-mortem examination in this matter, which is unreported, was
conducted by one of the present authors.
257
To continue reading
Request your trial