In the Scottish Courts
| DOI | 10.1177/002201835301700205 |
| Published date | 01 April 1953 |
| Date | 01 April 1953 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
In the Scottish Courts
MENS
REA
IN
CULPABLE HOMICIDE
Bird v.
H.M.
Advocate (1952, S.L. T. 446)
INthis appeal against conviction of culpable homicide,
an
unsuccessful
attack
was made upon
the
trial judge's
charge
to
the
jury
on
the
ground
that
he "misdirected
or failed fully
to
direct them, inter alia,
that
the
prosecution
had
to
prove criminal
intent
or unlawful conduct on
the
part
of
the
applicant before
they
could find
the
charge of
culpable homicide proved against him". The indictment
on which conviction
had
been secured before Lord Jamieson
and
a
jury
at
Glasgow alleged
that
the
accused, a naval
petty
officer, on a date libelled, on
the
Rhu-Garelochhead
Road, assaulted awoman named
"and
did seize her,
strike her on
the
face with your fists, knock her down,
and
you
did
kill
her".
Briefly stated,
the
evidence led
at
the
trial went
to
show
that,
at
the
crucial time,
the
accused was considerably
under
the
influence of drink;
that
he believed a gipsy
woman whom
he
met
on
the
road had,
by
some method
unexplained, obtained possession of a
sum
of money
belonging
to
him;
that
he struck
the
woman on one
or
more occasions;
that
for a distance of more
than
half a
mile he molested
and
threatened her,
putting
her in a
state
of
fear;
that,
in order
to
get
away from him,
the
woman
stepped into apassing motor-car or
attempted
to
do
so;
that
the
accused forcibly restrained her
and
pulled her
out
of
the
car;
that
she collapsed
and
died;
that
she
had
a
diseased
heart;
and
that
she died from emotional shock.
In
charging
the
jury
on this evidence, Lord Jamieson
explained
the
nature
of culpable homicide
and
distinguished
it
from murder, in which there must be "either an
intent
to
kill or a reckless regard as to
the
consequences of one's
act".
He
further explained
that,
in a case of culpable homicide,
the
degree of violence used is
immaterial-"If,
having a
grievance against aman, anothergives him apush, although,
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