WDW225 Review Class

WDW225 Review Class 11/29/2012 S. 16 - What does “appreciate requires more than knowledge of the physical nature of the act” mean? Could you explain the “knowing it is wrong” part of the test from s.16? o Appreciate means an ability to foresee and measure consequences of the physical act o Ability to perceive the consequences, impact and results of a physical act o Choking- could understand physical act without appreciating it could lead to death (consequence) o “Knowing it is wrong” = morally wrong (based on societal norms) or legally wrong Unfit to stand trial - Could you explain a prima facie case? o If permanently unfit, Crown must demonstrate ability to have trail every 2 years  Must establish a prima facie case (can still prove the case even after 2 years, that the accused could still be convicted) o Must call some evidence on each essential element of the offence  The actus reus and mens rea o Must show that they have enough evidence that COULD justify a conviction IF BELIEVED Automatism - What is the difference between sane vs. non-insane automatism o Non-insane automatism = external cause of involuntariness; cause by transient disturbance of consciousness; no ongoing dangerousness or risk of recurrence; results in acquittal o Insane automatism = form of s.16; involuntariness caused by a “disease of the mind” (or mental disorder); defined by combination medical, legal and policy consideration; presumed to be a product of a disease of the mind; results in a “NCR” finding and ongoing supervision under ORB  Insane automatism is a subset of NCR Voluntariness Can a person be guilty as a party to an offence even if his/her conduct is involuntary? - No - Must still prove the actus reus and mens rea for party liability (aid, abet, form intention in common) - Whatever constitutes the actus reus must be voluntary - Mens rea to be proven separately Role of courts What are the different responsibilities of the Crown, the Trial Court and the Court of Appeal? - Who decides what? What can overturn what? - Who can change the law … etc? o Crown= prosecutor; presents the case against accused o Trial court= decides guilt or innocence; can overturn law if inconsistent with the CCRF o Court of Appeal = decides whether trial court made any mistakes; can overturn conviction or acquittal; can overturn law if inconsistent with Charter o Parliament= can change laws with legislative amendments Subjective mens rea In what circumstances is subjective mens rea required? What is meant by “subjective mens rea can still be proven by reference to objective inference from the evidence? - Subjective mens rea is required when stigma and/or potential penalty are high (R.v Vaillancourt) - Theft, murder, participating in a terrorist act - Manslaughter/ criminal negligence does not require subjective mens reas - “Ought to know” is not enough - Subjective mens rea words = knowledge, intent - Proof can be based on reasonable inference from what the accused did or did not do, what he said or did not say, what other did or did not do, what others said or did not say o Using owns common sense o Based on all the evidence, one is going to make a finding that the accused did or did not doing anything Causation What is the difference between factual and legal causation? What action by a 3 rd party would break the legal causation? - Factual causation = but for test - Contributing cause of death beyond de minimis ca