Complete Defences to Murder

At Olliers, we deal with the entire spectrum of criminal offences, including assisting those facing the most serious of charges: murder. Murder is defined as a person of sound mind unlawfully killing another, with the intention to kill or to cause grievous bodily harm.  

The offence carries a mandatory life sentence and it is vital to ensure that the most appropriate defence case is put before the court.  

Certain defences are referred to as partial defences, whereby a case is advanced that would reduce the defendant’s culpability. If successful, the defendant would not be acquitted but would instead be found guilty of manslaughter, which usually results in a reduced sentence. 

A complete defence, when successful, allows for a defendant to be found not guilty of murder and this article provides an overview of the complete defences that may be available. 

Self-Defence 

Self-defence is a complete defence to all crimes including murder and applies in circumstances whereby you are defending yourself from unlawful force, defending another, or even defending property.  

Whilst the law allows for you to defend yourself, you may only do what is reasonably necessary. This refers to using reasonable force in light of all the circumstances to defend yourself or another. This also applies even if the belief is genuine but is a mistake in hindsight. 

Was the force used reasonable? 

In assessing whether the force used was reasonable, two questions must be considered: 

1. Was the use of force necessary in the circumstances? 
2. Was the force used reasonable in the circumstances?  

Once the defence has been raised evidentially, the burden is on the prosecution to rebut the defence beyond reasonable doubt.  

Automatism (Non-insane) 

Automatism is a seldom-used defence which covers situations where a defendant was not aware or in control of their actions, therefore they cannot be held culpable for their acts or omissions. A successful defence will require proof that the defendant suffered a complete loss of voluntary control due to an external factor. 

The cause of the automatism must be external, for example the effect of a lawfully taken drug such as insulin. Another infamous example before the courts was a reflex action when being attacked by a swarm of bees  

Self-induced automatism may also apply to murder as it is an offence of specific intent (such as the example of taking a lawful drug) however, automatism will not be a defence if it is as the result of voluntary intoxication by alcohol or illegal drugs.  

Once the defence of automatism has been raised, the prosecution must disprove the defence beyond reasonable doubt.  

Insanity/Insane Automatism 

The defence of insanity shares similarities with automatism however the trigger for the loss of voluntary control must be internal.  

It must be proved that at the time of committing the act, the defendant was labouring under a defect of reason from a “disease of the mind” (whether this is a mental or other internal disorder) as not to know the nature and quality of the act he was doing or if he did know it, that he did not know what he was doing was wrong.  

Examples of internal causes can include epilepsy, sleepwalking and hyperglycaemic states.  

The diabetic example is often used to distinguish between insane and non-insane automatism. If a person injects too much insulin to trigger a hypoglycaemic state then this would be non-insane automatism. If a person does not eat following taking insulin which triggers a hyperglycaemic state, then as this is an internal cause this would trigger the defence of insane automatism.   

When pleading insanity, the burden of proof shifts to the defendant on the balance of probability to demonstrate that they were legally insane at the time of the offence.  

Where a plea of insanity is successful, a special verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity will be found. The court must then impose a hospital order (with or without restrictions), a supervision order or an absolute discharge.  

Mistake 

When presenting a mistake, this is challenging the assertion that the defendant had the mens rea or namely, the mental element required to prove the crime. In respect of murder, this would be demonstrating that there was no intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm.  

There would have to be clear evidence that there was no intention to kill, or as noted in respect of self-defence, there would have to be a genuine belief of fear for personal safety even if this is later shown to have been incorrect.  

If a person kills another on a mis-held belief or based on a mistake as to law (not believing murder to be illegal for example) then these will not suffice to negate the mental element and the defence case could not be presented.  

Factual Points 

A factual denial could also be considered a complete defence. If the prosecution cannot prove all elements of the offence of murder, the defendant would be entitled to be acquitted. 

The defence may be that of mistaken identity, a person may be incorrectly identified as being the suspect when it can be proved that they are not the person being sought or that they were not present at the time of the killing.   

There may be questions of causation – did the defendant’s act or omission cause the death. The prosecution need only prove that the act or omission was a substantial cause of death, not the only cause.  

Instructing Olliers to act in relation to a murder allegation 

If you are wanted for questioning in relation to an allegation of murder, please contact us immediately. If someone you know has been arrested or charged in relation to a murder allegation, the sooner you contact us the better. If they are in custody at a police station we will make immediate contact. If they are already charged, we can act and if another legal team is already in place we can consider whether it is in their best interests to instruct Olliers. 

If you or someone you know requires representation in relation to an allegation of murder or manslaughter (or any serious criminal allegation) please contact Olliers by telephone on 0161 834 1515, by email at info@olliers.com or complete the form below.