Murder and Manslaughter are two of the most serious criminal charges in our legal system. The police must prove that someone did an act that caused another person’s death, and that, for a charge of murder they either intended that act to cause another person’s death or acted with reckless indifference to that possibility.

Call one of our experienced Criminal Law solicitors for free initial advice on your circumstances on (02) 9525 8688

The Law

In order for a person to be found guilty of murder it must be proved that:

• their act or omission caused the death of the victim
• the act was done with intent to kill or inflict grievous bodily harm or with reckless indifference to human life, or was committed in or before or after a felony punishable by a term of imprisonment of 25 years.

Manslaughter occurs where the victim dies as a result of an act of the accused and includes:

• criminal negligence: where the accused had a duty of care to the deceased and they committed a negligent act or omission which fell so far short of their duty of care, and caused or accelerated the deceased’s death
• unlawful and dangerous act: this is where an act of the accused breached the criminal law and was of such a danger that there was a reasonable possibility of risk of serious injury
• excessive self-defence: s421 of the Crimes Act 1900 states that where the accused intentionally or recklessly kills the victim of the manslaughter due to what they believed was necessary to defend themselves or another, but was in the circumstances unreasonable force, will be found to have committed manslaughter
• manslaughter by omission: it is manslaughter to fail to do an act which causes death where either the accused owed the victim a legal obligation to care for them (such as a parent to their children) or where the accused assumed a duty of care for the victim and secluded the helpless person so that others could not render aid.

For further information call one of our experienced Criminal Law solicitors for some free initial telephone advice on (02) 9525 8688