Labelling In Criminal Justice

Great Essays
1. Although criminal justice requires the correct label to be attached to the defendant’s misconduct, the wide scope of behaviour covered by the Homicide Act 1957 often results in the unfair, and thus harsh, labelling of offenders. This essay will sought to prove that the law of homicide is often too harsh in its assignation of labels to those who cause the death of others, by concentrating on the examples of murder with oblique intent, involuntary manslaughter and the partial defence of infanticide. It will conclude by determining the extent to which the existing law assigns the correct labels to those who commit a homicide, and whether there is thus a need for reform within the law.
Murder with oblique intent
2. Murder is known to be the
…show more content…
Professor Ashworth proposes an ideal solution to the discrepancy of conduct under murder, and the often disproportionate sentence that accompanies it. He argues that the judge should have the same discretion to impose lesser sentences as he has for other crimes , because the current inflexibility of the murder sentence results in disproportionate sentencing and thus labelling. However, the objective of accurate classification is entirely within the public interest because offence labelling performs a function of social reinforcement , therefore the current law does not suffice for the needs of society. The scale of D’s mens rea is not currently taken into full consideration – it is merely a requirement that must be satisfied for culpability, regardless of its extent – therefore this societal desire cannot be fully achieved under the strict ‘two-category’ scheme of labelling.
Involuntary manslaughter
6. Not only is the gravity of D’s mens rea not taken into consideration, the wide scope of conduct covered by involuntary manslaughter has also been identified by the Law Commission as a major problem
…show more content…
The Court of Appeal highlighted the main issue with using infanticide as a defence in Kai-Whitewind. A mother of three denied killing her youngest child, whom was allegedly conceived in the course of a rape, as a result of her suffering a postpartum psychiatric disorder . This resulted in her being convicted of murder as opposed to the less culpable offence of infanticide. Although it is within the interest of the law to take into consideration the evidence of the mother’s mental instability at the time the offence was committed, it is entirely impossible to do so when she denies responsibility for the murder. It is therefore impossible to found a charge of infanticide without her co-operation at the evidential stage, as demonstrated in

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    When it comes to having justice being served equally amongst individuals, they must be all treated as a similar case and with same results instead of treating each person differently based on how they may argue their case. Nathanson believes that Haag’s argument on treating individuals differently is a discriminatory effect in the justice system. Nathanson believes it is arbitrary to decide whom specifically deserves the capital punishment and whom deserves a lesser of a sentence which then makes a distinction between who deserves what…

    • 1008 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Case Of Kenneth Parks

    • 1357 Words
    • 5 Pages

    In the early morning hours of May 23rd, 1987, a man assaulted and murdered two people, but unlike any other ordinary cases, he managed to do so while ‘asleep’. Kenneth Parks, a 23-year-old man living in Toronto, drove approximately 23 km to his in-laws’ home (in the condition of sleepwalking).1 He then broke into the house and seriously injured his father in-law, Dennis Woods, attempting to strangle him to death and murdered his mother in-law, Barbara Woods, using a tire iron and a kitchen knife.2 In conclusion of the case, on May 28th, 1998, with his defence being successful, the jury made a verdict of not guilty and Parks was acquitted of his crimes (The Supreme Court of Canada confirmed the acquittal in 1992).1 There were strong, supportive…

    • 1357 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    R V Mulvihill Case Study

    • 852 Words
    • 4 Pages

    LEGAL CITATION R v Mulvihill [2014] NSWSC 443, 16 April 2014, Fullerton J ELEMENTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CRIME ELEMENTS- Murder – Section 18 of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) • Actus rea – An act or omission causing death. • Mens rea – Recklessly indifference to human life, or intention to kill or inflict grievous bodily harm.…

    • 852 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Our society today have become masters at labeling a person, whether or not it is respectable or ruthless. The labeling theory is a concept used to help explain why someone’s behavior is acceptable in one group but termed deviant in other groups. In theory, criminal behavior is deemed as such only if the perception of the person is recognized to be so. Theorists of labeling communicate that not everyone who commits a crime is labeled as a criminal (Trueman, 2015). Primary and secondary deviance are terms used to distinguish a normal act of deviant behavior as opposed to one that is not accepted so easily.…

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Masciantonio V. R Summary

    • 1785 Words
    • 8 Pages

    In McHugh J’s dissenting judgment in Masciantonio v R he argues that the characteristics of an ordinary person of the same age, race, culture and background as the accused should be implemented when applying the law of provocation preventing the likelihood of discrimination and injustice. Further, he goes on in saying that in a multicultural society such as Australia, the notion of an ordinary person is pure fiction and that cases heard by juries of predominantly Anglo-Saxon-Celtic origin would almost certainly result in the accused being judged by the standard of self-control of a middle class Australian of Anglo-Saxon-Celtic heritage. We explore the law of provocation and the requirements (tests) to satisfy the partial defence, changes to the tests over time and the difficulties that arise from the lack of understanding from the Australian Anglo-Saxon-Celtic origin judiciary, the standard of an ordinary person in Australia and difficulties of applying and also omitting the subjective characteristics of the accused. Firstly, for a murder charge to be reduced to manslaughter provocation must be established, whereby the accused is found to be sufficiently provoked by his victim (deceased).…

    • 1785 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In regards to the Criminal Justice academic catalog I understand the policies and procedures addressed in the catalog. The policies and procedures are pretty much standard as with employment policies and procedures as far as grievances being filed, records being made available to a third party, following the Title VII Civil Rights Act in regards to discrimination of any kind and the monitoring of computers and emails. I also understand the policies and procedures based upon Bethel’s regulations in regards to the admission process, the graduation process, academic probation, appealing grades and plagiarism. In Bethel University’s Criminal Justice Catalog from 2012 states If a student is unsure of any policy or procedure should seek clarification.…

    • 296 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    [the defendant's] punishment must be tailored to his personal responsibility and moral guilt." However, victim impact statements shift the focus from the defendant to the reputation of the victim and the effect on the victim’s family, factors that are generally unrelated to the blameworthiness of the petitioner. The defendant, in capital murder cases is usually unaware of the victim’s reputation or how the murder will affect the victim’s family members. Certainly, petitioner, who knew his victims for at most two weeks, could not have had knowledge of the victims’ reputation or character and he had only met one of the victim’s family members at the time of the murders. Because petitioner was unaware of these factors, Amicus agrees with Justice Powell’s conclusion that “This evidence thus could divert the jury's attention away from the defendant's background and record, and the circumstances of the crime.”…

    • 1299 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Newgarthian Case

    • 1592 Words
    • 7 Pages

    In particular, this case highlights the need for the inclusion of an explicit provision creating and outlining defences that ought to be available to defendants charged under N.C.S.A. (N.S.) § 12-A. However, alteration of legislation being beyond my power as a judge. In addition, I disagree with my brothers Tatting, J and TruePenny J who are of the opinion that the safeguards that exist to mitigate the harm exerted by such laws, such as executive clemency, are substantial enough when that chance means gambling with the lives of multiple individuals. Therefore, without the ability to enact immediate legislative change, I am of the strong conviction that the previous lack of application of the statute to our own judicial system is, in itself, enough to substantiate an innocent verdict. If we, as the judiciary, are able to wilfully condemn an individual to the death penalty, without facing the penalties associated with it, then so should life-or-death situations have the ability to fall under this implied exception.…

    • 1592 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Second degree murder is reversed for cases where it cannot be proved that a killer planned a specific killing with intentions that the victim die because of his or her own actions. Second degree murder is also considered to be known as “crime of passion” or the “heat of passion”. Individuals who are convicted of charges pertaining to crime can face life in prison with or without the possibility of parole depending upon the state’s regulations and the situation’s and circumstances (What are the different types of homicides, n.d.) Manslaughter charges are reserved for the accused that did not plan the crime nor did he or she intended for the victim to die based upon their actions. Manslaughter charges are usually from accidental circumstances where a person died due to an event that occurred and it get out of hand (What are the different types of homicides, n.d.).…

    • 707 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Criminalization Of Women

    • 1069 Words
    • 5 Pages

    It is subjective and difficult to rank both the harm of an offense concerning severity, as well as the type of punishment used (Ward & Salmon, 2009, 244). Crime is defined using a particular group 's value judgments. Imprisonment, then, is the tool used to inflict harm on people that are deemed punishable by the dominant group. Consequently, it is also valuable to consider the prison context for…

    • 1069 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Does the Australian Criminal Justice System always successfully balance the rights of individuals with the needs of the community? While the Australian Criminal Justice system is usually sufficient in balancing the rights of individuals with society’s need for order, it does not always succeed in doing this. Often, there are times in which one side or the other feels justice has not been served. It is usually the most severe cases in which the law does not effectively balance the rights of the individual with society’s need for order and safety.…

    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Pain and punishment are two words that interweave with each other in accordance with criminal justice. However, the way an individual is able to interpret these words can develop very different, and influential forms of thinking. Nevertheless, these developed forms of thinking allow individuals to form opinions on the subject, and aid in the formation our state. In this essay I am going to be explaining both Immanuel Kant, and Jeremy Bentham’s individual stances on punishment. This will include the theories of retributivism, and deterrence as leading factors to explain each theory.…

    • 1240 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Criminal Homicide Essay

    • 752 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Murder is defined as the unlawful, malicious, and premeditated killing of another human being. For the purpose of law, the term ‘malice’ refers to a willful and intentional act without just cause, and ‘premeditated’…

    • 752 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Homicide is a result crime in the sense that the defendant must be proved to have caused the victim’s death. There is two matter have to be considered. The first is did the defendant in fact cause the victim’s death, that the factual causation, and the second is if so, can he be held to have caused it in law, that the legal causation. Factual Causation…

    • 1475 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In this essay I will reflect on the few assumptions and understandings I had about crime and see how they have changed. Upon arriving at De Montfort University to study Criminology and Criminal Justice, I had average knowledge about crime and punishment i.e. insight into biological and psychological perspectives of crime having studied A-level Law and Psychology beforehand. However I did expect to delve so deep into the history and other aspects of Criminology during this first semester. During A-level Law I have read many case studies of murder, manslaughter, GBH, rape etc. I found the main reasons behind committing these crimes were usually motives for revenge, loss of control, hate, rage, and biological inheritance of 'criminal genes ' such as Monoamine oxidase A which makes individuals more prone to exert violence.…

    • 1262 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays