Queensland Principles of Criminal Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Queensland Principles of Criminal Law - Essay Example The law provides that under subsection (1) (a), it is immaterial whether the offender did not intend to hurt the particular person who is killed. In the case at bar, there is a clear showing that Brain had the intention to cause injury by physical attacking Jonas and later on pushing him to the river, which is aggravated by the fact that he had personal knowledge that Brian doesn’t know how to swim and that he will die from drowning. Therefore, Brian cannot interpose the defence that he had no intention to kill Brian because from the start, he already manifested his intention to hurt and injure the victim. In the case of R v Willmot (No 2) [1985], the Supreme Court held that the judge or jury will apply their own common sense understanding of human behavior before deriving at a conclusion with regard to the intention of the accused. In the given example, a conviction of wilful or intentional murder requires proof that the accused intended to cause the death of the victim. Whil e intention is a subjective element, its determination requires impartiality, neutrality and devoid of any biases. Intent is derived from what the accused was thinking at the time of commission of the offence. In the absence of any direct evidence which is in the form of an admission in a full-blown trial, the intention of the accused will be decided upon based on the attendant circumstances of the time the offence committed. Intention on the part of Brian to kill Jonas is established by the fact when Brian and Darren designed a plan to beat Jonas and Marko, the two geeks who went out with their girlfriends. There is evident pre-meditation on the part of Brian and Darren because a plan was created and they carried it out until its full accomplishment. Brian and Darren are motivated by feelings of jealousy, resentment and evil motive that caused them to inflict grievous bodily harm on the Jonas and Marko. The physical injury inflicted by Brian on Jonas is a clear indication that he h ad the intention to cause grievous bodily harm on Jonas, which later was the cause of the death of Jonas. Thereafter, the final act of Brian of pushing him to fall off the bridge and land in the river to drown, manifests intent to kill was present on the part of Brian. Jonas informed Brian before hitting the water that he did not know how to swim. Brian saw this as an advantage as he pushed Jonas to the river so that he won’t have means to save himself because nobody was there to help him get out of the river. This final act of Brian ensured that Jonas will die by drowning. Without a doubt, malice and the intention to kill Jonas was present on the part of Brian. The evidence of guilt is strong and shown by Brian’s act of inflicting grievous bodily harm and pushing towards the river to drown. The element of malice is present when Brian pushed Jonas to the river and ensured his death because he knew that no one was there to save Jonas. In the case of Woolmington [1935] A C 462, for one to be convicted guilty beyond reasonable doubt for the crime of murder, two elements must be established: 1.) death as a result of a voluntary act of the accused; and 2.) malice on the part of the accused. Here, both of the elements are present on the part of Brian. Therefore, he should be convicted for the crime of intentional murder under Section 302(1) (a). 2. DPP should charge Darren for the crime of