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Criminal Law Advanced Midsummer Exam Questions
Criminal Law (LW2220)
University of Leicester
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Midsummer Exams 2021/
Summative Assessment
Department: Leicester Law School
Module Code and Title: LW3220 Criminal Law
Word Limit: 1000 words per question
Number of Questions: 8
Number of Pages: 4
Submission Deadline: Wednesday 25th May, 10:30am (BST)
Instructions to Candidates:
Answer THREE questions – You should answer the compulsory question in SECTION A, ONE question from SECTION B and ONE question from SECTION C.
Each answer should be no more than 1000 words, including references. If your question has more than one part, you should split the maximum word count appropriately. Penalties will apply for exceeding the word limit.
Please use Microsoft Word and NOT Turnitin to check your word count.
You are not required to use OSCOLA referencing or provide a bibliography. You should treat this assessment as a traditional exam.
Your overall mark will be a calculated average of the required number of answers. Each question will be marked out of 100.
This is an open book exam, and you are permitted to access appropriate resources to support your answers.
Although you have 48 hours to submit this assessment, you are not expected to spend more than one to two hours per question. If you have alternative exam arrangements in place by AccessAbility, you should follow these and submit your work within the designated time frame.
You will need to submit your work as a Word Document via Turnitin.
There will not be a late submission period. Students who do not submit in time will have the assessment automatically deferred to the next assessment period. For this reason, you are encouraged to submit your assessment in good time in case of technical difficulties.
By submitting this assessment, you confirm adherence to the Honour Code.
SECTION A
Question one
Arnold is a competitive bodybuilder. He has a strict diet and has not drunk alcohol for many years. He takes diazepam, a medication prescribed to him to treat his anxiety, daily and has done so for many years.
While at a family celebration, he consumes several glasses of champagne. Realising that he forgot to take his medication that morning, he takes it with his champagne. He has never taken his medication with alcohol before but presumes that it will most likely be fine. An hour later, while serving dinner to his family, Arnold becomes dizzy and disorientated. Holding the kitchen knife, he stumbles and stabs his wife, Maria, in the leg. The injury is not life-threatening but requires stitches and a stay in hospital. The doctors, suspecting domestic abuse, notify the police.
Arnold is charged with malicious wounding, contrary to s. 20 OAPA 1861.
(a) Critically discuss whether Arnold would be held liable under s. 20.
(b) Consider whether Arnold should be liable under s. 20.
SECTION B
Question two
What is the principal question the law of causation asks: “who did it” or “who should be blamed”?
Critically discuss with reference to case law and academic commentary.
Question three
‘Since Woollin [1999] 1 AC 82 and G and Another [2004] 1 AC 1034 both intention and recklessness now have fairly clear meanings. The problem is that neither of these meanings is satisfactory’.
Critically discuss.
Question four
‘Whilst the aims of s of the Domestic Abuse Act are laudable, the provision is meaningless and adds nothing to the existing law on mens rea and consent as a defence to offences against the person’.
Critically discuss.
Question seven
Jazzer is walking along the street one day when he finds a wallet lying on the pavement. He takes a quick look through the wallet and, finding no identifying information, decides to take the wallet home. When he gets home, Jazzer takes a closer look at the wallet and, tucked in an inside pocket, he finds a £50 note and a membership card in the name of Rex Fairbrother for Gray Gables, a high- class gym and spa club. He decides to keep the wallet and its contents.
That evening, Jazzer decides to try to use the gym card. He flashes the card at the Gray Gables receptionist, who opens the barrier to allow him to enter the club. Once inside, Jazzer uses the gym and spa facilities. After having a shower in the changing rooms, Jazzer decides that the club’s towels are much nicer and fluffier than the towels he has at home and hides two of the towels in his sports bag to take them home.
Jazzer decides to explore the club premises a little and opens a door marked “Housekeeping, Private, No entry” in order to see if the room contains anything which might be worth taking. As he steps into the room, an alarm goes off, and Jazzer runs out of the club, leaving his sports bag behind.
Critically discuss Jazzer’s criminal liability.
Question eight
Dhillon was dating Hannah for two months before she split up from him and returned to her ex- boyfriend Josh, realising that Josh is her soul mate. Hannah tells Dhillon that she has realised the error of her ways and should never have lowered her standards so far as to date him. Dhillon decides that if he cannot have Hannah, nobody can, not least Josh.
Dhillon begins to follow Hannah. He waits outside a pub the next evening until she and Josh leave. When he sees them emerge, Dhillon drives his car at full speed towards the couple, wanting to kill them both. Josh manages to push Hannah out of the way but is struck by Dhillon’s car and suffers severe injuries. He is left in constant pain, which he finds unable to bear.
Six months later, Hannah has become Josh’s full-time carer. Josh feels guilty that Hannah has had to give up her career and feels he does not get any joy out of life. He pleads with Hannah to take him to Switzerland to be euthanised, but the couple simply cannot afford this. One night, in so much pain, Josh pleads with Hannah to end his suffering once and for all. Hannah takes a pillow and smothers Josh to death. Hannah is later arrested and diagnosed as suffering from depression and PTSD brought on by the incident with Dhillon’s car.
Critically discuss the liability of Dhillon and Hannah for the death of Josh.
Criminal Law Advanced Midsummer Exam Questions
Module: Criminal Law (LW2220)
University: University of Leicester
