1. Which of the following is NOT an element of criminal liability?

a) Mens rea

b) Defence

c) Motive

d) Actus reus

2. Most prosecutions are brought by whom?

a) The complainant

b) The Serious Fraud Office

c) Local Authorities

d) The Crown Prosecution Service

3. Who bears the burden of proof in criminal proceedings?

a) The judge

b) The jury

c) The prosecution

d) The defendant

4. What is an evidential burden?

a) It is a type of proof burden.

b) It is a burden to adduce evidence to make an issue 'live' in a case.

c) It means the defendant has to prove the defence of insanity.

d) It means that whenever the burden of proof is reversed to the defendant, he has to prove
the defence on a balance of probabilities.

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5. On most criminal law modules, the only two defences which the defendant has to prove
are…?

a) Self-defence and mistake

b) Self-defence and diminished responsibility

c) Diminished responsibility and insanity

d) Insanity and mistake

6. Which of the following is a result crime?

a) Fraud

b) Theft

c) Murder

d) Robbery

7. Which of the following crimes cannot be committed by omission?

a) Robbery

b) Murder

c) Manslaughter

d) Criminal damage

8. Causation must be proven for which crimes?

a) Result crimes

b) Conduct-only crimes

c) Mens rea crimes

d) Circumstance-only crimes

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9. Which of the following is correct?

a) D is liable only if the prosecution can prove D's acts were the SOLE cause of the result.

b) D may be liable if the prosecution can prove D's acts were a cause of the result.

c) Causation is a simple question of cause and effect.

d) D is liable even if the chain of causation is broken.

10. The essence of the House of Lords' decision in Kennedy [2008] is:

a) Where the victim's act is unreasonable, unforeseeable or daft, it breaks the chain of
causation.

b) A victim's refusal of medical treatment on medical grounds is always unreasonable.

c) Where the victim is a fully informed and responsible adult, and freely and voluntarily self-
administers drugs supplied by D, D has not caused the victim's death.

d) Where the victim is a fully informed and responsible adult, and freely and voluntarily self-
administers drugs supplied by D, D has caused the victim's death.

11. Which of the following is true? The mens rea of a crime is:

a) that part of the crime which relates to fault.

b) that part of the crime which describes what D was thinking.

c) that part of the crime which describes what D should have been thinking.

d) that part of the crime which describes D's conduct.

12. Which of the following is true?

a) It is for the defendant to prove he did not form the mens rea of the crime.

b) Intention is assessed objectively.

c) The burden of proving the mens rea lies on the prosecution.

d) The mens rea of murder is intention.

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13. Which of the following is the most accurate summary of the Woollin (1999) test?

a) Where D is charged with murder and the simple direction (that it is for the jury to decide
whether D intended to kill or do serious bodily harm) is not enough, the jury should be
directed that they are not entitled to infer the necessary intention unless they feel sure that
death or serious bodily harm was a virtual certainty (barring some unforeseen intervention) as
a result of D's actions and that D appreciated that was the case, the decision being one for
them to reach on a consideration of all the evidence.

b) Where D is charged with murder and the simple direction (that it is for the jury to decide
whether D intended to kill or do serious bodily harm) is not enough, the jury should be
directed that they are not entitled to find the necessary intention unless they feel sure that
death or serious bodily harm was a virtual certainty (barring some unforeseen intervention) as
a result of D's actions and that D appreciated that was the case, the decision being one for
them to reach on a consideration of all the evidence.

c) Where D is charged with murder and the simple direction (that it is for the jury to decide
whether D intended to kill or do serious bodily harm) is not enough, the jury should be
directed that they may find D intended the natural consequences of his act.

d) Where D is charged with murder and the simple direction (that it is for the jury to decide
whether D intended to kill or do serious bodily harm) is not enough, the jury should be
directed that the greater the probability of a consequence the more likely it was that the
consequence was foreseen and the greater the probability was that that consequence was also
intended.

14. If foresight of a virtual certainty is evidence of intention, which of the following

statements is false?

a) The jury must reach its decision on all the facts.

b) The jury may find D foresaw the result as a virtual certainty but may nevertheless find he
did not intend the result.

c) The jury must first decide whether D foresaw the result as a virtual certainty before
considering whether D intended the result.

d) The jury has to convict D if they find he foresaw the result as a virtual certainty.

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15. Which of the following is one of the reasons given by Lord Bingham in R v G (2004) for
overruling Caldwell (1981)?

a) It is correct morally and legally to convict a person on the basis of what would have been
obvious to a reasonable person.

b) The views of legal academics should be ignored by the judiciary.

c) It is clearly not blameworthy to do something involving a risk … if one genuinely does

not perceive the risk. Such a person may fairly be accused of stupidity or lack of imagination,
but neither of those failings should expose him to conviction of serious crime or the risk of
punishment.

d) The decision in Caldwell (1981) was made in line with legal principle.

16. Which of the following statements most accurately describes the factual issues which
arose in Church (1966)?

a) Two men hit a third over the head, intending to kill him, but only knocked him
unconscious. Believing he was dead and, in an effort to fake an accident, they rolled him off a
cliff. The man later died of exposure at the bottom of the cliff.

b) A man beat a woman unconscious and, in a panic and thinking she was dead, threw her
into a river. At the time she was alive but then died from drowning.

c) A man hit his wife on the chin, intending serious harm and knocking her unconscious.
While he was trying to drag her body along the street to avoid detection, he accidentally lost
his grip. Her head hit the pavement, fracturing her skull and causing her death.

d) A woman went to hit a man with her belt, but the belt accidentally rebounded and hit a
third party, causing injury.

17. Which of the following best describes the doctrine of transferred malice?

a) Whether an intention to injure one person can be transferred to an unintended person.

b) Whether an intention to injure a person can be transferred to unintended property damage.

c) Whether an intention to hurt a pregnant woman can be transferred from the woman to the
unborn baby and then from the unborn baby to the child when it is born.

d) Whether a jury should be directed that they are not entitled to find the necessary intention
unless they feel sure that death or serious bodily harm was a virtual certainty (barring some
unforeseen intervention) as a result of D's actions and that D appreciated that was the case,
the decision being one for them to reach on a consideration of all the evidence.

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18. Which of the following examples is NOT capable of being a battery?

a) D pushes V, who is blind

b) D kisses V on the cheek

c) D thumps V

d) D waves his fists at V, who is blind

19. Which of the following is NOT capable of amounting to an offence contrary to s. 47

Offences against the Person Act 1861?

a) A threat which causes the victim panic.

b) A threatening telephone call which causes the victim to suffer psychiatric harm.

c) A silent telephone call which causes the victim to suffer an identifiable clinical condition.

d) A push which causes the victim to fall over and suffer a broken arm.

20. Which is the correct statement in respect of the actus reus of an offence under section 20
OAPA 1861?

a) Wound and cause any grievous bodily harm

b) Wound and inflict any grievous bodily harm

c) Wound or cause any grievous bodily harm

d) Wound or inflict any grievous bodily harm

21. Burstow appealed against his conviction under s. 20 on what point(s) of law?

a) Whether actual bodily harm can be caused by a silent telephone call

b) Whether psychiatric harm is bodily harm

c) Whether harm can be inflicted indirectly

d) Both (b) and (c)

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22. Which is the correct statement in respect of the actus reus of an offence under section 18
OAPA 1861?

a) Wound and cause any grievous bodily harm

b) Wound and inflict any grievous bodily harm

c) Wound or cause any grievous bodily harm

d) Wound or inflict any grievous bodily harm

23. If a defendant is charged with murder and the jury finds that between his intentional act
and the victim's death medical negligence broke the chain of causation, which of the
following is TRUE?

a) D may be convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

b) D may be convicted of murder.

c) D must be acquitted.

d) D may be convicted of voluntary manslaughter.

24. Which of the following is FALSE?

a) The mens rea for murder is malice aforethought.

b) The mens rea for murder is intention to kill or cause serious harm.

c) The mens rea for murder is satisfied on proof that serious harm or death was a virtual
certainty and the defendant foresaw it as such.

d) The mens rea for murder is satisfied only on proof that the defendant intended to kill or
cause life threatening injuries.

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25. Which of the following is the defence of diminished responsibility under s. 2 Homicide
Act 1957 as amended by s. 52 Coroners and Justice Act 2009?

a) A person who kills or is a party to the killing of another is not to be convicted of murder if
D was suffering from an abnormality of mental functioning which arose from a recognised
medical condition, substantially impaired D's ability to understand the nature of D's conduct,
form a rational judgment or exercise self-control, where the abnormality provides an
explanation for D's acts and omissions in doing or being a party to the killing.

b) D was suffering from such abnormality of mind (whether arising from a condition of
arrested or retarded development of mind or any inherent causes or induced by disease or
injury) as substantially impaired his mental responsibility for his acts and omissions in doing
or being a party to the killing.

c) A person who kills or is a party to the killing of another is not to be convicted of murder if
D was suffering from a disease of mental functioning which arose from a recognised medical
condition, substantially impaired D's ability to understand the nature of D's conduct, form a
rational judgment or exercise self-control, where the abnormality provides an explanation for
D's acts and omissions in doing or being a party to the killing.

d) D was labouring under such a defect of reason, from disease of the mind, 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 that
he was doing what was wrong.

26. For the defence of diminished responsibility to succeed (under s. 2 Homicide Act 1957 as
amended), D must prove which of the following? There was a substantial impairment in his
ability to:

a) Understand the nature of his conduct

b) Form rational judgment

c) Exercise self-control

d) Any one of the above

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27. Which of the following is the new partial defence of loss of self-control under the
Coroners and Justice Act 2009?

a) Where a person kills or is a party to the killing of another, D is not to be convicted of

murder if D's acts and omissions in doing or being a party to the killing resulted from D's loss
of self-control, the loss of self-control had a qualifying trigger, and a person of D's sex and
age, with a normal degree of tolerance and self-restraint and in the circumstances of D, might
have reacted in the same or in a similar way to D.

b) Where on a charge of murder there is evidence on which the jury can find that the person
charged was provoked (whether by things done or by things said or by both together) to lose
his self-control, the question whether the provocation was enough to make a reasonable man
do as he did shall be left to be determined by the jury; and in determining that question the
jury shall take into account everything both done and said according to the effect which, in
their opinion, it would have on a reasonable man.

c) Where a person kills or is a party to the killing of another, D is not to be convicted of

murder if D's acts and omissions in doing or being a party to the killing resulted from D's loss
of self-control, the loss of self-control had a qualifying trigger, and a reasonable person
would have done the same as D did.

d) It does not matter whether or not the loss of control was sudden.

28. Which of the following characteristics ARE admissible by s. 54 (1)(c) of the Coroners
and Justice Act 2009?

a) D's age and sex.

b) Any characteristic of D which is one of normal tolerance and self-restraint.

c) Any characteristic of D which affects his general level of self-control.

d) (a) and (b) only.

29. Which of the following is the BEST description of involuntary manslaughter?

a) Where the actus reus of murder cannot be proved.

b) Where the actus reus of murder can be proved and D intended to kill or cause serious
harm.

c) Where the actus reus of murder can be proved but D did not intend to kill or cause serious
harm.

d) Where the actus reus of murder can be proved and D intended to kill or cause serious
harm but D is excused by virtue of a partial defence.

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30. Which of the following is NOT an element of the offence of unlawful act manslaughter?

a) Foresight of death.

b) D's deliberate act causes V's death.

c) D's deliberate act is dangerous.

d) D's deliberate act is a criminal offence

31. Which of the following statements is the BEST description of the offence of gross
negligence manslaughter?

a) D owes V a duty of care, D breaches that duty and the breach involves an obvious risk of
death, the breach causes death and the jury finds the breach serious enough to be a crime.

b) D owes V a duty of care, D breaches that duty, the breach causes death and the jury finds
the breach serious enough to be a crime.

c) D owes V a duty of care, D breaches that duty and the breach causes death.

d) D has to disregard recklessly a risk to V's health and welfare or actually foresee the risk.

32. Which of the following is FALSE?

a) In the offence of gross negligence manslaughter, the question of whether the breach of the
duty is serious enough to be a crime is a question of law for the judge.

b) In the offence of gross negligence manslaughter, the question of whether the breach of the
duty is serious enough to be a crime is a question of fact for the jury.

c) In the offence of gross negligence manslaughter, the question of whether the breach of the
duty is serious enough to be a crime involves an element of circularity.

d) In the offence of gross negligence manslaughter, the question of whether the breach of the
duty is serious enough to be a crime distinguishes civil negligence from criminal negligence.

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