Friday, April 13, 2012

Murder or Manslaughter

via The Futility Closet

On May 31, 1964, Cyril Church beat Sylvia Nott into unconsciousness. Thinking he’d killed her, he dumped her body in a river, where she drowned.

Is this murder? The deliberate act wasn’t fatal, and the fatal act wasn’t deliberate. “His case is that he genuinely and honestly believed that she was dead,” Justice Glyn Jones told the jury. “I direct you that, if that was his genuine and honest belief, then when he threw what he believed to be a dead body into the river, he obviously was not actuated by any intention to cause death or grievous bodily harm; you cannot cause death or serious bodily harm to a corpse.”

They convicted Church of manslaughter.

7 comments:

  1. This was a failure of justice, presuming the story is accurate. At the least, Church believed himself to be improperly disposing of a corpse. He also thought that he was a murderer. I'd have voted to put him away for life.

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    1. The question was "murder or manslaughter?"

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    2. Murder--no question. Did he intend to kill the woman? Yes. Did he believe that he had killed her? Yes. Did he commit the act that caused her death? Yes. Is he a murderer? Yes.

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  2. So he intended to kill her and he did kill her but the judge tells the jury it is possible that since he didn't kill her the way he expected to kill her that he in fact did not intend to kill her?

    Wow. That judge would make one hell of a defense attorney.

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  3. George Zimmerman intended to kill a blackoperp, instead he shot a 17 yo kid to death. That must be murder, too.

    Did any of you vigilantes stop to think that the judge might have some experience with the law? Did any of you trouble yourselves to look any deeper than the headline?

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    1. So you were on the scene and can tell us what was in Zimmerman's mind? Do make sure that you speak with the special prosecutor. She could use your insight.

      But unless there's something not being reported here, a man beats a woman and believes that he killed her. He then throws her into water, and she drowns. How is that not murder? He shouldn't have been given a pass just because he's stupid.

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