You be the Judge

Case 1

Dave and Trevor are in the pub drinking. Trevor thinks Dave is looking at his girlfriend and starts a fight. They go outside and Dave draws a knife. In the fight which follows, Dave stabs Trevor. Trevor loses a lot of blood and is taken to hospital where he is told he needs a blood transfusion. However, Trevor refuses because his religion does not allow blood transfusions. As a result, he later dies.

What crime should Dave be charged with?

What sentence should he get?

Case 2

Molly Dearing is driving her car along the road in the country at 60 mph. Suddenly, a dog runs out in front of her. She brakes hard to avoid it. Terry Davey is driving his Mercedes behind her. He crashes into the back of her car doing extensive damage to both vehicles.

Who is to blame for the accident?

What penalties should that person get?

Case 3

Mrs. Esters, 60, is paralyzed from the neck downwards after an accident. She has been in this state for over a year. One day she is found dead in bed. She has been given an overdose of sleeping pills. Her daughter admits to giving them to her and says her mother asked her to help her die. Nurses at the hospital confirm that Mrs. Esters said on a number of occasions that she wanted to end her life. She had no property and left very little money in her will.

Is the daughter guilty of murder?

What sentence should she get?

Case 4

Mr. Saied is an immigrant who has lived here for three years. He is from a strict Muslim country where many crimes carry the death penalty. He has no criminal record and runs a successful small business. He has a 20-year-old daughter who has a local boyfriend. One day Mr. Saied discovers that his daughter and the boyfriend have slept together. He immediately kills them both. In court he pleads that his family name has been dishonored and that in his country sex before marriage is always punished by death. This turns out to be true.

What sentence should he get?

 

 

Case 5

Tony Martin is drunk and driving his car home after a party. He knocks Mike Smith off his bicycle. Mike suffers cuts and bruises and his bicycle is destroyed.  Martin does not stop, but Mike remembers his license number and reports the case to the police. The police go to Martin’s house but there is no one at home.

They visit his house again in the morning and find some slight damage to Martin’s car but Martin denies all knowledge of the accident. The police decide there is nothing they can do. The next day Mike goes to Martin’s house to ask him for compensation but Martin, who is large and aggressive, threatens to beat him up. The following week Mike goes to Martin’s house again and sets his car on fire. Martin calls the police and Mike is arrested.

What should happen to Mike?

Case 6

Farmer Palmer, 67, lives alone in an isolated house in the countryside. Late one night he hears a noise in his hall, so he gets his gun and goes to investigate. (He has a license for his gun which he uses to shoot birds and small animals on his farm.) He sees somebody standing in the dark and shouts to him to stand still. The person starts to run away and Palmer fires his gun and seriously injures him. The intruder is a 22-year-old man. He later claims he was lost in the dark and looking for a place to sleep. It is revealed in court that he has a previous conviction for breaking and entering.

What sentences should be given?

Case 7

Terry Davey meets Samantha Goodyear in a pub. They are attracted to each other and talk together for some hours. He buys her a lot of drinks, which she willingly accepts. At the end of the evening he offers to drive her home in his car. On the way he suggests staying at his place rather than hers as it is nearer. She agrees. They go inside his flat and have another drink. They watch a movie and kiss and cuddle. At this stage, Samantha tells Terry that she does not want to make love to him as she doesn’t know him very well. Terry says that is fine but later, he forces Samantha to make love to him. She asks him to stop but he refuses. She is afraid but stays in the flat until he is asleep and then leaves and reports him to the police for rape.

What should happen to Terry?

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