Flowchart: Guilty or Not Guilty of Murder? A SelectSmart.com Flowchart by Editor To print this page, right mouse click, open "Print preview", "Print" or a similar option depending on your browser, then use the controls to size this page appropriately. Go to SelectSmart.com/flowchart/flowchart.php?id=1002008 for the original version of this flowchart. Find and create other free decision making tools at SelectSmart.com. Use our interactive selectors to find the best college, best career, right religion, most appropriate dog breed, best college major and more.

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The original version of this flowchart was created by ''JT''.                 It is not Murder NO Is there a dead body? YES It could be Murder Actus Reus: Factual Causation : Did the act (or omission) of the defendant cause death in fact? (Following the 'But For' Test) NO It is not Murder YES The Defendant is not liable for murder NO Actus Reus: If the intervening act is an omission, was there a special relationship which made the defendant liable for murder? YES Actus Reus: Is there an intervening act which might break the chain of causation? YES Actus Reus: Legal Causation: Was the defendant's act significant enough for legal causation? NO It is not Murder YES NO It is not Murder NO The Victim: Was the victim a 'reasonable creature in being' under Rerum Natura? YES The Victim: Did the victim have a special condition? YES The Victim: Even if the victim does have a special condition, it is not relevant under the 'Thin Skull Rule'   NO The Defendant may not be guilty of murder NO Mens Rea: Was the death a natural and probable consequence of the defendant's act? NO Mens Rea: Did the Defendant intend to cause Gross Bodily Harm? NO Mens Rea: Did the Defendant intend to kill the Victim? NO Mens Rea: Did the Defendant intend to kill someone else? If so, Transferred Malice Applies YES YES YES YES The Defendant may not be guilty of murder NO Mens Rea: Did the Defendant foresee that death was the natural and probable cause of death?   It could be an example of murder   YES     Coincidence of Mens Rea and Actus Reus: Did the Defendant have the Mens Rea at the moment of the attack? NO Was the attack part of a sequence of events which could be taken together for the purpose of Mens Re and Actus Reus?   YES YES     Defense: Consider what defenses are available when considering the above facts. Check Coke's Definition of Murder to make sure that the evidence suits the defense.