Grade 11 Canadian Law Violent Crimes Part 1

Contents Homicide Assault Sexual Assault

Homicide The killing of another person either directly or indirectly is called homicide If the crime is deserving of blame (not an accident or self-defence) then the crime is culpable, otherwise it’s non-culpable –See the chart on p.219 in your text to see how the types of homicide are related Section 231 of the CC recognizes first and second degree murder 

Homicide First-degree murder has many aspects, but most commonly the crime must include one of the following: –Must be planned and deliberate –The victim is a law enforcement agent –The death occurs as a crime is being committed Homicide that doesn’t include these aspects, but is still deliberate is second-degree murder - The only difference between the two has to do with the possibility of parole. First-degree eligible for parole after 25 years; Second-degree eligible for parole after a minimum of 10 years. 

Homicide Manslaughter is homicide that is unlawful, but not necessarily deliberate –i.e. killing someone with a car, in a fight, when intoxicated or when provoked may be used as defences Infanticide in the CC is the killing of a newborn by its mother immediately after birth 

Assault There are three levels of assault in the CC, and all must include intent Assault is the first level and is present in any of the following conditions: –Applying force to a person without their consent –Attempting or threatening to apply force –Approaching or blocking a person while carrying a weapon 

Assault Assault causing bodily harm occurs when bodily harm results or when a weapon is used or threatened to be used Aggravated assault occurs when a person wounds, maims, disfigures or endangers the life of a victim Each level of assault carries progressively higher penalties 

Sexual Assault For sexual assault the act must take into consideration the part of the body touched, the situation, actions and words of the offender The actus reus of the crime is sexual touching where the victim doesn’t consent The first level of sexual assault mimics the first level of assault, but must include sexual conduct The second level must involve a weapon, threats to commit bodily harm to a person other than the victim, causing bodily harm or committing the offense with another person 

Sexual Assault Aggravated sexual assault is the third level and occurs when the victim is maimed, wounded, disfigured or has their life endangered Usually there are no witnesses in a sexual assault trial, so the issue of consent is often raised –Consent can’t be used as a defence if the victim is under 14 unless the accused is less than three years older –Intoxication may be used as a defence in some cases 