Essential Cases: Criminal Law provides a bridge between course textbooks and key case judgments. This case document summarizes the facts and decision in R v Bowen [1996] EWCA Crim 1792, Court of Appeal. The document also included supporting commentary from author Jonathan Herring.
Chapter
R v Bowen [1996] EWCA Crim 1792, Court of Appeal
Chapter
1. Conceptualising Mental Health Law
This chapter begins with brief descriptions of the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA) and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA), and then discusses who the insane; the complex relationship between mental illness and medicine; the statutory definition of mental disorder and the scope of the MHA; mental health care; and sources of mental health law.
Chapter
9. Medical Treatment
This chapter examines treatment for mental disorder, and in particular treatment without consent. The discussions cover treatment outside the scope of the Mental Health Act 1983; statutory provisions for compulsory treatment of detained patients for mental disorder; involuntary treatment of detained patients for mental disorder; and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Chapter
14. Intelligence, mental disorder and crime
This chapter presents the concept of mental disorder, in contrast to the possible physiological influences in criminal behaviour. The idea behind the concept is that the underlying causes are not physical in nature, but are due to the workings of the ‘mind’. The chapter begins with a consideration of whether differences in individuals’ cognitive capacity—or, as it is usually called, intelligence—can have any bearing on the likelihood of their acting in an antisocial manner. It also discusses the definition of ‘learning disability’, a legal classification defined as a state of arrested or incomplete development of the mind, which includes significant impairment of intelligence and social functioning.
Chapter
17. Sexual offences
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 represented the most comprehensive and radical overhaul of the law relating to sexual offences ever undertaken in England and Wales. This chapter deals with non-consensual sexual offences: namely, rape, assault by penetration, sexual assault, and causing someone to engage in sexual activity without consent. It also examines sexual offences against children below 13 years of age, sexual offences against children aged 13 to 16, causing a child to watch a sexual act, arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence, meeting a child following sexual grooming, etc. Finally, the chapter explores offences of abuse of trust, family offences, offences involving mental disorder and other sexual offences such as those surrounding sex work, pornography, and taking indecent photographs of children.
Chapter
28. Mental health, mental disabilities, and crime
Jill Peay
What is the nature of the relationship between mental disability and crime? This chapter examines its nature, scope, direction, and implications for the study of criminology. Its early sections critically assess issues of definition, causation and of the success of treatment interventions. Its latter part reviews developments in policy and the emerging blurring of risk-oriented and therapeutic objectives. It concludes by urging a more sophisticated and less discriminatory approach to the field, which does not focus on diagnoses but rather on a holistic understanding of the relationship between people and crime.
Chapter
7. Sexual Offences
This chapter considers the offences of rape and sexual assault. It begins with a discussion of the law on sexual offences, covering the perpetrators and victims of rape; assault by penetration; causing sexual activity without consent; sexual offences designed to protect children; offences against those with a mental disorder; prostitution and trafficking; and incest. The second part of the chapter focuses on the theory of sexual offences and sexual crimes; statistics on rape; the nature of rape; consent and sexual activity; the mens rea for rape; and the actus reus of rape.
Chapter
17. Sexual offences
David Ormerod and Karl Laird
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 (SOA 2003) represents the most comprehensive and radical overhaul of the law relating to sexual offences ever undertaken in England and Wales. This chapter deals with non-consensual sexual offences; namely, rape, assault by penetration, sexual assault and intentionally causing someone to engage in sexual activity. It also examines sexual offences against children below 13 years of age, sexual offences against children aged 13 to 16, causing a child to watch a sexual act, arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence, meeting a child following sexual grooming, etc. Finally, the chapter explores offences of abuse of trust, family offences, offences involving mental disorder and other sexual offences such as those surrounding prostitution, pornography and taking indecent photographs of children.
Chapter
9. Mental health, mental disabilities, and crime
Ailbhe O’Loughlin and Jill Peay
What is the nature of the relationship between mental disability and crime? This chapter examines its nature, scope, direction, and implications for the study of criminology. Its early sections critically assess issues of definition, causation, and of the success of treatment interventions. Its latter part reviews developments in policy and the emerging blurring of risk-oriented and therapeutic objectives. It concludes by urging a more sophisticated and less discriminatory approach to the field, which does not focus on diagnoses but rather on a holistic understanding of the relationship between people and crime.
Chapter
7. Sexual Offences
This chapter considers the offences of rape and sexual assault. It begins with a discussion of the law on sexual offences, covering the perpetrators and victims of rape; assault by penetration; causing sexual activity without consent; sexual offences designed to protect children; offences against those with a mental disorder; prostitution and trafficking; and incest. The second part of the chapter focuses on the theory of sexual offences and sexual crimes; statistics on rape; the nature of rape; consent and sexual activity; the mens rea for rape; and the actus reus of rape.
