Murder's mens rea is an intention to kill or an intention to cause grievous bodily harm.If the defendant was completely unaware of what he had done that means he had no intent to commit murder right? The defendant was completely unconscious (eg. intoxicated)why should be think he acted with intent to cause harm and his actions resulted in the death of the victim? This is something that I still don't understand. Also, the mens rea of unlawful act manslaughter is intention or recklessness. The defendant had no intention of killing the victim, but he reckless and dangerous behavior caused victim's death. If so, does this situation fit the unlawful act of manslaughter? Hence, can a defendant be charged directly with unlawful act manslaughter and does he have a defense that he can rely on?

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Murder and Mens Rea In general to be convicted of murder the prosecution must prove that the defendant acted with malice aforethought which includes h... View the full answer