Abolition of diminished responsibility

Paper

Hemming, Andrew. 2008. "Abolition of diminished responsibility." Evers, Tania (ed.) 28th Annual Congress of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law (NSW) (ANZAPPL 2008): Risks v Rights. Sydney, Australia 23 - 26 Oct 2008 Australia.

Authors
Paper/Presentation Title	Abolition of diminished responsibility
Presentation Type	Paper
Author	Hemming, Andrew
Editors	Evers, Tania
Journal or Proceedings Title	Proceedings of the 28th Annual Congress of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law (NSW) (ANZAPPL 2008)
Year	2008
Place of Publication	Australia
Conference/Event	28th Annual Congress of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law (NSW) (ANZAPPL 2008): Risks v Rights
Event Details	28th Annual Congress of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law (NSW) (ANZAPPL 2008): Risks v Rights Event Date 23 to end of 26 Oct 2008 Event Location Sydney, Australia
Abstract	Diminished responsibility is a partial defence to murder which, if proven, reduces criminal liability for unlawful homicide from murder to manslaughter. This paper contends that given the vagueness, uncertainty and practical difficulties associated with the defence of diminished responsibility, it should be abolished completely in Australia as the very breadth of the defence, allows a coach and horses to be driven through criminal responsibility for murder. It will be contended that the availability of the defence of diminished responsibility is not appropriate even in jurisdictions such as Queensland and the Northern Territory which retain a mandatory life sentence for murder. Furthermore, it will be argued that attempts to reformulate the defence of diminished responsibility are akin to seeking to glue back together a shattered vessel.
Keywords	murder; homicide; diminished responsibility; provocation
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020	489999. Other law and legal studies not elsewhere classified
	520103. Forensic psychology
	420313. Mental health services
Byline Affiliations	School of Law
Institution of Origin	University of Southern Queensland

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