What is Involuntary Manslaughter?

Any act or event that leads to the death of another person can be incredibly stressful and traumatic. In addition to the emotional ramifications of the event, in certain cases, your involvement may also require that you consider the legal implications of what has happened.

If you were involved in the death of another person in some way, and believe it could be argued that you were responsible, you could be charged with involuntary manslaughter. Here, we take a closer look at what that means, from the legal definition of the offence to what sentencing might look like. 

 

Involuntary manslaughter defined

Manslaughter refers to the crime of killing another person, but without the intentionality or other applicable circumstance that would be necessary in order to charge the defendant with murder. 

This means that while the killing will have been illegal, there will have been no intention to kill or seriously harm the victim. There are two main kinds of involuntary manslaughter.

 

Unlawful act manslaughter

Unlawful act manslaughter refers to cases where the death of the victim arose from a dangerous and unlawful act which was intentionally committed. For it to be considered an unlawful act, it must be considered a criminal offence without the death occurring.

Example of unlawful act manslaughter

An example of unlawful act manslaughter could consist of someone who committed arson, with the ensuing blaze then resulting in the death of one or more individuals.

This meets the threshold because a) the act was unlawful, b) the act was highly dangerous, c) the fire was a substantial cause of the resultant death and d) the necessary level of Mens Rea was present. 

 

Gross negligence manslaughter

Gross negligence manslaughter refers to a killing where the defendant had a clear duty of care to the victim. This could apply to workplace contexts, such as in healthcare or childcare settings, where there is a professional duty to care for the individual in question.

For it to be considered an act of gross negligence manslaughter, the defendant must have clearly been able to foresee that their actions would lead to the victim’s death. The threshold for this crime is exceptionally high, as there are a range of other factors that must be provable as well.

Example of gross negligence manslaughter

An example of gross negligence manslaughter could consist of a doctor or medical professional who provided a patient with the wrong kind of medication, where it should have been clearly foreseeable that this would lead to their death.

 

Similar offences

If you believe that you may be guilty of involuntary manslaughter, it’s possible that you could also be charged with other similar offences. These include voluntary manslaughter and murder.

 

Voluntary manslaughter

In addition to involuntary manslaughter, there is also the crime of voluntary manslaughter. Voluntary manslaughter will generally apply to cases where most or all of the factors necessary to prove murder are applicable, but a partial defence can be raised.

Diminished responsibility

This could include a case where the defendant can prove diminished responsibility, such as if they have a recognised medical condition or an abnormality in their mental functioning. 

Loss of control

Another partial defence of murder could be if the defendant can prove that they had a loss of control. This is a complicated defence, and will need to include an objective test, a qualifying trigger, and a provable loss of control.

Suicide pact

The last main kind of voluntary manslaughter consists of cases where the defendant made a suicide pact with the victim. The defendant will need to prove not just that the suicide pact was real and present, but that they also intended to kill themself after the killing of the victim.

 

Murder

If you killed another person, with the clear intention of either killing or seriously harming them, then you could be charged with murder. You would also need to have been of sound mind, and could not have arguably been acting in self-defence.

Murder is one of the most serious crimes that you can find yourself accused of, and will result in incredibly serious custodial sentences. If you suspect that you may be charged with murder, it’s crucial that you seek legal advice as soon as possible.

 

Sentencing for involuntary manslaughter

While involuntary manslaughter is not quite as serious as murder, it is still an incredibly serious crime to be found guilty of, a severity that is reflected in the sentencing guidelines.

 

Unlawful act manslaughter

Unlawful act manslaughter is triable on indictment only, and holds a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. That being said, there is no sentencing minimum like with murder convictions, and the offence range is between 1 and 24 years’ custody.

Where your case will end up within this range depends on a variety of other applicable factors, including the unlawful act itself and how foreseeable it was that the act would have resulted in the victim’s death.

 

Gross negligence manslaughter

Gross negligence manslaughter is also triable on indictment only, and like unlawful act manslaughter, carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. The offence range, however, is slightly lower, at between 1 and 18 years’ custody. 

Again, where your case falls within that range, should you be found guilty, will depend on the kind of duty of care you had towards the victim, how foreseeable it was that the act would lead to their death, and a range of other factors. 

 

Seeking legal assistance

If you believe that you may soon be charged with involuntary manslaughter, it’s imperative that you seek expert legal advice as soon as possible. As you’ll be facing a potential sentence of life imprisonment, it’s impossible to take your case too seriously. Your legal team will be able to:

• Advise you both before and during any interviews under caution
• Help you to develop a defence, arranging for your representation in court if necessary
• Ensure that the law is applied in a just and fair manner at all times
• Help guide you through the appeals process, if necessary.

Manslaughter cases can become incredibly complex, meaning that the more time you and your solicitor have to work on your defence, the better the outcome will likely be.