Mitigating Factors (Extra Credit Assignment) and Criminal Law

Name:

Mitigating Factors (Extra Credit Assignment) and Criminal Law

Institution

Date

Mitigating Factors and Criminal Law: A Case on Self Defense

Mr. and Mrs. Dowell have been married for twenty years and were blessed with two children Meshach and Melanie Dowell, sixteen and fourteen years old respectively. Mr. Dowell, frequently physically and verbally abused his wife, daughter and son. He was a drunkard and had lost his job several times. Rita Dowell the wife to Mr. Dowell had been a breadwinner for their family for more than six years enduring all the physical and verbal abuse while trying to protect her daughter. Mrs. Dowell had tried to leave several times but Mr. Dowell had always told her she would look for her and kill her together with her daughter and the son. Due to the years of the physical abuse, Rita seemed to believe that her abuser would actually kill her. Rita had always try to be a submissive loving wife who wanted her child to grow in a loving home although this was proving to be just but a dream. She had tried helping her husband including taking him to rehab centers for help but he was always relapsing and his violent tendencies kept growing daily.

On the night of February 29, 2004, Mr. Dowell came home heavily drunk as usual. Rita was not yet home but her daughter was in the house and just ushered his father in as he had been banging the door. When his father got him, he started raining kicks and blows to the poor girl who could not defend herself and her mother too was not in the house to help her. Luckily the brother who was not asleep came out to rescue the sister. He was only 14-years old and his father overpowered him by shoving him away as he continued beating up her daughter and trying to undress her. Meshach took his bat and hit his father on the head who immediately passed out on the floor and was bleeding from the head. On seeing this Meshach and Melanie contacted their mother who came home immediately and called ambulance services to try and rush Mr. Dowell to the hospital. However, when the Emergency Medical responders arrived, they pronounced Mr. Dowell dead. A postmortem report indicated that Mr. Dowell succumbed from his head injuries that was inflicted by a blunt object, the bat. Meshach our client was arrested by the Chicago Police Department and charged with murder.

On the night in question, Melanie had been recording her YouTube video as she was trying to kick start her career as vlogger. She was doing her recording in the living room and when she heard a knock, she left the camera still rolling knowing she would edit out the unwanted parts and furthermore, after opening the door her plan was to continue her recording. The video did capture moments where the father was beating up her daughter and although the camera toppled due to the movement, the voice recording was captured and one can hear as the brother tried to stop his father from battering her sister to when Meshach actually hits him in the head with the bat.

Meshach was acting on self-defense as he was defending her younger sister who was being physically abused by the dad. According to law self-defense is when an individual tries to defend themselves from the attack or tries to prevent an attack of another person, in our case, the latter applies. S3(1) of criminal law also provides that “A person may use such force as is reasonable in the circumstances in the prevention of crime, or in effecting or assisting in the lawful arrest offenders or suspected offenders or of persons unlawfully at large” If Meshach had not intervened and saved her sister, probably her sister would be dead or rather nursing other serious injuries inflicted on her by her biological father.

Meshach has always been a disciplined boy with neighbors and teachers attesting to it. He had always performed in school and was among the best students in his class. At no point had he shown violent tendencies towards the school mates or neighbors and many know as a kind hearted boy always ready to help anyone. There are no prior records that show Meshach had ever had an encounter with the law enforcers, not even a parking ticket. On the several occasion his father had abused him physically, he never fought back but always run to avoid any more harm from the father. Meshach is not a flight risk as he has been the support system of both her sister and mother now him being the only man in the house he understands he needs to be there for them more than ever. Mischa has shown remorse for g=his action severally stating he had no intention of killing his father but rather he was trying to protect his sister and the use of the bat was because it was the only object he laid his hands on at that moment. Meshach is a young promising man who has demonstrated integrity throughout his life until that fateful night when he made that one mistake.

Questions.

Was Meshach acting on self-defense?

Possible proof: Mrs. Dowell and Melanie medical sheets on proof of physical abuse, video that captured the physical assault of Melanie on the February 29th, 2004

Did Meshach use reasonable force?Proof: use of a bat and video and voice recording

Does Meshach have a violent behavior?

Proof: Character witness from a neighbor and the teacher and a look psychiatric report by a psychologist indicating Meshach does not act rationally in heated circumstances

Had Meshach ever been abused by his father just like the mother and sister?

Proof: medical record to when he was admitted to the ER with a broken limb, witness from neighbors on broken relationship between son and father

Was Meshach actions fueled by his difficult personal history

Proof: Witness testimony of neighbors on Meshach having to take care of his sister including cooking while still young and testimony from psychologist on emotional distress Meshach was through due to his upbringing.

Does Meshach have a criminal record?

Proof: look into Meshach past criminal record and character witness

Is Meshach a flight risk?

Proof: look into his passport, examination of how often he travels out of the city

Does Meshach understand the gravity of his action?

Proof: Calling emergency responders to help his father and proof of his remorse.

Was Meshach under the influence of any drug when defending himself and the sister?

Proof: blood alcohol content analysis as well as analysis on presence of any other hard substance and character witness attributing Meshach’s character to good behavior

What were the circumstances at the time Meshach was committing the crime?

Proof of emotional distress and physical abuse from the father, proof of provocation from the father.