R v Smith [1959] 2 QB 35 - Case Brief on Causation and Murder

Criminal Law

R V SMITH [1959] 2 QB 35
Appellant: Thomas Joseph Smith
Respondent: Her Majesty the Queen
Year: 1959
Court: Court Martial Appeals Court
Judges: Chief Justice Lord Parker, Streatfield & Hinchcliffe Judges
Country: UK
Area of law: Causation and Murder
Issue: What establishes a satisfactory cause to make criminal liability? Was the action of Smith a
sufficient cause to establish criminal liability?
Facts of Case
It is an English criminal law case that dealt with the causation and homicide. In this case, the
defendant named Smith, who was a soldier stabbed the victim, who was also a soldier with a
bayonet on his back during a fight between the two in the army barracks at a military base. The
friend of the victim took him for the first aid and additional medical treatment but on his way to
the medics, victim fallen down twice.1 Above it, the medical officer at the first aid post was also
busy and took some extra time in attending the victim meanwhile he died due to the severe injury
caused to him. It was found in medical evidence that the treatment provided to him was late as
well as tangibly wrong.2 It was found that he died about two hours after getting stabbed by the
defendant because of the failure of the doctors to diagnose that that lungs of victim had been
1 Case Brief Wiki, 'R V Smith' (Case Brief Wiki, 2018) <http://casebrief.wikia.com/wiki/R_v_Smith> accessed 6
December 2018.
2 Gareth Evans, 'Causation Cases' (Digestible Notes, 2018)
<https://digestiblenotes.com/law/criminal_cases/causation.php> accessed 6 December 2018.

punctured. It was revealed that the doctors failed to provide saline solution to the victim and
could not considered blood transfusion and to provide him artificial respiration at the collapse of
his lung and the victim died resultantly. It was also found that if he would have been provided
with the effective treatment on time, the situation would have been different and the victim might
have recovered from the injury.
The defendant appealed to the court and the defence claimed that in order to criminalize him for
charge of murder, it was essential to prove that actions of Smith were the cause of the death of
victim. The defence claimed that the victim would have survived but the reason of his death
became the negligence of medical staff, for which, defendant should not be charged. The defence
claimed that it was obvious that there was no probability of the victim to be in hospital but for
his stabbing, however, it was contended by the defence that it was completely prejudiced to
criminalize the defendant as the court must have been established that the death was the natural
and only result of the stabbing by the defendant.
Decision of Court
The decision of the court was that the treatment provided to him was exhaustively worst and if it
would have been effective, the probabilities of the recovery of victim have been more. However,
the procedure of medical treatment does not interrupt the chain of causation. 3 In case if the
death would have been caused the actual would that would have been the operating cause and
considerable cause, then the death can be the consequence of the wound even if the former cause
have also been effective. As the secondary cause of death was as irresistible as it had made the
actual wound only a less significant part that it can be considered that death was not a result of
3 E-law Resources, 'Causation in criminal liability' (E-law Resources, 2018) <http://e-lawresources.co.uk/Causation-
in-criminal-liability.php> accessed 6 December 2018.