Criminal law

Anthony lived in a house with a sea view but had borne a grudge against his neighbour Ben ever since Ben had spoilt Anthony’s view of the sea by building an extension to his house. Anthony suffered from a depressive condition causing him to become periodically aggressive. During an argument one morning, Ben insulted Anthony by calling him an eccentric and obsessive creep. That afternoon, Anthony saw Ben walking under a nearby bridge. With the intention of frightening him, Anthony pushed a large rock over the bridge which hit Ben and fractured his skull. A passer-by called an ambulance but it took over an hour to arrive owing to foggy driving conditions. When it reached the hospital, Polly, the doctor, was so busy with other patients that she forgot to examine Ben for two hours. Another patient, Carl, was in great pain and terminally ill with only weeks to live. Polly administered to Carl a large dose of a pain-relieving drug with the result that Carl died within hours. Ben was eventually examined but had gone into a coma. He remained unconscious for two weeks following which Polly disconnected his life support system. Ben died during the night.