... actus rues then the defendant must be under a duty to act and examples of this can be contract (i.e. employment) and special relationships. The case of R v Gibbins & Proctor (1918) illustrates the special relationship duty. In this case Gibbins (the father) stopped feeding and caring for his daughter and therefore by his neglect he allowed her to starve to death. Gibbins and Proctor (his girlfriend) were convicted for murder as there was malice forethought with intention to kill and/or cause GBH. As Gibbins was in a special relationship (because it was his daughter) he owed her a duty of care and therefore this made his omissions the actus reus of the offence. There are two types of actus reus, the first being causation in fact and the second causation in law. Causation of Fact In a criminal case the prosecution has to prove that the defendants conduct caused ...

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