R v Hancock and Shankland

Facts

Two striking miners pushed a block of concrete from a bridge onto a convoy of cars. It struck a taxi windscreen and killed the driver. They said they meant to drop it in an empty lane, to frighten a miner or to block the road, not to kill or cause serious harm.

Issue

Was a direction about probability a sufficient direction on intention?

Held

Murder was reduced to manslaughter. The House of Lords dismissed the Crown's appeal. A jury must be told that the more probable the consequence, the more likely it was foreseen, and that foresight is evidence of intention, not intention itself.

Principle

Foresight of probability is evidence from which intention may be inferred. It is not the test of intention.

Why it matters

It explains Moloney for a jury.

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