Odger's English Common Law

HOMICIDE OR CAUSING DEATH. 271
step, and placed on the deceased or his medical man the
necessity of deciding what step must be taken. If the prisoner
by his criminal conduct has imposed upon his victim the
serious responsibility of deciding what may be a question of
life or death, e.g. , whether he will submit to an operation or not,
he is equally liable, whichever way the question is decided.
Thus A. was deemed to have caused B.'s death in each of the following
cases :
—
A. violently assaulted B., who died, though he might have recovered
if he had followed the advice of his doctor and foregone his daily glass of
beer. 1
A. wounded B. so severely that it was necessary for B. to have the
assistance of a medical man. B. did not call in a medical man and died in
consequence. 2
A. wounded B. so severely that it was necessary for B. to have the
assistance of a medical man. B. did call in a qualified medical man, who
was guilty of some negligent but unintentional blunder which caused B.'s
death. 3
—
A. wounded B. severely. Gangrene or blood poisoning resulted from
neglect or unskilful treatment, and B. died in consequence. 4
A. wounded B. so severely that it was necessary for B. to have the
assistance of a medical man. The medical man advised an operation. B..
refused to undergo the operation and died in consequence. 6
On the other hand :
A. wounded B. so severely that it was necessary for B. to have the-
assistance of a medical man. B., against such medical man's advice,
insists upon an operation. A. will not be liable, unless the prosecution
can prove that B.'s death was due to the prisoner's act and not to the
operation. 6
A. wounded B. so severely that it was necessary for him to call in a
medical man. If B., instead of taking the advice of a qualified medical
man, calls in«some unqualified quack, who prescribes wrong treatment or
operates unnecessarily or improperly and so causes the death of B., A. will
not be liable. It would be otherwise, if the quack did nothing which
contributed to cause the death. 6
Where death results from a joint act, all the actors are
principals in the first degree. For if two men agree together
to jointly commit or attempt to commit any crime, each is.
liable for all that the other does in furtherance of their
i See R. v. Wall (1802), 28 St. Tr. 51.
2 Rew's Case (1662), Kelyng, 26.
a R. v. Pym (1846), 1 Cox, 339.
4 See R. v. Flynn (1868), 16 W. E. 319 (Ir.).
5 R. v. Holland (18il), 2 M. & Rob. 351.
« 1 Hale, 428 ; and see R. v. Davis (1883), 15 Cox, 174.