The Mental Element in Murder: Reflections on the Pistorius Case

The trial of Oscar Pistorius for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp aroused worldwide media interest. From the beginning Pistorius claimed that he had no intent to kill Reeva because when he fired the fatal shots her he thought he was firing at an intruder. And so whether he had the necessary intent to kill became a crucial issue in his trial. In this video Professor Christopher Forsyth describes the South African law on intent to kill and explains how it differs from the relevant English law. In