Is Suicide a Crime?
In Victoria and most Australian states, assisting or encouraging someone to commit or attempt suicide is a criminal offence. This includes inciting someone to take their own life, aiding or abetting their actions, or participating in a suicide pact where one or both individuals survive. However, suicide itself is not a criminal offence if undertaken by a person acting alone per section 6A of the Crimes Act 1958.
Suicide Pact Meaning
A suicide pact is an agreement between two or more people with the goal of death for all involved, whether or not each is to take their own life or be assisted by another. It may be done together or separately and will likely be close in time.
The Suicide Pact Defence
A suicide pact is a partial defence to murder. If the partial defence is used successfully, the survivor of a suicide pact will be guilty of manslaughter as defined under section 6B of the Crimes Act 1958.
Manslaughter as a result of a suicide pact carries a maximum of 10 years imprisonment (s6B(1A)) compared to the base offence of manslaughter (not relating to a suicide pact), which has a maximum penalty of 25 years imprisonment under section 5. The circumstances and the facts will have a bearing on the penalty actually imposed.
A verdict of manslaughter by suicide pact may be returned if the jury is satisfied that:
- The prosecution has proven the elements of murder beyond reasonable doubt; and
- The defence has proven, on the balance of probabilities, that the accused caused the death pursuant to a suicide pact (Crimes Act 1958 s 6B(1)).
Elements of the suicide pact defence
The accused bears the onus of establishing, on the balance of probabilities, that the deceased was killed pursuant to the suicide pact. To establish this, the defence must prove:
- There was a suicide pact between the accused and the deceased (i.e. there was an agreement to seek the death of all parties to the agreement);
- The accused’s conduct that caused the death of the deceased was committed in accordance with the suicide pact; and
- At the time the accused caused the death, they had the intention of dying pursuant to the agreement (s6B(4)).
If the accused fails to establish these elements, then the accused will be found guilty of murder (Crimes Act 1958 s 6B(1); R v Sciretta [1977] VR 139).
There must be proof of the existence of an actual suicide pact, and the person who caused the other person’s death must have been a party to it. Passively allowing a person to suicide or hasten their own death does not give rise to a suicide pact (H Ltd v J (2010) 107 SASR 352).
The existence of a suicide pact does not affect the liability of a person who was a party to the homicide but not to the suicide pact (s6B(3)). That is, the partial defence is not available to someone who, knowing another person is a party to a suicide pact, kills them, but the accused was not a party to the agreement (s6B(3)).
An honest and reasonable belief in the existence of a suicide pact is not a sufficient defence (R v Iannazzone [1983] 1 VR 649).
Charges related to suicide
While the act of suicide is no longer a crime (s6A), there are suicide-related offences under section 6B(2) that may be relevant if the accused’s actions did not cause the death directly:
- Inciting any other person to commit suicide where the other person does so, or attempts to do so (6B(2)(a));
- Aiding and abetting another person to commit suicide where the other person does so, or attempts to do so (6B(2)(b)); and
- Committing either of these offences under a suicide pact (‘being a party to a suicide pact’).
The maximum custodial sentence for a suicide pact in these circumstances is five years.
Contact us for expert legal advice on the Suicide Pact Defence in Victoria
If you’ve been charged with murder and believe a suicide pact defence may apply, it’s critical to act quickly. Speak with an experienced criminal lawyer who understands the complexities of Victoria’s laws on suicide pacts and can guide you and build a strong defence tailored to your unique situation.
Contact us today for expert legal advice and a confidential consultation.
