Where criminal offences such as attempt and conspiracy require a defendant (D) to intend future conduct, D’s intention will always be conditional. D’s intention may be explicitly conditional (eg, D intends to rob the shop, but only if unable to pay her rent), or implicitly conditional (eg, D...

In chapter four, ‘The current state of murder in English law: a critique, wrong turns and all’, Dr J.J. Child and Professor G.R. Sullivan explore the offence of murder in the context of its uniquely draconian mandatory sentence. The chapter highlights the normative restraints that such a...