On 07/08/2013 10:50, Mentalguy2k8 wrote:

"Nightjar" wrote in message
...

I agree that's the law, but suppose I decide to try to kill a person
just by wishing them dead? I might have the intent to kill, but mere bad
thoughts have never been known to work in the past. You reckon I could
be convicted, even though it ought to be laughed out of court?


A slight problem of proving the act in that case. However, if it could
be proven that you did and that you genuinely believed it possible to
kill in that way, you could probably be burned as a witch :-)

It's an interesting question though; if you genuinely believe you can
kill someone just by thinking it, and you tried as hard as you could to
"think them dead" in front of witnesses, what would be the legal
position? You intended to kill them, regardless of the reality of your
"skills".

My guess would be that you'd be sectioned instead of facing charges.

Under the Criminal Attempts Act 1981, Section 1

(1) If, with intent to commit an offence to which this section applies,
a person does an act which is more than merely preparatory to the
commission of the offence, he is guilty of attempting to commit the
offence.
....
(2) A person may be guilty of attempting to commit an offence to which
this section applies even though the facts are such that the commission
of the offence is impossible.
....

So, in theory, you would be guilty of attempted murder. However, I
suspect that what would happen in practice is that the CPS would have a
good laugh before deciding that prosecuting would serve no useful purpose.

Colin Bignell