R v Dudley and Stephens
R v Dudley and Stephens is a leading English criminal case which established a precedent throughout the common law world that necessity is not a defence to a charge of murder. The case concerned survival cannibalism at sea following a shipwreck and the question of whether killing someone is acceptable if one's own survival is at stake.
In 1884, the four-man crew of the wrecked yacht Mignonette were cast adrift in a small lifeboat without provisions. After nearly three weeks at sea, and with little hope of rescue, two of the crew, Tom Dudley and Edwin Stephens, decided that in order to save their own lives they would need to kill and eat the ship's 17-year-old cabin boy Richard Parker, who by that time had fallen seriously ill after drinking seawater. The defendants were found guilty and were sentenced to the statutory death penalty, though with a recommendation of mercy. They were released soon after the conviction.
The case marked the culmination of a long history of attempts by the law, in the face of a bank of public opinion sympathetic to famished castaways, to outlaw the custom of cannibalism and it became a legal cause célèbre in late 19th-century Britain, particularly among mariners.
Facts
The yacht Mignonette was a 19.43 net t., cruiser built in 1867. It was an inshore boat, not made for long voyages. Australian lawyer Jack Want purchased it in 1883 for leisure. The vessel could at decent cost be transported to Australia by sailing, but its size and the 15,000-mile voyage daunted attempts that year to find a suitable crew. It left Southampton on 19 May 1884 bound for Sydney with a crew of:- Tom Dudley, the captain;
- Edwin Stephens ;
- Edmund Brooks ; and
- Richard Parker the cabin boy. Parker was 17 years old and an inexperienced seaman.
Dudley instantly realised that the yacht was doomed and ordered the single lifeboat to be lowered. The lifeboat was of flimsy construction, with boards only thick and was holed in the haste to get it away. Mignonette sank within five minutes of being struck and the crew abandoned ship for the lifeboat, managing only to salvage vital navigational instruments along with two tins of turnips and no fresh water. Theories abound of the structural inadequacies of Mignonette that could not withstand the onslaught of a gale.
Dudley managed to improvise a sea anchor to keep the lifeboat headed into the waves and maintain her stability. Over the first night, the crew had to fight off a shark with their oars. They were around from the nearest land, Saint Helena or Tristan da Cunha. Dudley kept the first tin of turnips until 7 July when its five pieces were shared among the men to last for two days. On or around 9 July, Brooks spotted a turtle, which Stephens dragged on board. This yielded about three pounds of meat each plus the bones, which, along with the second tin of turnips, lasted until 15 or 17 July. They were unable to drink its blood after it became contaminated with seawater. The crew failed to catch any rainwater and by 13 July, with no other viable source of liquid, they began to drink their own urine. It was probably on 20 July that Parker became ill through drinking seawater. Stephens also became unwell, possibly from the same cause.
Drawing lots to choose a victim who would die to feed the others was possibly first discussed on 16 or 17 July, and debate seems to have intensified on 21 July but without a resolution. On 23 or 24 July, with Parker probably in a coma, Dudley told the others that it was better that one of them die so that the others would survive and that they should draw lots. Brooks refused. That night, Dudley again raised the matter with Stephens pointing out that Parker was probably dying and that he and Stephens had wives and families. They agreed to leave the matter up until the morning.
The following day, with no prospect of a rescue in sight, Dudley and Stephens silently signalled to each other that Parker would be killed. Killing Parker before his natural death would mean blood to drink. Brooks, who had not been party to the earlier discussion, claimed to have signalled neither assent nor protest; Dudley always insisted that Brooks had assented. Dudley said a prayer and, with Stephens standing by to hold the youth's legs if he struggled, pushed his penknife into Parker's jugular vein, killing him.
In some of the varying and confused later accounts of the killing, Parker murmured, "What me?" as he was slain. The three fed on Parker's body, with Dudley and Brooks consuming the most and Stephens very little. The crew also finally managed to catch some rainwater. Dudley later described the scene, "I can assure you I shall never forget the sight of my two unfortunate companions over that ghastly meal. We all was like mad wolfs who should get the most, and for men—fathers of children—to commit such a deed, we could not have our right reason." The crew sighted a sail on 29 July.
Rescue and arraignment
Dudley, Stephens and Brooks were picked up by the German sailing barque Montezuma, which returned the men to Falmouth, Cornwall, England, on 6 September en route to its destination in Hamburg. On arrival in Falmouth, the survivors attended the customs house and Dudley and Stephens entered statutory statements under the Merchant Shipping Acts, required in the event of a shipping loss. All three were candid, with Dudley and Stephens believing that their acts were justified by necessity – the need to ensure their own survival by practising cannibalism at sea as a last resort before starvation.The duty police sergeant of the Falmouth Harbour Police, James Laverty, was near the depositions and overheard the statement given to the customs officer. He later questioned Dudley about the means by which he had killed Parker, taking custody of the knife and promising to return it. The depositions were telegraphed to the Board of Trade and to the Registrar General of Shipping in Basinghall Street in London. While the survivors were making arrangements to rejoin their families, Basinghall Street advised the men be detained. The Board of Trade gave conflicting advice to take no action but informed the Home Office, which was closed for the weekend. Laverty sought warrants for the men's arrest for murder on the high seas, which he obtained later that day from the mayor, Henry Liddicoat.
Dudley, Stephens and Brooks were held in the police station until their appearance before magistrates on 8 September. Dudley appears to have been confident that the magistrates would dismiss the charges. Liddicoat visited the men to apologise for the inconvenience but all magistrates had recently been instructed to seek advice from the Treasury Solicitor in all murder cases and the clerk probably prompted Laverty to ask for a remand in custody and adjournment while advice was sought. Local solicitor Harry Tilly appeared for the men and requested bail but after the magistrates, including Liddicoat, had consulted, they were returned to the police cells until Friday.
By Wednesday, the file had been passed to Home Secretary Sir William Harcourt. That day Harcourt consulted with Attorney General Sir Henry James and Solicitor General Sir Farrer Herschell. Harcourt took the decision to prosecute, the system having not clarified the law given the events of James Archer.
By the time of bench appearance on Friday, public opinion in Falmouth had swung behind the defendants, especially after Parker's brother Daniel, also a seaman, appeared in court and shook hands with the three. The case was re-adjourned until 18 September, granting bail, the Home Office having hinted that this would be appropriate. The three men returned to their homes while the case began to appear across the British and international press. It soon became clear that consensus lay on the side of the defence. Harcourt was disgusted by the public's sentiment and became even more intent on a conviction.
William Otto Adolph Julius Danckwerts, a barrister of only six years' call but a specialist in wreck inquiries, was briefed for the prosecution but soon realised that public sentiment and the lack of evidence posed formidable difficulties. The only witnesses were the three defendants themselves and their right to silence would impede any formal proceedings. A confession was only admissible against the person making it, not his co-defendants and the contents of the depositions were probably inadequate to convict.
When the case was heard by the magistrates at the courthouse in Falmouth on 18 September, Danckwerts told the court that he intended to offer no evidence against Brooks and requested that he be discharged so that he could be called as a witness for the prosecution. There is no evidence that Brooks had been canvassed about this and the magistrates agreed. Danckwerts opened the prosecution case and called as witnesses those who had heard the survivors' stories and Brooks. The magistrates committed Dudley and Stephens to trial during the winter days of assizes in Exeter but extended their bail.
Legal background and theory
, ethics and legality of the taking of another's life to increase one's chance of survival have been discussed in thought experiments from the Plank of Carneades to The Case of the Speluncean Explorers. In a few legal cases across British jurisdictions, the question had arisen.Saint Christopher case
In the early 17th century, seven Englishmen in the Caribbean embarked on an overnight voyage from Saint Christopher Island but were blown out to sea and lost for 17 days. During this time, starving, they cast lots to see who would sacrifice his own life for the others. The lot fell to the man who had suggested the scheme, and he consented to his subsequent killing. His body sustained the rest until they made their way to Saint Martin. They were returned to Saint Christopher, where they were put on trial for homicide. The judge pardoned them, their crime being "washed away" by "inevitable necessity".This case was cited in the defence. Its first detailed summary in a learned British publication was in a post-1884 medical work, not in any law reports.