The Role and Influence of Contextual Factors in Determining Causation; An Attitude towards Common Law

Contextual factors comprise physical, mental or belief-based characteristics that are apparent in a person inherently, hereditarily or temporarily, such as old age, disability, illness, etc.; these factors, along with external factors, might play a role or accelerate in commission of felony. These factors have not been included under the rules relating the multiplicity of causes, which the Islamic Penal Code (2012) illustrates. This ambiguity has led the courts to allocate a part of the result to the victim in accumulation of contextual factors and negligence/recklessness of the perpetrator according to the expertise comments of medical commissions and medical boards. In common law, according to the Thin Skull Rule, which provides the offender must take his victim as he find him, no impact shall be considered for the contextual factors in the chain of causation. Therefore, the perpetrator shall be held responsible for his acts. Even though in intentional murder/battery the contextual factors have no effect, the challenge arises in manslaughter or unintentional battery. According to Paragraph (c) of the Article 290, Islamic Penal Code and thereof Note 2, if the perpetrator, knowing and paying attention to the status of the victim, commits an action that typically leads to death or bodily harm, the felony is intentional. Otherwise, if the conduct occurs unaware, negligently or recklessly and a contextual factor intensifies or accelerates the result, the perpetrator is fully responsible. In case of overlap of contextual factors and external causes, if causal connection between the behavior and the result is established, the result will be fully assigned to the perpetrator if he acts negligently/recklessly. Apportioning a share of the result to contextual factors holds no legal basis. Clearly, if the harmful result has been caused by some contextual or usual and predictable factors, the perpetrator, even being faultful, will not be held responsible due to the lack of causation.