Undergraduate Module Descriptor

LAW3137: Lethal Force, the ECHR and Democracy

This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will include the following topics in the order indicated:

1. Introduction to the topic of State killing, deaths in custody and democracy through high-profile case studies and the issues they raise.

2. Introduction to key concepts of democracy and the rule of law.

3. Introduction to key issues and concepts in policing, public order, the use of force, custody, the care of the State, and disappearances

4. Introduction to the ECHR and Article 2 on the Right to Life: origins, drafting, development.

5. In-depth analysis of the ECHR’s substantive and procedural analysis of Article 2 in the above areas: the three exceptions to Article 2 (2.2(a), 2.2(b) and 2.2(c)); planning and control issues; the State’s duty to investigate and public accountability.

6. Critical contextual, social and political perspectives on these areas of State power and human rights law, including media and NGO perspectives.

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
26.5	123.5	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities	22	11 x 2 hour lectures with discussion activities
Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities	4.5	3 x 1.5 hour seminars: Individual and group work
Guided independent study	57	Individual reading and lecture preparation
Guided independent study	20	Workshop Preparation
Guided independent study	40	Assessment Preparation
Guided independent study	6.5	Formative assessment

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

ECHR case law: http://www.echr.coe.int/

How this Module is Assessed

In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.

Formative Assessment

A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.

Form of assessment	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Discursive essay-type question	One hour students will be given an essay question to answer in self-imposed exam conditions but with access to their notes.	1-8	Written/oral

Summative Assessment

A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.

Coursework	Written exams	Practical exams
0	100	0

...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.

Form of assessment	% of credit	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Examination - open note	100	Two hours (two questions from choice of five questions)	1-8	Written/ oral
	0
	0
	0
	0
	0
	0

Re-assessment

Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.

Original form of assessment	Form of re-assessment	ILOs re-assessed	Timescale for re-assessment
Examination - open note	Examination - open note (Two hours (two questions from choice of five questions))	1-8	August/September re-assessment period

Indicative Reading List

This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.

D.J. Harris, M. O'Boyle, E.P. Bates and C.M. Buckley, Harris, O'Boyle & Warbrick: Law of the European Convention on Human Rights, 3rd edn (Oxford University Press, 2014)

S. Bronnitt, M. Gani and S. Hufnagel, Shooting to Kill: Socio-Legal Perspectives on the Use of Lethal Force (Hart, 2012)

P. Squires and P. Kennison, Shooting to Kill? Policing, Firearms and Armed Response, (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010)

E. Wicks, The Right to Life and Conflicting Interests, (OUP, 2010)

F. Leverick, Killing in Self-Defence , 2006 (OUP)

S. Uniacke, Permissible Killing , 1996 (CUP)

P. A. J. Waddington, The Strong Arm of the Law (OUP, 1991) and Policing Citizens (UCL, 1999)

S. Skinner, ‘Deference, Proportionality and the Margin of Appreciation in Lethal Force Case Law under Article 2 ECHR’ (2014) 1 European Human Rights Law Review 32-38

S. Skinner, “The Right to Life, Democracy and State Responsibility in ‘Urban Guerilla’ Conflict: The Grand Chamber Judgment in Giuliani and Gaggio v Italy ”, (2011) 11.3 Human Rights Law Review 567-577

J. Chevalier-Watts, ‘Effective Investigations Under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights: Securing the Right to Life or an Onerous Burden on a State?’ (2010) 21(3) European Journal of International Law 701-721

J. Chevalier-Watts, ‘A Rock and a Hard Place: Has the European Court of Human Rights Permitted Discrepancies to Evolve in Their Scrutiny of Right to Life Cases?’ (2010) 14.2 International Journal of Human Rights 300-318

F. De Sanctis, ‘What Duties Do States Have with Regard to the Rules of Engagement and the Training of Security Forces under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights?’ (2006) 10(1) The International Journal of Human Rights 31-44

ELE – http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/