This is the Study Guide used in class with my added notes. This includes a summary of all the different sections of Non-fatal Offences including cases, judgements, evaluations and explanations.
These cover offences which result in a victim being
harmed to some degree but where they haven’t died
from their injuries.
In ascending order of seriousness:
o Assault – common law but charged under s39 Criminal Justice Act 1988
o Battery – common law but charged under s39 Criminal Justice Act
1988
o Assault occasioning actual bodily harm – s47 Offences Against the
Person Act 1861
o Malicious wounding or inflicting grievous bodily harm – s20 Offences
Against the Person Act 1861
o Wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent – s18 Offences
Against the Person Act 1861
Assault
The definition of assault comes from common
law and not statute. However, the charging
standards for assault can be found under
Section 39 of the Criminal Justice Act
1988. This states that the sentence can be a
maximum of £5000 fine and or 6 months in
prison. It is therefore a summary offence – (But
remember this Act only sets out the charging
standards it does not define the offence!)
Assault has been defined as…….
An act which causes the victim to apprehend the
infliction of immediate, unlawful force with either an
intention to cause another to fear immediate unlawful
personal violence or recklessness as to whether such
fear is caused
, ACTUS REUS = An ‘act’ which causes fear of immediate,
unlawful force
This requires words or gestures. An omission CANNOT constitute an assault.
There can be many types of behaviour that can constitute an assault:
o Raise a fist as if to hit the V
o Throwing something which just missed the V
o Pointing a loaded gun at the V
o Saying something to the V eg ‘ I’m going to kill you’
Constanza (1997)
The D mounted a campaign of hate against an ex-work colleague over a
period of 20 months. He sent over 800 threatening letters, would follow
her home, wrote offensive word on her front door, drove past her house
and stole items from her washing line. As a result she suffered clinical
depression. He was charged with ABH under s.47 OAPA 1861. The D
argued that words alone could not amount to an assault and that the
letters could not amount to an assault as there was no immediacy.
1. Written words can amount to an assault
2. The word immediate can be interpreted as imminent
R v Ireland (1997)
The D made a series of silent telephone calls over 3 months to 3 different
women. He was convicted under s.47 OAPA 1861. He appealed arguing
that silence cannot amount to an assault, therefore there could be no ABH
conviction.
Silent phone calls can amount to an assault as long as the V apprehends
unlawful physical violence as a result of the silent phone calls
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