Offences Against The Person

COMMON ASSAULT

"Common Assault is an act by which a person intentionally or recklessly causes another to apprehend immediate and unlawful personal violence." - R V Ireland (1997)
"Silence can be an assault." - R V Ireland (1997)
"A person may apprehend violence without being fearful but they cant be fearful without apprehension of violence."
Lawful assault can happen, e.g. a police officer threatening to handcuff a suspect or self defence.

1 of 5

Battery is an act by which a person intentionally or recklessly inflicts unlawful personal violence on another.
"Any touching of another person."- Lord Justice Goff in Collins V Willcock (1984)
"Consent is a defence to battery."- Lord Justice Goff in Collins V Willcock (1984)
"Most of physical contacts of ordinary life are not actionable because they are impliedly consented." - Lord Justice Goff in Collins V Willcock (1984)
Battery can be direct (like in Collins V Wilcock) or indirect (like in Haystead), "Battery does not require the direct infliction of violence."

2 of 5

"Any hurt or injury calculated to interfere with the health or comfort of the victim provided it is not merely transient or trifiling. It dosent have to be permanent." - R V Miller (1954)
It is the least serious non-fatal offence.
Can mean assault or battery.
Triable either way (max 5 year sentance).
R V Chanfook established that injury "should not be so trivial as to be wholly insignificant." and it held that "ABH covers psychiatric harm if expert evidence is presented to the jury."
Needs intention or recklessness, like assault and battery.

3 of 5

"GBH means really serious harm." - DPP V Smith (1961)
"Serious harm." - R V Saunders (1985)
"A wound is a break in the continuity of skin." - JCC V Einsenhower (1985)
"A collection of minor injuries can amount to GBH." - Brown and Stratton (1998)
"Injuries caused to a child or elderly aremore serious that to a healthy adult." - R V Bollam (2004)
"Biological GBH." - R V Dica (2004)
"Must be done malicously so requires intent or subjective recklessness, prosecution does not have to prove D foresaw the wound or GBH- but they foresaw some harm and did it anyway." - R V Mowatt (1976)
"Whoever shall unlawfully and malicously wound or inflict any greivous bodily harm upon any other person, either with or without a weapon, shall be liable to 5 years inprisonment" - R V Mowatt (1976)
Either way offence, 5 years inprisonment like ABH.

4 of 5

Whoever shall unlawfully and maliciously wound or cause GBH with intent... to do some GBH to any person or with intent to resist or prevent the lawful apprehension or detainment of any person shall be liable to imprisonment "for life" so, recklessness is not sufficient intent.
Includes resisting detainment or attacking law enforcement- these are considered more serious.
Most serious non-fatal offence.
Needs specific intent, often includes the use of a weapon.

5 of 5