Assault- paper 1 Flashcards
Actus reus of assault
Causing the victim to apprehend immediate unlawful force
Three things to prove for an assault
-D has done something threatening
-V apprehended force as a result (felt fear)
-The force apprehended was immediate
Things D can do to be threatening
-Gestures
-Silence (silent phone call)
-Spoken words
-Written words
Case for gestures as an assault
Read v Coker
-D and his gang surrounded V, rolling up their sleeves and making V feel like they were going to attack him.
Case for silence and spoken words as an assault
R v Ireland
-D made a large number of unwanted telephone calls to three women; when they answered the telephone there was nothing but silence and heavy breathing.
Case for written words as an assault
R v Constanza
- D sent over 800 threatening letters to an ex-work colleague over 20 month period.
What negates an assault
If D says something that indicates that there will be no violence, them these words can negate the assault.
Case for words negating an assault
Tuberville v Savage
-D places his hand on his sword and said “if it were not Assize time (judges in town) I would run you through the middle”
Meaning of apprehending force
To be worried that it’s about to happen (feeling fear)
Assault if force isn’t possible
As long as the victim believes that force is possible (feels fear) there is still an assault
Case for assault when force isn’t possible
DPP v Logdon
-D pointed a fake gun at a woman, she was terrified
Case for the force apprehended being immediate
Smith v CCOW
-D peered through the window of a young woman’s home late at night. The woman saw him and screamed but he did not move and kept staring
