Common Assault Battery

Question 1

Give an Introduction for Common Assault Battery.

Answer 1

Common Assault can be committed in 2 ways:
1) Assault
2) Battery
- Assault + Battery are both common law offences.
- Summary offence; only heard in Magistrates’ court
- S.39 Criminal Justice Act 1988: sets out max punishment for common assault: 6 months imprisonment, fine of £5,000 or both. (Doesn’t define offences, simply states it’s a summary offence + it’s max sentence)
- Definition of Common Assault Battery; “The application of unlawful force to another person intending either to apply unlawful physical force to another or recklessness as to whether unlawful force is applied.”
- Examples of Battery: poking a person in the arm, spitting on a person, hitting someone with a stone

Question 2

State what is needed in order to have AR for Common Assault Battery.

Answer 2

• Force
• Act or Omission
• Unlawful

Question 3

Explain the First element for the AR of Common Assault Battery: ‘Force’

Answer 3

• Collins v Wilcock: force can include the slightest touching
• Wood v DPP: touching a person to get his attention is acceptable, provided that no greater degree of physical contact was used than was necessary
• R v Thomas: touching/using force against a person’s clothes while they are wearing them is the equivalent to touching the person (Only mention if there’s touching of clothing)

Question 4

Explain the Second element for the AR of Common Assault Battery: ‘Act or Omission’

Answer 4

1) Direct Act:
- When D directly applies unlawful force to V + has intended to do specific act
2) Continuing Act:
- Fagan v MPC: battery may be committed through a continuing act
3) Indirect Act:
- DPP v K: D can cause force to be applied, even though he doesn’t personally touch V
4) Omissions:
- Stephen J: “A sees B drowning and is able to save him by holding out his hand. A abstains from doing so in order that B may be drowned. A has committed no offence”
- R v Miller: Duty because D has set in motion a chain of events (only omission available for a battery)

Question 5

Explain the Third element for the AR of Common Assault Battery: ‘Unlawful’

Answer 5

• If V gives consent, then force may be lawful
• Force may be lawful where it’s used in: self-defence, defence of another or in prevention of crime (if force used is reasonable in the situation as D believed it to be)
• If force is lawful, D not guilty.

Question 6

Explain the Fourth element of the AR for Common Assault Battery: ‘Causation’.

Answer 6

Factual:
- R v Pagett: ‘But for’ test
Legal:
D’s conduct must be more than a minimal cause, but need not be a substantial cause of the end consequence
- R v Kimsey: must be more than a slight or trifling link
- R v Blaue: Thin-skull rule
- Intervening Acts: V’s own act, Act of a Third party, a natural but unpredictable event (must be sufficiently independent + sufficiently serious; breaking chain of causation)

Question 7

Explain the MR for Common Assault Battery.

Answer 7

Basic intent offence, options either direct intention or recklessness:
- R v Mohan: Intention: intent to apply unlawful physical force to another
- R v Cunningham: Recklessness: recklessness as to whether unlawful force is applied
- R v Latimer: Transferred malice can be used (if offence is from person to person)
- R v Pembilton: Transferred malice can’t be used when offence isn’t of the same kind (person to property)