Ht2 Non Fatal Offences Cases Flashcards
R v Constanza
The defendant 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, stole items from her washing line. As a result she suffered clinical depression. He was charged with ABH under s.47 OAPA 1861.
R v Ireland
The defendant made a series of silent telephone calls over three months to three different women. He was convicted under s.47 Offences Against the Person Act 1861.
R v Lamb
two boys were playing with a revolver, there were two bullets in the chamber but none were lined up with the barrel. Both boys believe it wouldn’t fire, but it did when one boy pointed it at the other.
Held: no assault as V did not fear immediate force. If D thought the gun was loaded correctly then it might have been assault
Smith v Chief superintendent of working police
The defendant peered through the window of a young woman’s home late at night. He had entered the garden and went up to the window and peered through a gap in the curtain. The woman saw him and screamed but he did not move but kept staring she phoned the police. He was charged with an offence under the Vagrancy Act 1864 which required proof of an assault. He was convicted and appealed contending that the prosecution had failed to establish the victim had apprehended immediate unlawful personal violence.
R v Thomas
the defendant touched the bottom of a woman’s skirt. He was found guilty of battery.
R v Martin
Tony Martin lived alone on an isolated farm called Bleak House. The farm and surrounding buildings were dilapidated and appeared to be derelict. Consequently the farm was subject to numerous break-ins. On the night of Aug 20th 1999 Freddie Barras (aged 16) and Brendan Fearon (aged 30) broke into the farm. Tony Martin armed with a 12 bore shot gun went downstairs and fired indiscriminately at where he thought the disturbance came from. He shot both the intruders killing Barras by a gunshot wound to the back. At his trial his plea of self defence was rejected by the jury and he was convicted of murder.
R v Chan Fook
A French student was lodging at the house of Mrs Fox who was engaged to the appellant. Mrs Fox’s engagement ring went missing and the she accused the student of stealing it. The appellant interrogated the student during which he struck him several times. He then locked him in an upstairs room and threatened him with further violence if the ring was not returned. The student attempted to escape by roping the curtains and sheets together and tying them around the curtain pole. The curtain pole broke and the student fell to the ground and suffered a fractured wrist and a dislocated hip. The appellant was charged with the offence of an assault occasioning actual bodily harm under S.47 of the oapa
DDP v Smith
A policeman tried to stop the defendant from driving off with stolen goods by jumping on to the bonnet of the car. The defendant drove off at speed and zigzagged in order to get the police office off the car. The defendant argued he did not intend to harm the policeman. The policeman was knocked onto the path of an oncoming car and killed. The defendant was convicted of murder.
R v wood
The appellant was an alcoholic who had been sleeping rough. He had befriended a group of alcoholics known as the breakfast club and had drunk heavily with them two days prior to the attack. After the second day of heavy drinking he was invited to spend the night at the deceased’s house. During the night he awoke to find the deceased attempting to perform oral sex on him. He attacked him with a meat cleaver and lump hammer killing him. The trial judge, in his direction to the jury, stated: The appeal was allowed and the appellant’s conviction for murder was quashed.
