Assault and Battery Notes

Assault and Battery

Trespass to the Person

Assault: Common Law and Statute
  • Assaults are recognized under both common law and statutory law.
  • An assault is defined as any intentional or reckless act that causes a person to apprehend immediate and unlawful personal violence. Fagan v Metropolitan Police Commissioner [1969] 1 QB 439 serves as a key case.
Assault at Statute
  • Sections 34-43 of the Offences Against the Person Act (OAPA) outline various categories of assaults.
    • These range from assault of a clergyman in the performance of his duty (S. 34) and assault of a magistrate (S. 35).
    • To assault in the commission of a felony or on a constable (S. 36) and aggravated assaults on women and children (s. 40).
Actus Reus of Assault
  • The actus reus (guilty act) of assault is any act that causes the victim to apprehend an immediate infliction of violence.
    • Examples include raising a fist or pointing a gun.
Apprehension of Violence
  • Physical contact between the defendant and the victim is not required.
  • The focus is on the victim's perception of what was about to happen.
    • Even if the defendant's threat was intended as a joke, an assault is committed if the victim is genuinely frightened.
  • Case Example: Logdon v DPP [1976] Crim LR 121
    • The defendant pointed a replica gun at the victim as a joke; The victim was terrified until she realized it was a replica.
    • The court held that the victim apprehended immediate physical violence, and the defendant was at least reckless as to whether this would occur.
Immediacy
  • The victim must perceive the threat as one that the defendant can carry out