The Sentencing Council published revised draft guidelines last week for seven assault offences, including common assault, attempted murder and assaulting an emergency worker. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the draft guidelines class ‘intention to cause fear of serious harm, including disease transmission’ as a new high-culpability factor, while ‘spitting or coughing’ is an aggravating factor.
Sentencing
Council spokesperson, Mr Justice Julian Goose, said: ‘Assault offences can be
very personal crimes. It is important that sentences should be appropriate and
proportionate, and reflect the harm caused to victims.
‘When in
force, they will provide protection in the years ahead for the public and the
people who serve them by providing public services or as emergency workers.’
The Assaults
on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 introduced a higher statutory maximum
sentence of 12 months for offences of common assault against people specified
as emergency workers.
The guidance
for attempted murder has been revised to reflect changes to legislation where
weapons are taken to the scene. The main thrust of the revisions is change to
the way the seriousness of assault offences is assessed―the culpability and
harm factors are more specific, and there is a greater number of offence
categories and sentence starting points and ranges.
Judges,
magistrates, lawyers and members of the public are invited to respond to the
consultation by 15 September 2020. The guidelines are expected to come into
force next year.
The
consultation, ‘Assault offences consultation’, is available at: www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/consultations/assault-offences-consultation.
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