ABH

ABH

1. Actus Reus

   • Assault or Battery
     • Assault- Causing V to apprehend immediate unlawful force
     • Battery- Applying unlawful force on/to another person
   • Must cause the injury
     • Factual Causation, but for - R v Pagett
     • Legal Causation, operative and subsantial cause- R v Smith
   • Actual Bodily harm
     • R v Chan Fook
       • D subjected V to questioning and locked him in a room. V feared D's return and injured himself when he fell trying to escape
       • Harm cannot be so trivial as to be wholly insignificant
       • Psychiatric harm can be ABH
     • R v Smith
       • D cut off his girlfriends pony tail off
       • Cutting off a person's hair without his/her consent can amount to ABH
     • T v DPP
       • V was chased by D. V fell and was kicked in the head and v briefly blacked out
       • Even a very short loss of consciousness can amount to ABH

2. Mens Rea

   • The same as the mens rea for assault or battery
     • Assault- Intention or recklessness to cause V to apprehend immediate unlawful force
     • Battery- Intention or recklessness to apply unlawful force
   • No additional mens rea is needed for ABH itself
     • R v Savage
       • D aimed to throw the contents of glass over v but accidentally allowed the glass to slip causing injury to v
       • D does not need to intend/ be reckless as to causing injury to v