Assault Police

The Law 

Section 60 of the Crimes Act 1900 states:

1. Any person who assaults, stalks, harasses or intimidates a police officer while in the execution of the officer‘s duty, although no actual bodily harm is occasioned to the officer, is liable to imprisonment for 5 years.
2. Any person who assaults a police officer while in the execution of the officer‘s duty, and by the assault occasions actual bodily harm, is liable to imprisonment for 7 years.
3. Any person who maliciously by any means: (a) wounds a police officer, or (b) inflicts grievous bodily harm on a police officer, while in the execution of the officer‘s duty is liable to imprisonment for 12 years.
4. For the purposes of this section, an action is taken to be carried out in relation to a police officer while in the execution of the officer‘s duty, even though the police officer is not on duty at the time, if it is carried out: (a)  as a consequence of, or in retaliation for, actions undertaken by that police officer in the execution of the officer‘s duty, or (b) because the officer is a police officer.

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Maximum penalty

The maximum penalty for the offence of assault and other actions against police officers is 5 years imprisonment.

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What the police must prove

In order for the police to prove their case at Court, they must prove each of the following matters beyond a reasonable doubt.

1. The accused assaulted, stalked, harassed or intimidated a police officer, or assaulted occasioning actual bodily harm, or maliciously wounded or maliciously inflicted grievous bodily harm on a police officer.
2. At the time the police officer was in the execution of his/her duty.

It will be necessary for the police in every offence to prove that the accused was the person who committed the offence. 

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Possible defences to the charge of assault police

Possible defences to this offence include but are not limited to

• Duress
• Necessity
• Self Defence

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What court is likely to hear the matter? 

An offence under Section 60(2) is a Table 1 offence which means that either the DPP or an accused can elect to have the matter dealt with in the District Court.  If no election is made it will be dealt with in the Local Court.

 

Disclaimer

The information contained in this page was accurate at the time it was published. You should confirm the accuracy of this information with us or another solicitor before relying upon it. For free confirmation please contact Armstrong Legal.

It is most important that you understand that each criminal case is different. While the material in this page is intended to be relevant to the majority of cases, it may not apply to every case.