Section 4

[sweetymufc]

i am currently on community service for racially aggrivated common assualt. last saturday i got arrested for section4 words/behaviour - fear unlawful violence. i am due to attend a magistrates court in a weeks time after being locked up for 4 hours. what do you think the outcome will; be ???

[Ethel]

Maximum 2 years imprisonment - possibly 6 months in prison for you..

[tigwig]

Well I wouldn't say Ethel is full of **** at all. Her answers are always spot on and lots of people on here will agree. Ethel always comes across as being very knowledgable and experienced in a variety of subjects and she certainly doesn't need to be bad mouthed by you.
Please ignore this person's rudeness Ethel!

[NORMANTHEDOG]

by looking at your past posts on here RONNI2,IT SEEMS YOU ARE THE ONE WHO KNOWS COMPLETELY SWEET FA about it,i seem to remember you might be getting locked up soon,thank god for that,another scumbag put away

[jake-the-peg]

You don't need to be a magistrate you just need to be able to read.

The magistrates guidelines ( the "bench book") are on line in several places such as here:

http://www.jsboard.co.uk/downloads/acbb/comple te_06v2.pdf

[trueblue61]

you have to be aware that any racially motivated bad behaviour is taken very seriously.why we all cant live 2gether peacefuly and just get on with life ,difficult as it is at the best of times,i dont know, but if i were you i would expect a prison term, very likely you will be made an example of and rightly so,if you cant do the time,dont do the crime..

[New Judge]

Let me try to restore some calm to this debate before it becomes too acrimonious.

Section 4 Public Order Offence (Conduct Causing Fear of Violence) is an �Either Way� offence which means it can be dealt with either at the magistrates� court or at the Crown Court. The first thing that will happen at the magistrates� court is that the process to arrive at this decision will be explained to you and you will be asked to enter your plea.

If you plead not guilty or withhold your plea firstly the magistrates will decide whether to accept jurisdiction. Generally for S4 offences magistrates will accept jurisdiction unless there are serious aggravating factors. However, if they do, you have the opportunity to opt for trial at the Crown Court (but you have no right to be dealt with by the magistrates if they decline jurisdiction).

If you plead guilty the facts will be presented to the court and you will be sentenced.

As jake has said, the magistrates sentencing guidelines are in the public domain. The starting point (for a first time offender pleading not guilty) is indeed a custodial sentence. You may receive credit if you plead guilty, but the fact that you are currently under supervision for a similar offence will seriously aggravate this latest one. If there are no other aggravating features and you plead guilty you may be able to persuade the bench to impose a Community Penalty. However, the fact that you are already serving one may lead the magistrates to the conclusion that you are unresponsive to such measures. I believe there is a high probability that custody will result and you need a solicitor in your corner.

As far the debate sparked by ronni21 goes, his post speaks for itself and I sometimes wonder why some people bother to use AB in this manner. I (as the others have done) have tried to provide a more reasoned answer based upon the current sentencing guidelines.