is it possible to recieve a caution for gbh section 18?

[Becki123]

My brother was glassed by a woman (she hit him 3 times on the head and the glass smashed on the 2nd blow) she fled the scence and was later arrested and held in a cell overnight. The next day she was charged with gbh section 18 and bailed. It was her 1st offence and admitted it straight away. Will she be able to recieve a caution or is a custodial or suspended sentence more likely? She has a young child if that makes any difference. Any help is great. Thanks.

[Buenchico]

Cautions are only used as an alternative to prosecution (for relatively minor offences), by the police. If a prosecution takes place, the option of issuing a caution is not open to a court.

'Section 18' is an EXTREMELY serious charge. The offence is akin to 'attempted murder' and carries the same maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

For a 'Section 18' offence involving the use of a weapon which came to hand at the scene (i.e. the glass) judges MUST (unless there are VERY exceptional circumstances) impose a sentence of between 4 and 6 years custody upon a first-time offender convicted after a trial. However an early guilty plea can see the sentence cut by one third. So, taking the lowest level normally available to judges, that means a sentence of 2 years 8 months. Since only half of the nominal sentence is normally spent in prison, that would mean that the woman would be 'inside' for 16 months.

A sentence can't be suspended if it's longer than 2 years. So, for a suspended sentence to be passed, the judge would have to firstly find such exceptional circumstances as to reduce the sentence to below that point and then also find exceptional circumstances to justify him suspending the sentence. Probably fewer than 1 in every 1000 'Section 18' cases (involving the use of a weapon) could possibly even be considered for a suspended sentence. Custody would seem to be a near certainty.

Chris

[ummmm]

Don't forget the boys that got off with kidnap and torture with a suspended sentence.

Although Chris states the guidelines what happens on the day is anyones guess.

I know someone who was stabbed 48 times. The attacker got 5 years....

[Becki123]

Thanks very much Chris. It's just that the police have told my brother that she will probably recieve a caution? I thought that was a very leinient punishment for what she did. After looking into it I also wonder whether it is actually a section 18 or a section 20 that she has been charged with. My brother insists it is a section 18 but as I said, with them saying she would probably recieve a caution I find it strange.

[eyethenkyew]

1: Cautioning for such a serious offence would not be contemplated by CPS.

2: A suspect already charged with any offence, as indicated in your outline above, could not in retrospect be cautioned instead. S/he would have to answer the charge(s) in a court of law unless proceedings were discontinued by the CPS before it got that far.

3: Such a serious offence as S.18 GBH would attract a custodial sentence on indictment / conviction.

[jaydah]

How did your brother get her so mad ?

[Becki123]

It's a long story as you might expect, she is an ex of his. They basically had an argument and when she didn't like what he said, decided to attack him with a glass of wine!

[Buenchico]

Thanks for replying.

The appropriate basic charge ('Common Assault', 'ABH' or 'GBH') is determined by the extent of your brother's injuries. If, despite the glass breaking, he only suffered superficial cuts, 'Common Assault' might be the appropriate charge. (See paragraph 13 in the link below). If he required stitches (but the cuts were not otherwise serious') 'ABH' could be appropriate. (See paragraph 46). If he required a blood transfusion, 'GBH' would probably apply. (See paragraph 55).

Only 'GBH' can have 'with intent' (making it a 'Section 18' offence) added to the charge. (i.e. there's no such offence as 'ABH with intent'). If your brother's injuries were sufficient to merit a 'GBH' charge, see paragraph 65 for an indication of the type of factors which might add 'with intent'.

Here's the link:
http://www.cps.gov.uk...on/#Unlawful_wounding

Chris

[Becki123]

Thanks again Chris, really helpful advice. I suppose I will find out in time anyway what she is charged with and what sentence she gets. Has anyone any idea of a timescale of when she will be either cautioned or appear in court or does it differ from case to case? The attack took place two nights ago.

[Buenchico]

Thanks again for replying.

Common assault is a 'summary' offence which means that it can only be dealt with in a Magistrates Court. Such offences can sometimes go through the system in a few weeks but it's more likely to take a couple of months or so. (Court waiting times vary greatly across the country).

At the other end of the scale, GBH with intent ('Section 18') is 'indictable only', which means that magistrates have no alternative other than to pass the case to the Crown Court. If that occurs the offender will have several 'procedural' court appearances before anything actually happens. If she pleaded 'not guilty' it would probably be well over a year before she was sentenced but, if she's pleading guilty, it will might take 6 to 9 months.

The other possible charges (i.e. 'ABH' and 'GBH') are 'either way' offences. That means that the magistrates can deal with the matter as long as they're satisfied that their sentencing powers are sufficient (which normally limits the sentence to 6 months imprisonment) or pass the matter to the Crown Court if they think that a longer sentence might be required. So the length of time before sentencing could be similar to that stated above for common assault or (if the case is passed to the Crown Court) there could be lengthy delays similar to those associated with a 'Section 18' charge.

Chris

[jaydah]

2m takes takes to xmas....with holidays & recess, courts back at work in March

[Becki123]

Thank you everyone.

[Dee Sa]

can he claim for criminal damage ?

[Buenchico]

In response to Dee Sa's post:
http://www.cica.gov.uk/Can-I-Apply/

Chris