does my brother have to press charges to get compensation?

[dolly666]

my brother was assaulted after a night out.He did not provoke the lad who assaulted him.He had his head stamped on and his ankle jumped up and down on until it broke.Th e charge would be gbh but my brother has decided not to press charges as he is scared of the repercussions if he does.He has been told by others that the cps may take the case forward without him anyway but i dont know if this is possible? can he claim compensation if the cps take it forward? he will have to have 8 to 10 weeks off work and will only get paid statutory sick pay.He was also in hospital for 2 days and has had an op on the broken ankle

[Buenchico]

The short answer to your question is "Almost certainly, yes".

The CPS would normally continue with a GBH charge if there was a realistic chance of a conviction. Your brother could be summoned to attend court as a witness. (If he refused to attend, or to give evidence, he'd risk being sent to prison).

Courts can make compensation orders but they might be less inclined to do so if the victim had not cooperated with the police and/or CPS. Additionally, any compensation would only be paid to your brother at the rate which it was paid in by the offender. If the offender was sent to prison he might not be in a position to pay anything at all until he's released and then (if he's on the dole) the court might permit him to pay just a very small amount each week.

A more realistic way to get compensation is through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority. The payment then comes from Government funds (rather than having to wait for the offender to pay). However CICA's policy is to refuse to pay compensation where the victim has failed to cooperate with the police. (There has been a recent post, here on AB, from someone who has had their claim rejected for exactly that reason).

Chris

[KikiTiger]

The police dont need him to make a case, so yes they can do that, and tbh why wouldnt they? Do you or your brother want a thug who randomly jumps up and down on a persons head and ankle roaming the streets unpunished?He is having to take time off work and will only get SSP all because of this maniac. This idiot will have strict condtions not to contact your brother directly or indirectly, and if he did it would be witness intimidation, which is very serious. So he would be foolish not to go to court and get this fool locked up.