Gbh With Intent

[amylou1]

my partner went out last sunday to watch the football with 3 of his friends, he said he was in the put and there was a big lad about 6ft tall. (much taller than my bf) he started picking at my partner - my partner said he was trying to put his elbow in in face and generally just trying to wind him up..he ignored him for a while and then my partners mate ended up knocking him out unconcious on the floor. then stupidly my partner went over to him and punched him (whilst unconscious ) 5 times in the head. he then left the man an ran away, later that night he got arrested for GBH with intent- as the man had a fractured eye cheek bone and cracked jaw plus stitches to his eye and chin. he has to go back to the police station soon to anser his bail and then i think it will goto court. im just wondering if he will get sent to jail for this? Please can anyone help?

[New Judge]

If the charge remains at GBH with intent then yes. GBH with intent is the most serious of the "Offences against the person" (other than those that result in death) and the sentencing range for offences at the very lowest end of the seriousness range is between three and five years custody. CPS guidelines are here:

http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/s_to_u/sentencing_manual/wounding_or_inflicting_grievous_bodily_harm_with_intent/

[amylou1]

yes its GBH with intent, how long do you think he will get? will it goto trail? thanks

[New Judge]

As I said, the sentencing range for the least serious of such offences is three to five years. It will go to trial if he pleads not guilty. If he pleads guilty at the earliest opportunity he will get one third off his sentence. He needs legal advice before he does either.

[Buenchico]

The first step that the Crown Prosecution Service has to use when determining an assault charge (and a court subsequently has to use when determining whether it's the correct charge) is to examine the extent of the injuries sustained by the victim. With the injuries you've described, there would seem to be no doubt that 'GBH' (rather than, say, 'ABH') is appropriate.

Then, with a GBH charge, the CPS (and court) need to decide if 'with intent to do some grievous bodily harm' should be added to the charge. It's ultimately up to a court to decide whether or not 'intent' was present but the CPS has provided guidance here
http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/l_to_o/offences_against_the_person/#a16
and my view (based upon your account of the events) is that 'with intent' is most certainly justified.

With luck your husband's offence might be seen as Category 3,which means that the minimum sentence that can be passed will be one of 3 years imprisonment minus a third for an early guilty plea = 2 years. Offenders are normally released at the halfway point in their sentence, so he'd actually serve 1 year in prison. (That's assuming the minimum sentence being passed; 4 years less a third might be more realistic, so that's 2 years 8 months, meaning 1 year 4 months actually 'inside').

However it's possible that (through hitting someone who was unconscious) 'culpability' might be seen as 'high', making it a Category 2 offence. If so, the minimum sentence that could be passed would be one of 5 years less a third = 3 years 4 months, meaning 1 year 8 months actually spent in prison. (Again, a slightly higher sentence, of 6 years minus a third, might be more likely. So that would actually mean 2 ywears in prison)

So it looks like your husband will spend between 1 and 2 years actually 'banged up', plus the same amount of time on licence (when he'd have to report to probation officers and be barred from things like foreign travel, plus being at risk of immediate return to prison if he fell foul of the law again during that period).

You ask whether the case will go to trial. That could only happen if he pleaded 'not guilty' (which would appear to be madness as it would simply increase his sentence). His first court appearance will be in the magistrates court, where the case will automatically be referred to the Crown Court. There might be one or two procedural hearings, followed by a sentencing hearing.

[EDDIE51]

Yes, jail for at least 2 years is all but certain. I can not see anyway he will get out of this without at least 2 years inside!
Get him to plead guilty at the first chance and makhe sure he is really sorry and remorsefull and with the automatic reduction in sentence plus time out 'on tag' he just may be out in under a year.

[amylou1]

he didnt know the man was unconscious, he said he didnt have time to see that as he just hit him straight away after the first man punched him to the floor?

[EDDIE51]

^^ makes no diffrence , he hit the man while he was already knocked to the ground and therefor no longer a threat, that is not self defence.

[jno]

hitting him once while unconscious might just be seen as a mistake (even though the other man was on the floor); to do so five times, and to the head, is likely to count against him. Running away will also suggest that he knew what he was doing. As Buenchico says, his best bet would be to plead guilty.

[amylou1]

yes he is pleading guilty, it would be stupid of him not to as hes on CCTV. I just wanted to know what jail he will get. i really dont want him to goto jail, he's got a business and we've got a 5 month old daughter.

[EDDIE51]

You have already been told, this looks like a 2 year sentence. He will actually do around a year in jail. The exact sentence depends on the judge at the time. GBH with intent is always a jail term,( except in very unusual circumstances that do not apply here.)

[Orderlimit]

Try searching an on line site that shows court cases results. thelawpages.com is simple to use (requires a quick registration but is free of charge) and you can easily search for all GBH w/i case results and then read through some of the facts of the offence to find something similar etc.

[Orderlimit]

http://i61.tinypic.com/16gncsn.jpg

if you do use the site, select the 'sentences' tab and in the little box that appears, select 'advanced search' then select the 'offence title' and 'offence', as shown in the attached pic.

[EDDIE51]

just registered orderlimit, it gives the sentences just as 'immediate custody' does not give the actual time setenced .

[Orderlimit]

Hi Eddie, just double click on one of the results and it opens another page with all the relevant info on.

[amylou1]

thanks everyone, i didnt think he would goto jail but by all your answers it looks as if he :(

[Orderlimit]

Has he already been charged with the GBH intent offence amy?

[kylesmum]

Feel for you amylou I'm not here to judge but I just wanted to make you feel you had done the right thing by being truthful and seeking salient advice in order to minimise his sentence.
Stick in there, often law abiding people sadly succumb to provocation.I won't elaborate as to what might have made things better or you wouldn't be here but I just want to wish you well, we all mistakes (although you wouldn't think it) but it looks like he is paying the penalty and to be honest he went too far.I just want you to know that we are here to support you at all times.Tough times x

[New Judge]

Er, sorry kylesmum (and amylou) but I'm not here to do that.

In answering this question I'm simply offering advice on a topic that I have a little knowledge of. I don't know the full circumstances of the incident in question, only what I've read here. As a result it would not be appropriate for me to offer support (or not to). Examination of my answers in the law section will show that I do not condemn or pass judgement and in the interests of impartiality I do not offer support either.

[EDDIE51]

orderlimit, he is on bail so he must have been charged.

[kylesmum]

NJ..i'm actually a little put out you thought my post even encompassed or disputed what you said or had said previously.I'm not qualified to advise in Law although I am in Common Sense but we'll leave that open to debate but essentially I just wanted to let the OP know that although things don't look good she can come here and crucially not be judged and perhaps offload any troubles to us....and hopefully we can be help her in any way. Please do amylou1. It often helps to discuss with people who aren't involved.