ABH and Common Assault on me and my daughter

[snugglecuddle]

Hi i recently posted about my ex-partner he has been charged with ABH on my 8yr old daughter and 2 counts of common assault with beating on myself and a innocent by-stander he recently went to magistrates court and pleaded guilty on both common assault charges but no plea given on ABH charge can he do that? if so wot happens now i been told he got a provisional date 21st july to go back to magistrates to see if being referred to crown i dont understand wot is going on and no-one involved is able to give me answers they say can take couple weeks to get the info im going out my mind i just want mine and my kids life back luckily i been told he still has bail conditions which keeps him away from me and my daughter xx

[Buenchico]

(2-part post):

Some relatively minor offences are 'summary only', which means that only a Magistrates Court can deal with them.

Very serious offences are 'indictable only', which means that magistrates must pass the case to the Crown Court.

'ABH' is an 'either way' offence, which means that it can be dealt with solely by magistrates or passed to a Crown Court. Unless the defendant opts for trial by jury (in a Crown court), the case will remain in the Magistrates Court as long as the magistrates are convinced that they can deal with any legal complexities which might arise and (importantly) that they also believe that their sentencing powers (if the defendant is convicted) will be great enough. If the magistrates think that a sentence of greater than 6 months might be appropriate (if the defendant is convicted), they'll adjourn the case until such time as a 'committal hearing' can take place. At that hearing the defendant (or, more usually, his solicitor) has the right to oppose committal but most cases are still transferred to the Crown Court.

[Buenchico]

From reading your question, it appears that the magistrates have adjourned the case until a date can be set for a committal hearing. That usually means a wait of several weeks (because the Crown Prosecution Service has to prepare a far more detailed case than they would if the case had remained with the magistrates). A defendant is entitled not to enter a plea until he appears before the court which will actually hear his case. Since it's still not clear which that court will be, your ex has exercised his right to withhold his plea.

If the case does go to Crown Court you should prepare yourself for a considerable wait before anything substantial actually happens. After the committal hearing there will be wait (possibly of a few months) before your ex makes his first appearance before the Crown Court. If he then pleads guilty there might be a delay of around a month, while pre-sentencing reports are completed. If he pleads not guilty there will probably be several months before a trial can take place. (In either case there might be several adjournments because, for example, the CPS haven't completed all of the paperwork).

If your ex pleads guilty in the Crown Court he might be sentenced in (perhaps) August. If he pleads not guilty it could be close to Christmas (or even into next year) before he is sentenced (assuming, of course, that he's found guilty).

Chris

[dh001]

Hi snuggles

The police and or a witness liaison officer should be keeping you fully up dated, especially the exact particulars of his bail conditions. (being kept up dated is not optional).

You could contact the officer in charge of the case for an update or request identification of the witness liaison / victim support officer.

If you need to know anything just ask away

[snugglecuddle]

hi Buenchico cheers for you reply it all sounds bloody confusing to me lol but think i got the jist of it. Cant believe it can drag on so long especially as he is walking around like nothing has happened i have also heard rumours now how i am being accused of it by him unbelievable he trying everything now to get out of it i think, thanx for you help yet again buenchico you are a great help much appreciated wish i had your knowledge xx
To dh001 thanks for your reply i have got hold of the courts about victim liason and apparently they will be contacting me in a couple of weeks thanks for you help xx

[dh001]

Hi is the 'innocent bystander' totally independent. i.e. you are unknown to each other
If so, his evidence will go along way.

[snugglecuddle]

Hi the bystander was a customer in the snooker club i used to work at before this happened and it was outside the snooker club my ex punched me infront of there door so their cctv camera picked it up and it was seen by the bar staff as it was happening so one of the staff shouted to the customer who then came to help me so he not really a stranger to me will that make any difference do you think? xx

[dh001]

No not really. Is the incident captured on CCTV?

[snugglecuddle]

i would assume so the only problem is that my ex also worked at same club and actually still does he is the manager absolute joke really cause i was the one that lost my job over it anyway the owner is his friend as well as boss and so far seems to be leaning on his side of everything so dont no if he would even hand it over also my ex has actually pleaded guilty to both mine and bystander charges of common assault its only the ABH charge on my daughter he hasnt made a plea to xx

[dh001]

Ah ok. Well I am afraid it is a waiting game at the mo to decide whether to continue the case of ABH and if so, at which venue i.e. Magistrates Court or the Crown Court. (ABH can be hear at either, see buenchico's replies).

I will be back in the morning should yo have further questions.

[babyk]

believe me i no how you feel why shud they walk aroun as if the have done nothing i am going through same but i am still house bound because of the assault on me n it makes me sick just thinking about him but on gbh with intent and it is at the crown court but no matter what the charge no man shud ever put there horrible stinky feet or hands on any 1. chris and dhoo1 have given me very good advise as well as you and it really helped me understand a few things abit more hope it did for you. take care and hope all goes well for you and he gets what he deserves. good luck x