is there a law to inform people you've slept with if you have an std?

[baggysenior]

i'm studying sexual health for nursing at the moment and i know that if a person who is knowingly HIV positive sleeps with another without telling them it is against the law, (i think!) but i'm wondering is there a law for other stds?i don't know whether it would come under the human rights act??? is there anybody that can help me? many thanks

[bednobs]

isn't it gbh?

[JonnyBoy12]

That is a really good chat-up line. "I have got HIV but still sleep with me anyway".

Who would want to sleep with you then?

[DTCwordfan]

somebody else with a STD, jonny?

[exdc]

Hello baggysenior

Yes, the law covers the intentional or reckless sexual transmission of HIV, as well as the following STIs: chlamydia; genital herpes; gonorrhoea; hepatitis A, B and C; lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV); non-specific urethritis (NSU), and syphilis.

[exdc]

November 2008: Ercan Yasar, 29, becomes the first person in the UK to be convicted of grievous bodily harm for recklessly transmitting hepatitis B. He pleads guilty in Leicester and is sentenced to two years imprisonment.

[karenmac60]

But aren't you asking 2 different questions? The law covering reckless transmission would presumably cover sleeping with someone without informing them once you KNOW you have an STD, but your title seems to ask about notifying people you've already slept with once you find out, which would be a different issue. I don't know the answer though, sorry.

[boxtops]

I don't know that it's a law, but there certainly have been situations where a person has been found to have a highly contagious condition, and steps have to be taken to find all their recent sexual partners.

[sandyRoe]

Shouldn't the charge be: assault with a deadly weapon?

[exdc]

Sorry baggysenior, I didn't answer the second part of your question,
'i don't know whether it would come under the human rights act???"

These cases are dealt with as assaults under the Offences Against The Person Act 1861, (In England Wales and NI) but this is a complex area of law.

[exdc]

Hi

Sexual Offences Prevention Orders (SOPO)

In the event of conviction, courts may wish to consider imposing a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) under sections 104 - 113 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. These orders are imposed where it is considered necessary to regulate the future conduct of a defendant who has been diagnosed with a sexual infection, so as to prohibit him or her from doing anything described in the order.

79. Examples may include the prohibition of sexual activity without the use of a condom, or the prohibition of engaging in sexual activity with another without the defendant first disclosing the fact that they have an STI. Prosecutors should consider carefully before asking the court to make such orders, ensuring that any requests are necessary and proportionate having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case in question and the need for ongoing public protection. It may be, for example, that one or other of the above example prohibitions may be sufficient and proportionate in addressing the public protection need.