Actual Bodily Harm (ABH) is a criminal offence under Section 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. It is an intermediate level of assault, more serious than common assault but less so than Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH). ABH is committed when a person intentionally or recklessly assaults another, causing them physical or psychological harm that is more than transient or trifling.

It is comparatively rare for a caution to be issued for ABH, as opposed to assault by beating, but the police do issue cautions for ABH fairly frequently.

In our experience where a caution for ABH is issued the injuries will be less serious compared to cases that are charged and taken to court. Often where an ABH caution has been issued, the injuries are in fact more consistent with assault by beating.

The injuries classified under ABH can vary widely but must be more than mere superficial injuries like minor cuts or bruises.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will look at the circumstances of a case to see if it is more serious than a simple assault case, such as where there are repeated threats or assaults on the same person, or where there is significant violence. If there has been punching, kicking or head-butting, as opposed to simply pushing or slapping, then ABH will be more likely. Also if a weapon has been used, it is more likely to be considered ABH, but if the injuries are of the most serious nature then GBH/malicious wounding would be considered instead. It would be very rare for a caution to be issued where GBH injuries are present.

ABH injuries include damaged teeth or bones, extensive and severe bruising, cuts requiring suturing, and those that result in a loss of consciousness. If injuries require medical treatment, then that may also indicate ABH injuries. The most serious injuries would be GBH, so where the victim is comatose, or bones are shattered, and there are deep penetrating wounds, then a charge of GBH over ABH will be considered.

Assault by beating, or battery, involves the application of force upon another person without their consent and, without lawful excuse.

Battery is distinguished from common assault; common assault is only placing someone in fear of immediate unlawful force, whereas battery involves the actual application of unlawful force.

Battery is a summary only offence which means it can only be heard before a magistrate’s court (unless charged alongside a more serious offence) and there is a time limit within which it must be charged, or a caution issued.

The term ‘beating’ or battery does not mean the force used must be very significant or forceful, and only minimal amounts of physical force can be covered, including throwing water or spitting at someone. The harm caused can also include psychological injury, but it has to amount to a recognisable psychiatric illness, such as depression – simply causing someone fear is not harm for the purposes of ABH, but may amount to a charge of common assault, or threats to kill, if the victim fears that the threat to kill will be carried out.

Typical injuries where battery will be considered are where there are no more than the following injuries caused:

• Grazes;
• Scratches;
• Abrasions;
• Minor bruising;
• Swellings;
• Reddening of the skin;
• Superficial cuts.

Often the police will start by accusing a suspect of ABH, but the matter will be negotiated down to an assault by beating at the police station, or if charged, at court. The police may even sometimes overstate a case, claiming that it is ABH, in order to put pressure on a suspect to accept a caution, or plead guilty, to the lesser charge of assault by beating.

Although it may often be the case that by dropping a charge to the lesser offence of assault by beating, a suspect will have received a more lenient outcome, sometimes by the police holding out the offer of the lower offence, it might result in an unfair or undesirable outcome. We have seen cases where a suspect has admitted to an assault, simply to avoid being charged or cautioned with ABH, where in fact they were innocent. In such cases we have been able to have the caution overturned, and the client’s PNC record expunged.

The usual defence to ABH, or battery, is self-defence. This can be where a suspect has been actually attacked, but also includes pre-emptive self-defence depending on the circumstances.

A frequent issue that arises in assault cases is where a suspect is intoxicated and cannot recall what happened. In such cases the police will usually have a clear advantage during the police station interview, and will often present evidence that they believe supports the fact that the accused committed the offence. We have however seen cases where the police have omitted to provide an arrestee with relevant evidence, or have failed to follow up on enquiries that revealed the person’s innocence. In such cases we will gather together the evidence that shows the client may have been acting in self-defence, despite not recalling some or all of the incident.

Even in cases where the client is not intoxicated, we have seen a number of cases where clients have simply accepted a caution for assault (battery or ABH) where they knew they had been acting in self-defence, but were so terrified of being in the police station, they simply accepted what the police said, in order to be released from the police station as soon as possible.

ABH is a “specified” offence. What this means for someone who has been issued with a caution for ABH, is that the caution will be permanently disclosable on both a standard and enhanced DBS certificate. Namely the caution will be disclosed for the rest of that person’s life, unless it is deleted from the PNC. Furthermore, if you apply for an enhanced DBS check having received a caution for ABH, it is possible you will be referred for barring by the DBS.

Professionals who have received a caution for ABH will often have significant difficulties in securing employment or may face dismissal from their current roles. Typical professions that will have employment or regulatory difficulties if they have been issued with a caution for ABH or assault will be:

• Legal
• Accountancy
• FCA regulated finance
• Health care professionals including doctors, dentists, psychologists and nurses
• Social workers
• Care workers
• Teachers
• Those who work in roles that need Security Clearance or Developed Vetting
• Anyone working in a regulated role with children or vulnerable adults
• People working in the gambling industry
• Court Staff
• SIA regulated security staff

Often clients, where they have received a caution, will also have associated regulatory proceedings with bodies such as the HCPC, the GDC and GMC – we are able to help clients with these proceedings, alongside getting cautions deleted from the Police National Computer.

Many countries have strict requirements when it comes to criminal records, and a caution for ABH will often cause significant difficulties when applying for a visa or citizenship. An ABH caution will be revealed on an ACRO Police certificate for 5 years, and thereafter as an “no live trace” disclosure. See here for details about the significance of a “no live trace” record.

If you have received a caution for ABH, common assault or battery, and are worried about its consequences, then please get in touch.

We have successfully removed hundreds of cautions for our clients over the years, including many assault and ABH records.

Assault occasioning actual bodily harm, commonly known as ABH, is a more serious form of assault, one step higher than common assault and battery, but less serious than GBH and wounding. For information about common assault and battery, please see our Fact Sheet on the topic: Common Assault and Battery: What is a common assault and battery charge?

ABH was made an offence a long time ago, in 1861, under Section 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act. The section in its current form states as follows:

If you are prosecuted and convicted before a court, the maximum sentence you can receive for ABH is 5 years imprisonment. There is also a racially or religiously aggravated form of ABH, that carries a higher maximum sentence of 7 years imprisonment. If the offence is committed against an emergency worker, such as a police officer or ambulance worker, then the Court is required to treat this as an “aggravating factor” and the sentence will be increased. Similarly, if an offence is committed against a person “providing a public service”, again the offence will be aggravated.

Although it is possible to receive a lengthy prison sentence for ABH, it is in fact possible to receive a police caution for ABH. If the injury caused is a bit more serious than battery, but not very serious, then the police may consider a police caution. For details on what facts might lead to a battery charge, rather than ABH, please see here: What is the difference between battery and ABH.

Yes, you can receive a police caution for ABH. Generally, to receive a caution for ABH, rather than being charged and prosecuted at court, the injuries that have been caused will have to be low level, such as minor cutting and/or some bruising, but not excessive bruising.

We have seen cautions being issued for broken or knocked out teeth, but this is very rare – where permanent injuries are caused, or broken bones or serious bruising is inflicted, an ABH or even GBH/wounding charge and prosecution will likely be preferred by the police and CPS, over a caution.

In order for the police to issue a caution for ABH, you must first admit to the allegation, which will mean you will need to accept that you either intentionally or recklessly caused the complainant to sustain unlawful personal violence, and that the assault resulted in actual bodily harm.

The dividing line between ABH and GBH is not always clear, but GBH and wounding injuries are of the most serious nature, whereas ABH injuries will fall between the most serious injuries, and more minor injuries classified as a battery.

ABH injuries can include more serious cuts and bruising, but less than shattered bones, severe internal injuries, and deep penetrating wounds. “Bodily harm” includes any hurt or injury calculated to interfere with the health or comfort of the complainant. Actual injury does not need to be permanent, but must be more than merely “transient or trifling”. It can include a momentary loss of consciousness, but placing someone in a coma, would more likely result in a wounding/GBH charge. ABH can include psychiatric injury, but this must be proven by an expert and excludes simple distress/anguish.

ABH can also be charged were someone creates a set of circumstances knowing that an injury is likely to result – in a notable case, DPP v Santa-Bermudez, the Court found a defendant guilty were a police officer, having been told by a defendant that there was nothing sharp in his pocket, then went on to prick her finger on a needle whilst conducting a search of the defendant’s pockets.

Where something can be reasonably foreseen as the natural consequences of a defendant’s actions, they will be held liable for them. For example, in the case of R v Roberts, the accused had made unwanted sexual advances to the complainant when they were travelling in his car. He told her about his sexual exploits and of how he had used force on women in the past. He then attempted to remove her clothing and the complainant, being terrified, jumped from the moving car resulting in ABH injuries being caused.

As you can receive a lengthy prison sentence for ABH, it is a serious offence. Also, if you receive a caution or conviction for ABH, you will find it very difficult to enter or remain in any form of trusted and regulated profession. Your ABH caution or conviction will be permanently disclosable on an enhanced and standard DBS certificate.

If the police and CPS decide that your case is too serious for a police caution, then you will be charged and brought before a court.

If you are found guilty, the court will then use their sentencing guidelines to determine whether your case is: High Culpability, Medium Culpability or Low Culpability.

A High Culpability case is where there is:

• Significant degree of planning or premeditation
• Victim obviously vulnerable due to age, personal characteristics or circumstances
• Use of a highly dangerous weapon or weapon equivalent
• Strangulation/suffocation/asphyxiation
• Leading role in group activity
• Prolonged/persistent assault

A Low Culpability case is where there is:

• No weapon used
• Excessive self defence
• Impulsive/spontaneous and short-lived assault
• Mental disorder or learning disability, where linked to the commission of the offence

After the Court has determined the level of culpability, the court will then need to determine the level of harm caused. These are again placed into three categories:

• Category 1

Serious physical injury or serious psychological harm and/or substantial impact upon victim

• Category 2

Harm falling between categories 1 and 3

• Category 3

Some level of physical injury or psychological harm with limited impact upon victim

The court will then need to determine a starting point sentence based on the level of harm and culpability, which are set out in the guidelines, and then specify the sentence up or down from that point, within that particular range. So, for cases where the harm is at a category 3 level, and the culpability is low, the starting point sentence is a medium level community order with a range of sentences from a band B fine to 26 weeks’ imprisonment. For a high culpability case, where the harm is in category 1, then the starting point sentence is 2 years 6 months’ imprisonment, with a range of 1 year 6 months’ – 4 years’ imprisonment.

Factors that might increase the seriousness of an ABH case are:

• Previous relevant convictions
• Committing the offence whilst on bail
• Assault based on hostility due to the victims disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity
• Deliberate spitting or coughing
• Offence committed against those working in the public sector or providing a service to the public or against a person coming to the assistance of an emergency worker
• Offence committed in prison (where not taken into account as a statutory aggravating factor)
• Offence committed in a domestic context
• History of violence or abuse towards victim by offender
• Presence of children
• Gratuitous degradation of victim
• Abuse of power and/or position of trust
• Any steps taken to prevent the victim reporting an incident, obtaining assistance and/or from assisting or supporting the prosecution
• Commission of offence whilst under the influence of alcohol/drugs
• Offence committed whilst on licence or subject to post sentence supervision
• Failure to comply with current court orders

Factors that might reduce the seriousness are:

• No previous convictions or no relevant/recent convictions
• Remorse
• Good character and/or exemplary conduct
• Significant degree of provocation
• History of significant violence or abuse towards the offender by the victim
• Age and/or lack of maturity
• Mental disorder or learning disability, where not linked to the commission of the offence
• Sole or primary carer for dependent relative(s)
• Determination and/or demonstration of steps taken to address addiction or offending behaviour
• Serious medical conditions requiring urgent, intensive or long-term treatment

ABH is a specified offence for the purposes of the Sentencing Act 2020, Schedule 18 – this means that for regulated roles where an enhanced or standard DBS check is required a caution or conviction for ABH will be permanently disclosable. If you have received a caution for ABH it may be possible to have this caution deleted from the PNC, depending on the circumstances.

If your caution or conviction is not deleted or overturned, it will remain on the PNC until you reach 100 years of age.

Yes, ABH will come up on a DBS check, but it will depend on the level of check, and what your sentence was. For standard and enhanced DBS checks any caution or conviction for ABH will show up indefinitely.

If you do not work in a regulated sector, and you only need a basic DBS certificate, your record will show up according to the basic DBS check disclosure rules.

The typical defence to an ABH charge will be self-defence. For details about defences to assault generally, including consent, child chastisement, and assaulting a trespasser, see here: General Defences to Assault.

If you have been issued with a police caution for ABH, common assault, battery, or any other offence, we can help you.

We have had hundreds of cautions removed over the years, including for ABH.

We will be able to provide you with expert representation, at an affordable fixed fee.

If you would like an initial conversation with our friendly and approachable office manager Myriam, then please get in touch.