Assaulting a police officer: Consequences and sentencing
Assaulting a police officer is treated differently under the law than assaulting a member of the public. You could be sentenced to up to two years in prison if convicted, so it is essential to get the very best legal defence if you are arrested or charged for assault on a police officer.
In Brief
Under the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018, assaulting a police officer is classified as an "aggravated assault." This means it is treated more severely than an assault on a member of the public. If the officer was acting in their professional capacity, the offence is triable "either way," meaning it can be heard in the Magistrates' or Crown Court, with a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment.
The New Offence: The 2018 Act replaced lower-level "assault on police" charges. It applies to common assault, battery, ABH, and GBH committed against police, CSOs, and other emergency workers.
Sentencing Range: Penalties range from a low-level community order to 2 years in custody. Factors such as the use of a weapon, intention to cause fear, or the assault being racially or religiously aggravated will result in harsher sentences (uplifts).
Key Legal Thresholds: You can be charged even if no physical injury occurred (Common Assault) or if you were unaware the victim was an undercover officer, provided they were exercising their functions at the time.
Potential Defences: Common legal defences include self-defence (if the officer used excessive or unreasonable force), factual disputes, or lack of mental capacity.
Mitigating Factors: A court may reduce a sentence for those with no previous convictions, clear remorse, or proven mental health vulnerabilities that contributed to the incident.
Previously, a simple low-level assault was treated as a simple assault on police with a maximum sentence of 6 months for the most serious offences, if considered below an ABH (actual bodily harm) offence. The law has changed, with a new offence of assaulting an emergency worker now being charged.
If you are facing this type of charge, it is important to understand your situation and the possible consequences. Here, we discuss what is considered to be an assault on a police officer, what you may be charged with, the potential sentences, what factors might affect a sentence and your possible defence options.
While we hope this information is useful, please note, it should not be taken as legal advice. If you need legal support, then please get in touch and our team can advise you.
What is considered assault on a police officer?
Assault on police officers is an offence that is covered by the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018. This legislation deems that an assault on an emergency worker, such as a police officer, should be treated as an ‘aggravated assault’. As such, this will be treated more seriously by the courts than an assault on an ordinary member of the public.
The specific offences covered under the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act are common assault and battery (explained below), but you could also potentially be charged with other offences in relation to assaulting a police officer (again, explained below).
A key point to understand is that this Act applies to offences “committed against an emergency worker acting in the exercise of functions as such a worker” i.e. it would apply if the victim was carrying out their role as a police officer but would not normally apply if they were acting in a civilian capacity.
Is it still assault on a police officer if you didn’t know they were a police officer?
Whether you knew that the alleged victim was a police officer is not relevant to whether you can be charged with assault on a police officer – it only matters whether they were acting in their capacity as a police officer. That said, it might possibly help to reduce any sentence you receive on conviction if the judge feels that it is relevant that you did not know that the victim was a police officer.
The new offence is charged as many defendants claimed they did not know undercover officers who identified themselves were police officers.
Does assault on a community support officer count as assault on a police officer?
As well as applying to common assault and battery on a police officer, assault on an emergency worker can also apply to anyone acting with the powers of a constable or who is employed for police purposes or who is otherwise engaged for police purposes, so this would include community support officers.
What charge is assault on a police officer?
There are several types of offences that someone might be charged with in relation to assaulting a police officer:
- Common assault – Where a person intentionally or recklessly causes the victim to fear that unlawful force is about to be used against them.
- Battery – Where a person intentionally or recklessly uses unlawful force against the victim, then this would be classed as battery on a police officer.
- Actual bodily harm – Where an assault results in physical injury to the victim, from relatively minor injuries, such as bruising, cuts, scrapes and burns, to more serious injuries such as broken bones and concussions.
- Grievous bodily harm/wounding – Where an assault results in really serious physical injury, such as a broken bone, permanent disability or disfigurement.
- Various public order offences - Affray, violent disorder, threatening behaviour and disorderly conduct
A key point to understand here is that the alleged offender does not need to actually use force against the victim or cause them any injury in order for an assault charge to be brought.
What is the punishment for assaulting a police officer in the UK?
Where the evidence against you is strong and you have no credible defence, we will advise you about credit for an early guilty plea.
The minimum sentence for assaulting a police officer would be a low-level community order, while the maximum sentence is two years’ imprisonment.
You could receive a more serious sentence if you are convicted of an additional offence, such as actual bodily harm or grievous bodily harm.
The precise sentence for assault on a police officer that you might receive will entirely depend on the circumstances, including how strong a defence you are able to put together. Having the best possible legal team can, therefore, make a big difference to the outcome of being charged with assault on a police officer.
What factors affect sentencing for assault on a police officer?
For assaulting a police officer, sentence guidelines set out the minimum and maximum sentence available. There are various factors that can affect what sentence a judge might impose on conviction, including:
- The level of harm caused to the victim
- The level of culpability of the offender e.g. where there was an intention to cause serious fear, substantial force was used, a weapon was used or threatened to be used and if the offender played a leading role in the actions of a group
Where additional offences were committed, such as where someone is convicted of being drunk and disorderly and assaulting a police officer, then this will affect the overall sentence received. If two separate sentences are handed down, the judge may order that they be served concurrently (at the same time) or consecutively (one after another), which can make a big difference to the impact on the offender.
What defence is there for assaulting a police officer?
What defences may be available for assault on a police officer will depend on the situation.
It may be possible to show that there is ‘reasonable doubt’ that an offence occurred or that the defendant was not the aggressor, leading to charges being dropped or a not guilty verdict in court.
If there is no realistic prospect of disputing that the offence occurred or that the defendant was the offender, then defence options may include:
- Self-defence
- That the police officer was not acting in their professional capacity at the time of the incident
- That the offender did not have the mental capacity to understand the consequences of their actions at the time of the offence
- Factual dispute of prosecution case facts
Sentencing guidelines for assault on an emergency worker
Assault on emergency worker (including NHS workers, prison officers and fire and rescue workers) sentencing guidelines indicate that the minimum sentence a judge can impose on conviction is a low-level community order, while the maximum sentence is two years’ imprisonment.
If you are convicted of a more serious offence, such as actual bodily harm or grievous bodily harm, the sentence may be more severe.
The quality of your legal defence is likely to make a significant difference to the severity of any sentence on conviction, so this is something you should consider carefully when choosing your representation.
Sentencing guidelines for assault on emergency workers will also vary depending on the nature of the offence and the legislation used:
- Common Assault and battery - Section 3
- Triable only summarily
- Maximum: 6 months’ custody
- Offence range: Discharge – 26 weeks’ custody
- Racially or religiously aggravated offence – Section 29
- Triable either way
- Maximum: 2 years’ custody
- Offence committed against an emergency worker – Section 1
- Triable either way
- Maximum: 2 years’ custody (1 year’s custody for offences committed before 28 June 2022)
There will be an uplift by the court for racially or religiously aggravated offences.
Factors reducing sentencing and mitigation for assault on a police officer
There are a range of mitigating factors which could reduce the severity of a sentence for an assault on a police officer. These include:
- No previous convictions or no relevant/recent convictions
- Remorse
- Good character and/or exemplary conduct
- Significant degree of provocation
- 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 such as alcohol, drugs or treatment for anger or mental health
- Serious medical conditions requiring urgent, intensive or long-term treatment
What is the defence for assault on emergency workers?
Your defence options will depend on the situation you find yourself in, including whether you dispute that the offence took place or rather that you dispute some aspects of the prosecution’s case.
Where you dispute that the offence took place (or that you were the perpetrator) then it may be possible to introduce reasonable doubt as to your guilt.
If you accept that the offence took place and that you were involved, then defence options may include:
- Self-defence (that the defendant had to use force or the threat of force to protect themselves)
- That the emergency worker was not acting in their professional capacity at the time of the alleged offence
- That the offender was incapable of understanding the consequences of their actions at the time of the alleged offence
All cases with the absence of drink or drug-induced intoxication and no evidence of failure to comply with treatment will make a defence stronger.
We have won many cases with not-guilty outcomes where emergency workers usually police officers have acted unreasonably or used excessive force. We have been able to persuade the court that the case cannot be proven.
Is being drunk a defence against a charge of assaulting a police officer?
Being drunk or otherwise intoxicated is not a defence against charges for a criminal offence. However, if you have been charged with assaulting a police officer while intoxicated, there is the possibility that your defence could argue that you were so incapacitated that you could not form the intent to commit the offence in question. This is a challenging defence to make and so requires strong evidence and a high level of expertise from your defence team.
Credit for a guilty plea
In short, where a guilty plea is indicated at the first stage of proceedings, you could receive a reduction from 1/3 of penalty.
More information regarding the potential outcomes for indicating a guilty plea can be found here.
Related offences
Please note that our expert solicitors also provide advice and support with various related offences, including:
Fees and funding
We are transparent on costs at all times, no matter your circumstances.
If you need to attend court, legal aid public funding will be available in some cases, based on the seriousness of the case justifying the grant of public funding.
For clients who do not qualify for legal aid public funding, the alternative option will be to fund their case privately.
To find out more about the way we handle fees (both legal aid public funding and private fees), please use the links provided below:
- Our Fees – Crime Cases
- Do I Qualify for Criminal Legal Aid?
- Bespoke Crime Private Fee Service
- Will Your Private Legal Costs Increase?
Speak to our criminal lawyers today
If you are due to attend the police station for an interview for allegations of assaulting a police officer or require any urgent specialist advice and immediate representation, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
You can contact our specialist criminal defence lawyers in London, Birmingham and Manchester by telephone on:
- Brent & Camden London Office: 0207 624 7771
- Manchester Office: 0161 835 1638
- Birmingham Office: 0121 614 3333
- City of London: 0207 624 7771 (our senior Solicitors and Partners can meet by appointment in the City)
Or email: solicitors@jdspicer.co.uk
Alternatively, you can fill out our quick online enquiry form, and we will get back to you quickly.
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Please get in touch for a free consultation with one of our expert criminal defence solicitors, as well as immediate representation and advice about assault on police officers.
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