Collins v Wilcock
Any touching of another person without consent and beyond the generally acceptable conduct of daily life is a battery, including by a police officer acting without legal power.
Facts
Two police officers saw Ms Collins and another woman in the street and suspected that they were soliciting for prostitution. One officer asked Ms Collins to get into the police car to be questioned, but she refused and walked away. The officer took hold of her arm to stop her, and Ms Collins scratched the officer's arm. She was convicted of assaulting a police officer in the execution of her duty.
Legal principle
The Divisional Court quashed the conviction. Robert Goff LJ said that any touching of another person, however slight, may amount to a battery, but that most of the physical contact of ordinary life is not actionable because it is impliedly consented to, such as jostling in a busy street or tapping someone on the shoulder to attract attention. The officer had no power to detain Ms Collins, as she had not been arrested, and taking hold of her arm to restrain her went beyond acceptable everyday contact, so it was a battery. The officer was therefore not acting in the execution of her duty.
Related cases on non-fatal offences against the person
- Director of Public Prosecutions v Smith (Michael) [2006] EWHC 94 (Admin), [2006] 1 WLR 1571
- JCC (A Minor) v Eisenhower [1984] QB 331
- Logdon v Director of Public Prosecutions [1976] Crim LR 121
- R v BM [2018] EWCA Crim 560
- R v Bollom [2003] EWCA Crim 2846, [2004] 2 Cr App R 6
- R v Brown [1994] 1 AC 212
- R v Chan-Fook [1994] 1 WLR 689
- R v Constanza [1997] 2 Cr App R 492
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This summary is for study and revision and is not legal advice. Although our case summaries are checked for accuracy, we do not guarantee that they are free from errors or omissions. Always read the full judgment for the court's reasoning.
