POLICE: I was charged by the police for assault after an argument with a waiter outside a pub recently. How can I be charged with assault when I did not even touch the waiter?
You do not have to make physical contact with a person you are dealing with for the police to charge you with assault. You only have to raise your voice in a threatening way and, especially if you use your hands in threatening gestures, that would be enough for the police to charge you with assault. Remember, that the police have to prove beyond reasonable doubt to convict you in a court of law. This means they would need to have witnesses to support the prosecution. If there was physical contact, the police could have or would have charged you with ‘assault and battery’ –also a criminal offence which is more serious than just assault and in some cases could also mean a prison sentence, especially if someone was injured.
Posted by victorzammit 