BBC News - 'Fresh proposals' planned over cyber-monitoring

[Francis Davey]

2013/5/28 k.brown at bbk.ac.uk <k.brown at bbk.ac.uk>

Threatening to kill anybody is a crime, though I imagine it would have
>

Contrary to section 16 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Vict/24-25/100/section/16


> to be a credible threat before a court woudl take notice, and not just
>  "I wish you were dead" mutterings. It woudl be moew than just
>

Yes. You have to intend that the victim fears the threat will be carried
out.


> harrassment. Putting someone in fear for their life would have been an
> assault under the old common law I think even if you didn't physically
>

What my old lecturer called a "psychic assault" (which always made me think
of D&D 1st ed psionic combat). Assault at common law still exists as an
offence.


> attack them at all. I'm sure there are plenty of fancy new statutes to
> cover the same ground. (Not conspiracy though. Conspiracy needs more
> than one person).


Indeed, see section 1 of the Criminal Law Act 1977:

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1977/45/section/1

You can't even attempt to conspire:

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/47/section/1

-- 
Francis Davey
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