Likelihood of a GBH prosecution?

liquoriceandblack92 · 2026-05-26T20:45:17+00:00

My 16 year old daughter was staying with her dad, whilst me and her stepdad were away for the weekend. She has been hanging out in the park, drinking with a group of teenagers. A 15 year old boy stole one of her belongings, she has retaliated and pulled his hair. He told her to let go twice, and she didn't so he punched her in the face. Her jaw is broken in two places, plus another fracture. She has had surgery to put plates in her jaw, and dental surgery. She is on a liquid diet for 6 weeks. This is going to impact her GCSEs. There are several witness accounts and cctv. What is the likelihood of CPS decididng to prosecute this boy for GBH? He has been involved in fights before, but as far as we are aware he has never been prosecuted. I'm trying to prepare her for every possibility.

stillchasingdereksheppard · 26/05/2026 21:53

Pretty low I would say.
He is going to say he used reasonable force as she attacked him first.
Obviously punching and breaking her jaw is probably going to be seen as excessive but a prosecution is going to be problematic given she got physical first and he asked her to stop multiple times before he resorted to using force.
I'm not suggesting what has happened is right but honestly it probably depends what's on the CCTV and weather they think his actions were reasonable or excessive based on what happened before. Without watching it nobody is going to know.

Original poster

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:07

Thank you.
Do you have experience in this area?

OP posts:

SnappyQuoter · 26/05/2026 22:12

My son was grabbed by another boy at school, the kid was holding and yanking my son’s hair and then got an arm around my son’s neck. My son told him three times to let go, then punched him right in the face and broke his nose. The other boy’s parents called the police, and the police ended up saying it would be their son who they’d be charging, not mine. But their son had attacked mine several times, so my son breaking his nose with a punch whilst being held was very much self defence.

Your daughter’s situation is a little different but she was holding the boy and was asked to let go twice and continued to pull his hair. That’s why he punched. What have the police said?

TheseWordsAreMine · 26/05/2026 22:16

It will all hang on the CCTV and the witnesses.

If he gave her two chances then it's an act of self defence. He's not responsible for her low calcium bone density and she was both older and the original aggressor.

If he hit her once, self defence, multiple times, different story.

Impossible to say one way or the other. They will look at another other history of police involvement before and family backgrounds.

Mooselooseinmyhoose · 26/05/2026 22:16

Former criminal barrister here. I would say it could go either way.

Self defence has to be reasonable and proportionate. Repeatedly punching someone and breaking their jaw is not reasonable or proportionate. But the prosecution would have to prove the defendant was acting unreasonable he wouldn't have to prove he was acting reasonably.

So then you get into.. who else was around, how clear are the witness accounts, is there cctv, does the boy have any forensic history.

I have certainly prosecuted and won cases which are similar. I have also advised not prosecuting where the situation is complex and I felt the complainant was not likely to endure the process of giving evidence well.

Im sorry thats a total lawyer's answer of "it depends" but it really will.

Hope she's doing ok.

pinkcow123 · 26/05/2026 22:20

I think it will be quite low that he will get prosecuted. Possibly a restorative intervention or an out of court disposal.

if he does get prosecuted, it would most likely be a community based intervention.

Is your daughter supporting police action? Or is she worrying about the possibility of him being prosecuted when she doesn’t want him to be?

Original poster

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:23

Thanks for the advice. He only hit her once.
He does have an extensive history with the police but has never been charged with anything (his behaviour has also seen him be excluded from 2 schools and he goes to an alternative provision now).
All witness statements are from other teenagers in their friendship group, and my other daughter. Paramedics were on the scene within 10 minutes and the boy had already left at this point.
I think she is unsure about what would be best prosecution wise. She grew up watching her dad being physically violent towards me, and I really want to instill into her that it's never acceptable for a male to hit a female because they are so mich stronger physically, but she also needs to understamd (and Uthink she does now!) that it is not acceptable for her to start a physical altercation either. They are only days apart in age, it's such an awful situation all round

OP posts:

isthesolution · 26/05/2026 22:29

Very unlikely - he punched her only once to stop her hurting him. They’ll argue that it’s reasonable to hit someone to stop them hurting you and he didn’t mean to cause such harm …. Only to stop the hair pulling.

PenelopePinkerton · 26/05/2026 22:33

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:23

Thanks for the advice. He only hit her once.
He does have an extensive history with the police but has never been charged with anything (his behaviour has also seen him be excluded from 2 schools and he goes to an alternative provision now).
All witness statements are from other teenagers in their friendship group, and my other daughter. Paramedics were on the scene within 10 minutes and the boy had already left at this point.
I think she is unsure about what would be best prosecution wise. She grew up watching her dad being physically violent towards me, and I really want to instill into her that it's never acceptable for a male to hit a female because they are so mich stronger physically, but she also needs to understamd (and Uthink she does now!) that it is not acceptable for her to start a physical altercation either. They are only days apart in age, it's such an awful situation all round

Edited

It’s totally acceptable for a male to hit a female in self defence as happened here.

TheseWordsAreMine · 26/05/2026 22:34

I don't know what's going to be in that liquid diet, but she would probably benefit from some calcium tablets.

SnappyQuoter · 26/05/2026 22:37

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:23

Thanks for the advice. He only hit her once.
He does have an extensive history with the police but has never been charged with anything (his behaviour has also seen him be excluded from 2 schools and he goes to an alternative provision now).
All witness statements are from other teenagers in their friendship group, and my other daughter. Paramedics were on the scene within 10 minutes and the boy had already left at this point.
I think she is unsure about what would be best prosecution wise. She grew up watching her dad being physically violent towards me, and I really want to instill into her that it's never acceptable for a male to hit a female because they are so mich stronger physically, but she also needs to understamd (and Uthink she does now!) that it is not acceptable for her to start a physical altercation either. They are only days apart in age, it's such an awful situation all round

Edited

This isn’t about male on female violence and you’re making a big mistake framing it that way to your daughter. This kid would have punched anyone pulling his hair and not letting go, the fact he gave a warning maybe shows he didn’t want to punch a girl.

This really is down to your daughter attacking him first. She needs to learn to keep her hands to herself. His background and all the rest of it has nothing to do with it either, so I hope you’re not playing the story to your daughter that he is a thug and she is poor little girl.

PoppinjayPolly · 26/05/2026 22:38

SnappyQuoter · 26/05/2026 22:37

This isn’t about male on female violence and you’re making a big mistake framing it that way to your daughter. This kid would have punched anyone pulling his hair and not letting go, the fact he gave a warning maybe shows he didn’t want to punch a girl.

This really is down to your daughter attacking him first. She needs to learn to keep her hands to herself. His background and all the rest of it has nothing to do with it either, so I hope you’re not playing the story to your daughter that he is a thug and she is poor little girl.

Show quote history

This, does she accept she instigated this?

Original poster

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:39

SnappyQuoter · 26/05/2026 22:37

This isn’t about male on female violence and you’re making a big mistake framing it that way to your daughter. This kid would have punched anyone pulling his hair and not letting go, the fact he gave a warning maybe shows he didn’t want to punch a girl.

This really is down to your daughter attacking him first. She needs to learn to keep her hands to herself. His background and all the rest of it has nothing to do with it either, so I hope you’re not playing the story to your daughter that he is a thug and she is poor little girl.

Show quote history

His background was mentioned as a previous poster said it would be relevant.

OP posts:

Original poster

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:40

She does accept that she was the instigator. She knows she shouldn't have physically touched him. She was frustrated as he and his other friends had taken her shoes ans were taking more of her belongings, but she knows it was the wrong thing to do.
I also think the alcohol played a part in this from both sides. So I hope they all now know why they shouldn't be doing that.

OP posts:

SnappyQuoter · 26/05/2026 22:41

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:39

His background was mentioned as a previous poster said it would be relevant.

Show quote history

It isn’t relevant to your daughter though. And you brought up the comment that you’re teaching your daughter not to accept male violence. This isn’t quite the example for that. Your daughter attacked him. She didn’t let go when told. Twice. So she got a punch to the face. What did she think was going to happen when she attacked someone?

Leave the criminality decisions to the police. Do not use this as an example to your daughter of male violence against women and how she is the victim here. She isn’t.

Original poster

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:52

The force used to break someone's jaw in two places and cause a seperate fracture is disproportionate to the force used to pull someone's hair . Hair pulling is minor assault. A broken jaw is GBH. The police believe from witness statements, medical records and cctv that he has used excessive force and he told them himself he was angry at her, he has said this is why he didn't first attempt to shove her off. They are encouraging my daughter to prosecute. She has not been arrested. I only came here to ask the likelihood of CPS deciding to prosecute if she does proceed with it. She isn't sure what she would like to do

OP posts:

TheseWordsAreMine · 26/05/2026 22:59

Just to be clear, a broken jaw does not mean GBH.

Aluna · 26/05/2026 22:59

What is this nonsense? She wasn’t the instigator - he was - by stealing a possession of hers - she pulled his hair to make him give it back, which he did not. Punching a girl in the jaw and breaking it in no way meets the “reasonable” or “proportionate” requirement of self defence.

What do the police say OP?

Original poster

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 23:00

TheseWordsAreMine · 26/05/2026 22:59

Just to be clear, a broken jaw does not mean GBH.

This is what the police have told us. If this is wrong then I will question that with them

OP posts:

TheseWordsAreMine · 26/05/2026 23:02

With one punch had had no idea how much damage would be caused, if it was more than one punch it would be.

Aluna · 26/05/2026 23:02

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 22:52

The force used to break someone's jaw in two places and cause a seperate fracture is disproportionate to the force used to pull someone's hair . Hair pulling is minor assault. A broken jaw is GBH. The police believe from witness statements, medical records and cctv that he has used excessive force and he told them himself he was angry at her, he has said this is why he didn't first attempt to shove her off. They are encouraging my daughter to prosecute. She has not been arrested. I only came here to ask the likelihood of CPS deciding to prosecute if she does proceed with it. She isn't sure what she would like to do

If police are encouraging her to prosecute they think they have a reasonable chance of conviction.

Of course he used excessive force, he apparently didn’t even try to push her off first. He may well be a danger to other girls.

Vivienne1000 · 26/05/2026 23:03

Right now concentrate on getting her better and trying to get her through her GCSEs. Has she worked hard for these exams, or not bothered?
if she has worked, I would want her to try her best, even if it means sitting them at home.

Wolfiefan · 26/05/2026 23:04

In the U.K. it’s not up to a victim whether to prosecute. It’s up to the CPS.
Maybe focus on getting your daughter recovered. Not letting her drinking in parks and hair pulling in future.

Original poster

liquoriceandblack92 · 26/05/2026 23:08

I will be encouraging her to still sit her GCSE's but will see how she feels physically next week as this has only just happened.
Thanks for the parenting advice, but I was 200 miles away and she was in the care of her dad, my ex husband, at the time. Nothing like this has ever happened to any of my children before now.

OP posts:

carnivalcat · 26/05/2026 23:18

You can use (proportionate) force to defend yourself and your property. He was taking her belongings and she pulled his hair which is a form of restraining.

If someone grabbed your handbag to steal it, and you grabbed their hair, then they punched you in the jaw and broke it would you consider yourself the aggressor? I wouldn’t.

I would encourage her to support a prosecution.