“One Punch” Laws in NSW: The Criminal Offence of Assault Occasioning Death

A person may be found guilty of the offence of ‘assault causing death’ in New South Wales by delivering a single punch, push or kick, even if he or she did not intend to kill or cause serious harm. 

The objective

This so-called “one punch law” was enacted in New South Wales in January 2014, with a view to deterring and sufficiently punishing incidents that had been occurring in nightlife districts and other alcohol related environments, where single strikes resulted in the deaths of victims, despite the absence of any intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm.

It was thought at the time that existing assault charges were not sufficient to punish the severity of such incidents, that murder and manslaughter charges would not encompass the conduct, and that increased penalties for assault charges might deter potential offenders from engaging in such conduct, thereby preventing further such tragedies.

The offence of assault causing death captures the situation where the assailant strikes a victim causing them to fall and strike their head on the ground or an object, causing death. The media often referred to such a strike as a “King Hit”.

The Legislation

The “one punch law” is contained in section 25A of the Crimes Act 1900, which provides that a person may be found guilty of assault causing death where the prosecution is able to prove beyond reasonable doubt that:

1. A person assaulted another by intentionally hitting them with any part of the body or with an object,
2. The assault was not authorised or excused by the law, and
3. The assault caused the other person’s death.

‘Causing’ includes the death resulting from hitting the ground or another object.

The offence carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

It is important to note that the prosecution is not required to prove the death was reasonably foreseeable, or that the person intended to kill or cause grievous bodily harm, or that the person showed reckless indifference to human life, as is required for a murder charge.

Public outrage

The offence of assault occasioning death was introduced in 2014, following several high-profile fatalities linked to alcohol fuelled violence in Sydney’s nightlife districts.

The case R v Loveridge [2014] NSWCCA 120 fuelled the impetus for the enactment.

In that case, the defendant pleaded guilty to the violent criminal offences against five victims, comprising assaults against three and assault occasioning actual bodily harm against a fourth on 7 July 2012, followed by manslaughter against the fifth, Thomas Kelly at Potts Point, on 9 July 2012 whereby the defendant struck the victim causing him to fall, hit his head and die as a result.

The District Court sentenced the defendant to a fixed prison term of four months for the first three offences, a fixed term of six months for the fourth offence and a term of six years with a four-year non-parole period for the manslaughter offence, to be served concurrently.

The Crown appealed to the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal on the basis of inadequacy of sentence, which upheld the appeal and imposed fixed term sentences of nine, eleven and thirteen months for the first three offences, twenty two months with a non-parole period of sixteen months for the fourth offence and ten years with a non-parole period of seven years for the manslaughter, to be served concurrently.

The sentences were met with public outrage, leading to calls for change.

The calls were answered by the NSW government in the form of the new legislation.

Aggravated versions of the offence

Section 25A(2) provides for an aggravated offence if the accused is aged 18 or older and commits the offence while intoxicated.

While the maximum penalty for section 25A(1) is 20 years, section 25A(2) is 25 years. This difference in penalty shows that the legislation recognises how alcohol-fuelled violence is unacceptable and increases the severity of the crime.

Section 25A(3) limits causation with respect to assault causing death, which appears to be the legislative intention of parliament to ensure that the defence deals only with the specific issue of ‘one-punch” laws.

Statistics

Research suggests that single-strike attacks resulted in approximately 80 deaths across Australia between 2012 and 2018, and 169 recorded deaths since 2000. Perhaps as expected, these incidents were primarily perpetrated by males. Perhaps not as expected, the median age of the perpetrator was 43 years (some might have expect it to be younger).

The highest number of fatal assaults was in New South Wales, representing 28.8% of all such incidents across the nation.

The presence of alcohol is, as expected, a key contributing factor to such incident, being found to have been a factor in 66% of the cases, with the median blood alcohol concentration being 0.14. Other substances, including methylamphetamine and cannabis (THC), have been detected in a smaller portion of cases.

Alongside this data, research from the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) consistently finds alcohol is a major factor in assaults in nightlife areas.

Have one punch laws corresponded with a reduction in such incidents?

Research by BOCSAR suggests there has been a reduction in assaults in Kings Cross and the Sydney CBD since the introduction of the 2014 reforms. Those reforms include the offence of assault causing death as well as lockout laws, earlier last drinks, restrictions on takeaway alcohol sales and increased policing of nightlife precincts. 

BOCSAR found that foot traffic in Kings Cross and the CBD fell significantly in the wake of the reforms, making it difficult to determine whether any reduction in violence was attributable to the one punch laws themselves or the broader package of reforms, which also led to the closure of dozens of licensed venues in the affected areas. Notably, research suggests that assaults in neighbouring precincts increased after the reforms, indicating violence may have been displaced rather than significantly reduced.