Offences against the Person Act 1861: Difference between revisions
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The '''Offences against the Person Act 1861''' was an Act of Parliament which consolidated various previous laws concerning violence and sexual offences. | The '''Offences against the Person Act 1861''' was an Act of Parliament which consolidated various previous laws concerning violence and sexual offences. It was largely a revision of the [[Offences against the Person Act 1828]]. | ||
Section 61 of the Bill dealt with “unnatural offences” specifying “[[buggery]]”. It replaced the death penalty for buggery with life imprisonment “for any term not less than ten years”. This section replaced section 15 of the | Section 61 of the Bill dealt with “unnatural offences” specifying “[[buggery]]”. It replaced the death penalty for buggery with life imprisonment “for any term not less than ten years”. This section replaced section 15 of the 1828 Act. A total of 8921 men had been prosecuted since 1806 for [[sodomy]] with 404 sentenced to death and 56 executed.<ref>Matt Cook, ''A Gay History of Britain'', page 109</ref> | ||
Section 62 for the first time introduced the offences of attempted sodomy and indecent assault, with a penalty of between 3 and 10 years penal servitude, or two years imprisonment with hard labour. | Section 62 for the first time introduced the offences of attempted sodomy and indecent assault, with a penalty of between 3 and 10 years penal servitude, or two years imprisonment with hard labour. | ||
Revision as of 11:32, 15 August 2013
The Offences against the Person Act 1861 was an Act of Parliament which consolidated various previous laws concerning violence and sexual offences. It was largely a revision of the Offences against the Person Act 1828.
Section 61 of the Bill dealt with “unnatural offences” specifying “buggery”. It replaced the death penalty for buggery with life imprisonment “for any term not less than ten years”. This section replaced section 15 of the 1828 Act. A total of 8921 men had been prosecuted since 1806 for sodomy with 404 sentenced to death and 56 executed.[1]
Section 62 for the first time introduced the offences of attempted sodomy and indecent assault, with a penalty of between 3 and 10 years penal servitude, or two years imprisonment with hard labour.
In England and Wales section 61 was repealed and replaced by section 12(1) of the Sexual Offences Act 1956.
In England and Wales section 62 was repealed and replaced by sections 15(1) and 16(1) of the Sexual Offences Act 1956.
In Northern Ireland section 62 was found to be incompatible with the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and was repealed by the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
External links
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1861/100/pdfs/ukpga_18610100_en.pdf Text of the Act.
References
<references>
- ↑ Matt Cook, A Gay History of Britain, page 109