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False imprisonment

Someone is guilty of false imprisonment if he assaults and unlawfully and injuriously imprisons another person and detains him against his will. 


Ingredients

Breaking that down into the various elements of the charge, you would have to sure of the following before the offence is proved:


Assaults

Any physical touching of a person without his consent is an assault

The acts of **pulling, dragging, and tying up someone without their consent are all assaults.


Unlawfully

The word “unlawfully” means there is no legal justification or excuse either for imprisonment or for the force used.


None of the defendants suggests that there is any legal justification for what C** says happened – so you do not have to consider this word


Injuriously imprisoned and detained him against his will 

These are ordinary English words which have no special legal meaning.


**Lawful apprehension

None of the defendants suggests that there is any legal justification for what C** says happened – so you do not have to consider this word


** (alternative) Lawful apprehension

Anyone who is present when a breach of the peace is committed has the right to take reasonable steps to prevent the breach of the peace continuing or being repeated. This only applies where there is a real apprehension based on all circumstances that the detained person would, if released, renew the breach of peace.  Any person detaining another person must have an honest belief that detention is necessary and reasonable grounds for that belief


Similarly anyone who has reasonable grounds for suspecting that an arrestable offence, such as **, has been committed, may arrest anyone whom he has reasonable grounds for suspecting to be guilty of the offence. 


The conduct described by D** on the part of C**, **shouting, slapping, punching and throwing shoes – if true - would in law amount to a breach of the peace.  Similarly touching X**’s breast without her consent – if true – would amount to an arrestable offence.


If that was the case, D** would have been entitled to take reasonable – I emphasise, reasonable - steps to prevent the breach of the peace continuing or being repeated and/or to arrest C**.   That would include detaining C** against his will, but it would not include using unreasonable or excessive force. It certainly would not include exacting revenge, taking the law into their own hands to punish him

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