"There have been some reports of public disorder during the current pandemic, but as yet, there is no evidence of widespread deliberate and intentional transmission of COVID-19. The application of the law in cases like this is also uncertain and unclear. For example, what do Hunt’s words, “take a step” and “deliberate”, mean in this context? How would it be proved that coughing on someone led to the death of a healthcare worker? First, it would be difficult to identify a specific individual as the source of a possible infection, particularly since the virus can remain on surfaces for several days. Then there is the question of intent. As a matter of law, it is not merely proof of deliberate (rather than accidental) conduct that creates criminal liability, but also someone’s state of mind at the time of the action and whether it is in the public interest to prosecute. This is a much more complex issue in public health cases. In 2013, a circus acrobat, Godfrey Zaburoni, was jailed for deliberately infecting his girlfriend with HIV through unprotected sex. But his conviction was quashed by the High Court, which stated: a person’s awareness of the risk that his or her conduct may result in harm does not … support the inference that the person intended to produce the harm."
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Health in the United KingdomCOVID-19 pandemic by country2020s disasters in Europe2020s in the United Kingdom
Original Language: English
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Sources
Felicity Gerry & Lorana Bartels; “Transmitting COVID-19 to another person could send you to prison for life. Here’s why this is worrisome”, The Conversation, (4/14/2020)
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic_in_the_United_Kingdom
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COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
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