Don't miss a thing by getting the day's biggest stories sent direct to your inbox People who commit vile attacks on police and NHS workers face tougher sentences under new rules introduced today.
For the first time, judges and magistrates in the courts of England and Wales will have specific guidance for offences of assault on emergency service workers.
The offence was brought into law in 2018 but until now cases have been sentenced under existing guidelines for assault. Now the courts must take into account 'high-culpability' factors such as “intention to cause fear of serious harm, including disease transmission”, “deliberate spitting or coughing” and strangulation.
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