Home / United Kingdom (England & Wales) / Witness intimidation
Witness intimidationPossibly — unconfirmed
Reported range, not yet confirmed against official text. Do not rely on this — awaiting confirmation.
Statutory range — reported, not yet confirmed
Summary — s. 51(1) intimidation / s. 51(2) harm or threatsPossibly — unconfirmed
- Imprisonment
- 0 (no mandatory prison) – 6 months
- Fine
- Statutory maximum (unlimited for offences committed on/after 12 Mar 2015)
0 = the law sets no minimum prison term. The court is not required to impose prison. Depending on the offence, jurisdiction, and case, it may instead impose a non-custodial sentence — e.g. a suspended sentence, community order / probation, a fine, or a discharge.
Penalty clause truncated in retrieval — needs re-check.
On indictment — s. 51(1) intimidation / s. 51(2) harm or threatsPossibly — unconfirmed
- Imprisonment
- 0 (no mandatory prison) – 5 years
- Fine
- Unlimited fine
0 = the law sets no minimum prison term. The court is not required to impose prison. Depending on the offence, jurisdiction, and case, it may instead impose a non-custodial sentence — e.g. a suspended sentence, community order / probation, a fine, or a discharge.
Maximum confirmed by the Sentencing Council; guideline offence range community order – 4 years (guideline only).
PARTIAL: the 5-year indictment maximum is confirmed by the Sentencing Council guideline (official). The s. 51(6) penalty clause was truncated in the legislation.gov.uk retrieval, so the summary tier (6 months / statutory maximum, per standard texts) needs clause re-check.