Table of Acquittals

The basic facts in acquittals between 1990 and 2001 are summarized in the following table of thirty-seven cases. In all cases the court found that the force used by the parent or teacher was reasonable. In all cases, the accused was acquitted of assault.

The purpose of the table is not to suggest that these parents and teachers should be prosecuted and convicted if s. 43 were repealed. On the contrary, we believe that if s. 43 were ended,
these prosecutions would be unnecessary because there would be no need for prosecutions to determine whether the force used was reasonable and for correction. Instead, it would be made clear to parents and teachers that this defence to assault no longer exists. They could then be helped to learn
alternative methods of discipline that did not involve violence.

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