Caroline Flack has been charged with assault by beating after police were called to the home she shares with her boyfriend, tennis player Lewis Burton, in the early hours of 12 December. Officers had received reports of a man being assaulted and the man was, the police confirmed to the BBC, not seriously injured.
There are now a lot of questions in the air. One, about Flack leaving Love Island, the hit TV show she presents, has already been answered. On 17 December she announced via Instagram stories that she would leave the ‘best show on telly’ because she did not want to ‘detract attention from the upcoming series’.
She wrote, 'While matters were not as have been reported, I am committed to co-operating with the appropriate authorities and I can’t comment further on these matters until the legal process is over.' She signed off her message: ’and my boyfriend Lewis…I love you x’. The day before, Lewis had, referred to Flack as ‘the most lovely girl’ and hit out at ‘the lies and abuse aimed at my girlfriend’.
The day before that, Flack’s ex, Andrew Brady, had posted a screen-grabbed NDA, that he claimed he was obliged to sign while in a relationship with the TV star, along with the hashtag #abusehasnogender.
Now there are even more questions, and we found a barrister to answer them. As the case is ongoing, we’ve kept his name out of this, but the facts lie below:
What does assault by beating mean?
It is a type of common assault, which is is the lesser of three types of assault and involves either intentional or reckless acts. Battery is when a common assault involves violence in a way that results in a minor injury, tops. This can mean beating someone up, but also pushing, grabbing or spitting at someone.
What will happen when Caroline Flack attends magistrates court on 23 December?
At this first appearance she will be expected to enter a plea: guilty or not guilty. Common assault – unless racially or religiously motivated – is only ever tried in magistrates’ court, where the top sentence available is six months maximum. It is likely that this case will be presided over by a district judge.
How does Caroline Flack’s plea affect what happens next?
When a suspect pleads guilty, there is no trial, as they have admitted to the charges against them. They are either given a sentence immediately or given a report from the probation service within a week or so. When a suspect pleads not guilty, there is a trial. It is unlikely that Flack will plead guilty, unless there is incontrovertible evidence that she is guilty of the charge.
What happens if Caroline Flack enters a ‘not guilty’ plea?
A trial date will be set and as this trial is being heard at the magistrates’ court, that date won’t be too far in the future. In the time between a first hearing and the beginning of a trial, suspects can either be allowed to await trial outside of custody, put in prison ahead of the trial (on remand) or on bail. This is where money has been paid for the person to be released from any sort of custody, but they must follow certain rules or be immediately jailed until the trial. These rules tend to ban any attempt to leave the country. Flack has already been bailed, it has been reported, ahead of the first court appearance on 23 December.
If Caroline Flack’s case goes to trial, does her boyfriend have to give evidence?
At a trial, any witness to the event will be invited to make a statement. Even if the witness makes a statement in support of the suspect, the suspect could still be prosecuted if the prosecution can point to other evidence that reliably indicates that the suspect was the wrongdoer.
What if Lewis Burton never called the police?
It isn’t certain who called the police to Flack’s address. Third-party complaints can be made in suspected ‘domestics’, as they’re known, but if the police turn up and no one wants to press charges then it’s difficult to pursue a case. However, if the police arrive at the scene and someone is injured or someone has blurted something out which indicates that a crime has happened, those elements are likely to be investigated.
And if a police officer is wearing a body camera, regardless of whether an official complaint or report has been made, they’ve still got the account on the camera, which can be pointed to in evidence. It is not known what the police saw that early morning at Flack’s property and this will likely be described should the case against Flack reach trial.
What sort of defence could be used in a battery trial?
Mental-health issues don’t really apply unless you’re pleading insanity and getting drunk or being on drugs is not a defence. Being on medication which causes bizarre effects is potentially a defence. Essentially, these are issues that will be discussed as mitigation, to lower any potential sentence handed down, once any verdict has been delivered.
Are you ever allowed to publish an NDA?
It depends on the non-disclosure agreement at hand. They are known for being so secretive that their very existence can’t be disclosed to anyone: lawyers, employers, therapists, loved ones and so on. The document that Andrew Brady has uploaded to his Instagram and therefore, effectively, the world, is redacted in parts and therefore it’s difficult to ascertain the rules in place, who set them and why. But ordinarily there will be some kind of penalty for making the NDA public, otherwise it would hold no weight.
Following the sad news of Caroline Flack's death we have updated this article, which was originally published in December, to include contact information for Samaritans. If you want to talk to someone about your mental health, you can call Samaritans on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or get in touch via the website.