ASSAULT ON AUTHORITY

The crime of attack against the authority is regulated in art. 550 of the Penal Code, which punishes persons who assault, or with serious intimidation or violence, seriously resist the authority, its agents or public officials, or attack them, when they are in the exercise of the functions of their positions or on the occasion of them. These acts are punishable by a prison sentence of 1 to 4 years and a fine of 3 to 6 months, if the attack is against an authority, or a prison sentence of 6 months to 3 years in other cases.

What requirements must be met in order to appreciate this crime? According to the Supreme Court, in STS No. 750/2021 of October 6, the elements of this crime are the following:

• The victim’s status as an authority, agent or public official.
• That the victim is in the performance of his or her duties or that the act was motivated by the victim’s previous actions in the performance of such duties.
• The commission of an assault (assaulting or attacking in a violent manner), use of force, serious intimidation or serious active resistance (e.g. resisting arrest by punching and kicking).
• Finally, the perpetrator must be aware of the victim’s status as an authority, agent or public official. Therefore, in those cases in which the assaulted agent is not on duty and is not in uniform, it is necessary that he identifies himself as such to the author, otherwise this last requirement demanded by the Supreme Court would not be met. Previously, some Courts also required that the action be performed with the intent to offend the principle of authority, but nowadays this subjective element is no longer required.

This is a crime of mere activity, which does not require causing an injury. If the latter occurs, the perpetrator will be punished for the commission of a crime of assault and, in addition, for the corresponding crime of injury (STS No. 750/2021 of October 6).

The conduct described in the preceding paragraph is also punishable, with the same penalty, if it is directed against a member of the Armed Forces, as well as when the perpetrator uses violence or intimidation against persons who come to the aid of the victim, firefighters or members of health personnel or rescue teams intervening in a disaster or emergency situation to prevent them from performing their duties or private security personnel acting under the command of the Security Forces and Corps.

The penalty is increased (imprisonment of 1 to 6 years and a fine of 6 to 12 months) if the authority against whom the attack is made is a member of the Government, the Congress of Deputies, the Senate or the Legislative Assemblies of the Autonomous Communities, local Corporations, the General Council of the Judiciary, a Magistrate of the Constitutional Court, a judge, magistrate or member of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

Aggravated modalities

The higher penalties shall be imposed when any of the following circumstances are present (art. 551 of the Penal Code):

1. The crime is committed using weapons or other dangerous objects.
2. The act of violence is life-threatening or may cause serious injury (e.g., throwing of blunt objects or flammable liquids, fire and use of explosives).
3. The authority is accosted using a motor vehicle.
4. The events take place on the occasion of a riot or collective incident within a penitentiary center.