Wounding or grievous bodily harm with intent in New South Wales.

What is the meaning of wounding with intent?

Wounding with intent is the short name for the offence in section 33 of the Crimes Act 1900. The full text sits on the NSW legislation site. The offence has three parts to it. First, the accused must either wound the other person or cause them grievous bodily harm. Second, the accused must have acted with a particular intent. Third, the Crown has to prove all of that beyond reasonable doubt.

The two injury words carry settled meanings. A wound is a breaking of both layers of the skin, the outer layer and the inner layer beneath it. A cut that goes through the skin is a wound; a scratch, a graze or a bruise on its own is not. A split lip can be a wound. Grievous bodily harm means a really serious injury. Section 4 of the Act spells out that it includes any permanent or serious disfiguring, the destruction of a foetus, and any grievous bodily disease. A broken bone, a deep stab wound, a fractured skull or a lasting brain injury will usually qualify. The injury does not have to be permanent or life-threatening to count.

What is the charge of wounding with intent in NSW?

Section 33 has two limbs, and both carry the same maximum of 25 years. The first limb, section 33(1)(a), is wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent to cause grievous bodily harm to that person or to anyone else. The second limb, section 33(1)(b), is wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent to resist or prevent the lawful arrest or detention of any person. The second limb is how the offence is charged when someone injures a police officer, or another person, while trying to get away from a lawful arrest.

The intent is the heart of the charge. It is what the courts call an offence of specific intent. It is not enough for the Crown to show that a serious injury happened, or even that the accused caused it on purpose in some general sense. The Crown has to prove that the accused actually meant to cause grievous bodily harm, or actually meant to resist arrest. A jury can work out intent from what a person did and said, from the weapon used, and from the force applied, but it is a real element that the Crown carries the burden on. Where the injury falls short of a wound or grievous bodily harm, the charge is more likely to be assault occasioning actual bodily harm or common assault.

How serious is wounding with intent?

It is the most serious of the assault charges. The maximum penalty is 25 years imprisonment, and the offence carries a standard non-parole period of 7 years. A standard non-parole period is the reference point a judge measures a mid-range case against. It is a guidepost, not a floor, and the High Court explained how it works in Muldrock v The Queen [2011] HCA 39, on JADE. The Judicial Commission of NSW collects the assault sentencing statistics and the guideline case law.

The gap between this charge and its neighbours is wide, and it is worth seeing. Recklessly causing grievous bodily harm under section 35 carries a maximum of 10 years, or 14 years if the offence is in company. Reckless wounding carries 7 years, or 10 in company. Assault occasioning actual bodily harm carries 5 years. Common assault carries 2 years. So the same physical injury can lead to a very different sentence depending on which section the conduct falls under, and the deciding factor is almost always the accused's state of mind.

Can wounding with intent be committed recklessly?

No. Section 33 needs intent, and recklessness will not do. If a person causes a wound or a serious injury by acting recklessly, meaning they foresaw the possibility of harm and went ahead anyway, the correct charge is recklessly causing grievous bodily harm or wounding under section 35. That is a serious charge in its own right, but it sits below section 33 because the offender did not mean to cause the harm. The line between the two sections is the line between meaning to and foreseeing.

This matters at trial in two ways. First, if the Crown proves the wound or the grievous bodily harm but cannot prove the intent, a jury can return a verdict on the lesser section 35 offence instead. A section 33 trial often becomes an argument about whether the accused meant to cause serious harm or only acted recklessly. Second, because section 33 is an offence of specific intent, evidence that the accused was affected by alcohol or drugs can be taken into account in deciding whether they held the intent. That is different from an offence of basic intent such as reckless wounding, where self-induced intoxication is left out of the question. Intoxication does not excuse the conduct, but it can be relevant to what the accused actually meant.

What is the average sentence for wounding with intent?

There is no single figure, and any lawyer who gives one is guessing. The offence covers a huge range, from a single punch that fractures a jaw to a sustained attack with a knife or a bottle. What can be said is that a conviction almost always brings full-time imprisonment. The standard non-parole period of 7 years anchors the exercise for a mid-range case, and a court moves up for the worst cases and down for those at the lower end.

The features that push a sentence up are familiar: a weapon, an attack on the head, more than one blow, an injury that leaves lasting damage, an offence committed in company, and an attack on a vulnerable victim. The features that pull it down are an early plea, genuine remorse, a clean record, provocation short of a defence, mental health factors, and good prospects of rehabilitation. The Judicial Commission's sentencing database shows the spread of head sentences and non-parole periods for the offence, and a proper estimate for any one case comes from matching its facts against that range.

What three factors must a judge consider when sentencing?

Sentencing is not a formula, but three things sit at the centre of it. The first is the objective seriousness of the offence: how bad the conduct was, how serious the injury was, and what the accused meant to do. The second is the subjective circumstances of the offender: their age, their record, their health, their remorse, and their prospects. The third is the purposes of sentencing set out in section 3A of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999, which include punishment, deterrence, protection of the community, and rehabilitation. A judge weighs these together in what the courts call an instinctive synthesis.

Feeding into that are the aggravating and mitigating factors in section 21A of the same Act, the maximum penalty and the standard non-parole period as reference points, and any discount for a plea of guilty. Our note on the early plea discount explains how the timing of a plea affects the sentence. For a charge this serious, the sentencing hearing is a case in itself, built on medical reports, references, and often a report from a psychologist.

Where the charge starts and how it runs.

Wounding or grievous bodily harm with intent is strictly indictable. The case begins in the Local Court, but it cannot be finalised there. It is committed to the District Court for trial or sentence, and the most serious matters can go to the Supreme Court. A trial is heard by a judge and a jury. A person charged is often on bail while the matter works through the committal, the arraignment, and the trial listing, though the seriousness of the charge means bail is not automatic and is sometimes refused.

Because the charge is serious and the intent is usually the battleground, the way the case is run from the first day matters. It starts with the brief: the statements, the medical evidence on the nature of the injury, the electronic record of any police interview, the CCTV, and the accounts of any witnesses. Anyone asked to take part in a police interview should get advice first, and our note on the recorded police interview explains why the right to silence matters. Where the charge is fought or where it goes to a contested sentence, a solicitor and barrister run it together, and our guide to working with counsel sets out how that works.

Frequently asked.

What is the meaning of wounding with intent?

It is the offence in section 33 of the Crimes Act 1900: wounding a person, or causing them grievous bodily harm, with the intent to cause grievous bodily harm or to resist a lawful arrest. A wound is a breaking of both layers of the skin. Grievous bodily harm means a really serious injury. What sets the charge apart is the intent, which the Crown must prove.

How serious is wounding with intent in NSW?

It is the most serious non-fatal assault charge in NSW. Section 33 carries a maximum of 25 years and a standard non-parole period of 7 years. It sits well above reckless wounding or reckless grievous bodily harm under section 35, and it is strictly indictable, so it is finalised in the District Court or the Supreme Court.

Can wounding with intent be committed recklessly?

No. Section 33 requires intent. If a person causes a wound or serious injury by acting recklessly rather than intentionally, the correct charge is recklessly causing grievous bodily harm or wounding under section 35. Where the Crown proves the injury but not the intent, a jury can return a verdict on the lesser section 35 offence.

What is the average sentence for wounding with intent?

There is no single average, because the offence covers everything from one blow to a sustained attack with a weapon. A conviction almost always means full-time imprisonment. The 7-year standard non-parole period is the reference point for a mid-range case, and sentences move up or down from there according to the injury, any weapon, and the offender's circumstances.

What is the lowest level of assault charge in NSW?

Common assault under section 61 of the Crimes Act 1900 is the lowest, with a maximum of 2 years. It covers an assault causing no injury, or only very minor harm, and includes acts that put a person in fear of immediate violence. Assault occasioning actual bodily harm under section 59 is the next step up.

What is the difference between actual bodily harm and common assault?

Common assault under section 61 covers an assault that causes no lasting injury, or no injury at all. Assault occasioning actual bodily harm under section 59 requires an injury that is more than merely transient, such as bruising, lacerations or lasting pain. The presence and degree of injury separates the two, and it is also what pushes the worst cases up into sections 33 and 35.

To speak to a criminal defence lawyer, call Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019.

This article is written by Aaron Kernaghan, criminal defence lawyer at Good Legal Lawyers, as at 8 July 2026. It is commentary and reflects the personal opinion of the author only. It is not legal advice, it is not a substitute for advice on your own matter, and it does not purport to be accurate or complete. Any matter referred to may be before the court and any person charged is presumed innocent. For advice on a specific matter, contact Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019 or contact the firm.

More criminal-law commentary by Aaron Kernaghan.

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