3A.—(1) A person shall be guilty of an offence who, without lawful excuse, intentionally or recklessly—

(a) strangles or suffocates another, or

(b) causes another to believe on reasonable grounds that he or she is likely immediately to be subjected to suffocation or strangulation.

(2) In a prosecution for an offence under subsection (1), it shall be a defence for the accused to show that the other consented to the strangulation or suffocation of which the offence consists.

(3) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a class A fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or to both, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years, or to both.

(4) A person charged with an offence under subsection (1) may, if the evidence does not warrant a conviction for that offence but warrants a conviction for an offence under section 3, be found guilty of an offence under section 3.

(5) In this section and section 4A (inserted by section 22 of the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2023)—

"strangle" includes applying, directly or indirectly, force to the neck of another so as to impede breathing or the circulation of blood;

"suffocate" includes—

(a) asphyxiating another, and

(b) impeding the breathing of another, including by—

(i) covering the mouth or nose,

(ii) constricting the chest, or

(iii) blocking, by means of a foreign object, the airways,

of the other.]