Every person commits an offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to a fine not exceeding $400 who assaults any constable in the execution of his duty or any officer of a penal institution in the execution of his duty or any traffic officer in the execution of his duty.

Nothing in section 66 of the Summary Proceedings Act 1957 (which relates to the right of a defendant to elect trial by jury) shall apply with respect to any offence charged under this section.

For the purposes of this section, the terms ‘officer’ and ’penal institution’ have the meanings assigned to them in section 2 of the Penal Institutions Act 1954 and the term ‘traffic officer’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 2(1) of the Transport Act 1962.”