Sorry to hear about the phone. It sounds like you've been unlucky crime-wise. In 15 years in London I only personally knew one person who was mugged - though I suppose I witnessed and was aware of other nasty stuff, including my partner having her bag stolen in a pub. I sympathise with you for being 'stuck' in London. Work reasons (working in the voluntary sector/peace/anti-nuclear) meant it was hard to go anywhere else easily - and that kept me there longer than I'd have chosen. It was having kids that provided the final impetus to go - moving to Dorset, to join the police ironically enough. Still, I miss the galleries, the shops, the 'culture' and the ability to cycle anywhere I wanted relatively quickly and safely - which I certainly can't do in Dorset. So enjoy the benefits while you stay. Oh - by the way, being spat at is definitely an offence. It is an assault, usually classified as 'assault by beating', although I know that doesn't sound right. Also, it can yield good DNA evidence for obvious reasons - so can be quite detectable!