Assault: Legal Definition, Elements, Examples, Charges, Penalties and Defenses

In criminal law, “assault” means that you intentionally make someone afraid that they’re about to be physically hurt or touched in a way that feels wrong. Even though the states may have their own way of defining it, you’ll still see the same few elements that are needed to prove assault.

What Are the Elements of an Assault Case?

First, you need to mean for your actions to make another person feel scared of being hurt by you. Just doing something by accident isn’t enough for you to be charged with assault. You have to actually mean to cause that worry in them. Next, the prosecutor has to show that the person on the other end believed that they could be harmed or touched by you. This means that the victim saw what you did and could also tell that you might actually go through with it. Other people, when looking at the same situation, would also feel nervous or threatened if they were in that place.

That immediate sense of physical danger can help establish it as assault.

When you try to support an assault charge then you’ll use police reports, stories from people who saw what happened and, in some cases, medical records. Other facts that are connected to the event might also come into play.

In many states, assault is described as trying to commit battery. But it helps to keep in mind that assault and battery aren’t the same thing. Most places treat them separately. Here’s a quick way for you to tell them apart: battery means that there’s force or contact, while assault just needs you to feel that you’re about to get hurt, even if no one actually touches you.

What Are Some Examples of Assault?

If you try to spit on the victim, it counts. You might also see someone who’s just pretending to hit, gesture, or kick the victim without actually doing it. Even a feigned motion can cause fear of real harm.

If you hold up any weapon and make it look like you’re going to use it against the victim – this falls under this category as well. Even if you point a gun at the victim, it still fits in here. It doesn’t matter if the gun is loaded or not.

Is It Necessary to Strike Someone In Order to Be Found Guilty of Assault?

You don’t have to actually hit someone to be guilty of the crime of assault. It’s more about perceived threat than action. The law doesn’t require any physical contact at all between people. What matters is if someone reasonably believes that they’re about to be harmed or treated in an offensive way by you.

Some actions can make it much easier to prove that an assault happened. For example, if you get right up in someone’s face in an aggressive way – maybe you’re yelling, spitting or threatening to hit them with something you’re holding. The issue is creating that immediate sense of threat.

But things are pretty different if you’re just joking around with a friend of yours. If you’re laughing together and you pretend to slap them, you’re not likely to be charged with any assault.

Context does make a difference.

What Are the Penalties for Assault?

The penalties for assault change depending on the state laws, the facts of your situation, and the type of assault that’s involved.

If you face a charge and you get convicted of simple assault (where no weapon was used), that still counts as a misdemeanor in most cases. For these misdemeanors, you could actually be looking at as much as a year in the county jail, and some fines that often stay under $1,000.

Things start to get much worse with the other types of assault. These can cause felony charges for you. If you get convicted of felony assault, you might serve a year or more in a state prison and face some criminal fines that can vary from $100 to over $5,000.

The judges might increase the prison time and the fines if you have any prior convictions. If you’ve been found guilty of crimes before then you’ll probably have much harder penalties than someone with a clean record.

Are There Any Legal Defenses to Assault Charges?

You have a few different defenses that you can use if you’re facing assault charges. Which ones will work for you can depend on the facts of your situation and the laws where your case is being heard.

If you were involuntarily intoxicated, you could still be able to say that you didn’t intend to commit the assault or didn’t know what was happening at the time. This could happen if someone slipped a drug into your drink and you had no idea about it.

A defense can come down to the prosecution not having proof or evidence. If the prosecutor can’t show every part of the alleged assault or doesn’t have enough evidence to back up the charges, you could dispute the case on those grounds.
There’s also the consent defense. If the other person gave clear consent to the behavior being called assault, you can raise that as a defense.

If you acted under duress or coercion, you might have another viable defense. This can happen if someone forced you to choose between committing the assault or suffering physical harm yourself. You’d be admitting that you did it while explaining the circumstances.

You can also argue self-defense or defense of others in court. In these situations, you would admit that you committed the assault but explain that you only acted to protect yourself from someone else’s threats of harm. You can also use this defense if you acted to protect another person from an initial attacker.

These defenses can result in completely dropped charges. But in other situations, they might mean that your charges are lowered from a felony to a misdemeanor. Remember that each case is different, so consider talking with a legal professional who can give you advice based on your own circumstances.

Do I Need an Attorney for Help with Assault Charges?

You may find that criminal assault charges can bring tough legal challenges your way. If this happens to you, please reach out to a local assault lawyer.

When you work with a criminal lawyer, you’ll get someone who helps you move through the court process. They also explain your rights as a defendant and they represent you in court.

Your lawyer can also look into your case to see if there are defenses that fit your situation. They may find a way to ask for reduced charges or have your case completely dropped.

You can also count on your lawyer to try to work out a good plea deal for you, if that makes sense for your case. They’ll push for what’s fair, no matter what.