Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Battery and Assault – What are the laws and consequences?

Battery is a crime which is not very specific or narrow in its scope. As per Memphis, TN criminal defense lawyers, any violence towards another individual may be considered battery. Intentional touching of someone in anger, grabbing someone’s arm or manhandling someone, shoving, punching, and hitting someone with an object, and even throwing an object at a person with an intention of striking them are all classified as battery.

On the other hand, assault is a crime that is very state specific where the exact technical definition of assault may slightly vary from state to state. For the most part, assault and the crime of battery go hand in hand. Some states even define the crime altogether as “assault and battery” while other states do not require that any physical contact even be made to charge a person with assault.

There other ways to get into trouble with the law. One of the main one is when you are driving and if you are driving drunk, all the more for the law to get you. But this does not mean that law enforcement should be able to run roughshod over you. Press right here to obtain that ideal and high performance DUI legal help.

No ambiguity here

Just the act of a threat is enough to charge a person with the crime of assault. Therefore, anyone that walks towards another person in a menacing manner, or verbally says that they will cause harm to them, clenches their fist or raises their fist, or attempts to physically attack another individual in any manner of form can be and will be charged with the crime of assault.

It should now be clear that the instances constituting assault are all rather subjective. Therefore to determine if a threat was actually a threat, the judicial system will consider whether a reasonable person would have felt threatened under the same circumstances. The response of this reasonable person will determine if an assault was committed or not.

When does assault and battery charges escalated to felony crimes?

Under the above mentioned circumstances, the crime of assault and battery is generally a misdemeanor crime. However, from the words of Memphis legal representatives, there are particular situations in which an assault and battery charge may become a felony crime. For the crime to qualify as a felony, there must be a much graver or serious threat, or the victim should have experienced a significantly more violent experience than just a shove or a slap.

You may have a bad day. You may have a customer cancel and order or a neighbor's dog could have attacked your child. You have the right to be upset but this does not mean you can start whaling on someone. This could just make things worse and certainly for you. This is where https://usattorneys.com/ should come into the picture. Just because you made a mistake and overreacted does not mean you should be vilified like the Joker or Galvetron. You are willing to apologize and be civil about it. The court should see this. Your Memphis criminal defense lawyer may just be able to save you from receiving the brunt of the law.
Apart from this there are specific cases in which assault is a felony crime. Hitting someone with a deadly weapon, shooting at someone or pointing a gun at someone threateningly or assault with the intention of further crimes such as robbing or raping, are all felonies.

Assault while attempting to conceal identity, assault against a police officer, doctor, social service worker, and disabled or senior person, and assault leading to serious bodily injury or permanent disfigurement are also classified as felony or aggravated assault and battery, according to Memphis criminal defense lawyers.

Repercussions of an aggravated\felony assault conviction

A felony assault or battery conviction will result in multiple punishments. The convict may be handed a prison sentence ranging anywhere between one to twenty five years in prison depending on the severity of the crime, the convicts past criminal record and the discretion of the judge. Convicts may also be instructed to complete an anger management course. If you have been charged with assault and battery it would be prudent to put your faith in a resolute and focused Memphis criminal defense lawyer. 

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