Whether you are the victim of assault, assault and battery, or aggravated assault, you need to know how to recognize it and what to do.
Assault is generally described as an intentional attempt to injure another person, although the definition of assault will differ from state to state. You should refer to the laws of your state for guidance on how your assault case might be classified. There are various categories of assault and sub-categories within those, although some states recognize the different levels of harm that assaults can cause by classifying assaults in order of seriousness. First degree is the most serious, second degree is less serious, and third degree is the least serious.
The first thing to be aware of is that you do not need to be physically injured or suffer bodily harm in order to be the victim of assault. Depending on the circumstances, threats or threatening behavior can also constitute assault. The act of threatening you verbally may not be enough to constitute an assault unless the offender backs it up with actions that put you in reasonable fear of imminent harm; this is because courts are aware that in the heat of the moment, people make empty threats.
The crime of assault occurs when the offender intends to hurt the victim, threatens or attempts to do so, and appears to have the ability to carry out the threat or attempt. You must become reasonably afraid of suffering imminent bodily harm in order for the offender to have committed assault. In this type of assault, the crime is the act of making the victim afraid, and the fear felt by the victim must be that of a reasonable person in a similar situation.
If the offender attempts to cause or knowingly/recklessly causes bodily injury to you, they are guilty of simple assault. This is so even if the offender did not intend to cause harm to you in particular. As long as that offender acts in a way that is considered dangerous to other people, they can be charged with assault.
The crime of battery is committed when an offender either injures you or makes contact in an offensive manner. Contact is unnecessary for a crime of assault, but for a crime of battery, offensive or illegal contact must have taken place, and in fact assault is sometimes described as attempted battery. Many states combine the crime of battery with that of assault, and you may note references in your state to the single crime of assault and battery.
An offender who attempts to cause, or knowingly/recklessly causes you serious bodily injury—under circumstances showing a careless disregard for your welfare—is guilty of aggravated assault. It is classed as a felony and may involve an assault committed with a weapon or with the intent to commit a serious crime such as rape. It will be possible to get what would have been a simple assault case upgraded to an aggravated assault case if you fall within a particular class of individuals such as firefighters, police officers and teachers acting in accordance with your employment.
Whichever category of assault that you have been affected by, you should consider taking the following action as appropriate:
Assault is a crime; depending on the facts, the applicable state law, and the prosecuting attorney’s assessment of the case, an assault prosecution can be quite complex. You need to ensure that you have provided the law enforcement authorities with all of the information that they need in order to achieve a satisfactory outcome on your behalf.