Assault and Battery Basics
Assault and battery is a criminal offense that may be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the circumstances surrounding the situation.
In actuality, assault and battery are two separate crimes, although they are typically grouped together in criminal law.
You will be charged with assault and battery if you threaten or harm another person.
An assault and battery charge can be particularly harmful if you are seeking employment or trying to rent an apartment.
No employer wants to hire someone who may pose as a threat to other workers of the company.
On a similar note, no apartment complex wants to rent to a tenant who may cause harm to the other occupants of the building or property.
If you have been charged with assault and battery, it is very important for you to seek legal help immediately so that this offense does not go on your criminal record.
If it does, then the consequences can be extremely detrimental to all areas of your life.
The Difference between Assault and Battery Even though assault and battery are commonly charged together, there is a very clear distinction between these two crimes.
An act of assault involves an intentional threat of harm directed at another individual.
For example, threatening to beat someone up if he or she does not give you money is considered to be assault.
Battery, on the other hand, is the act of actually physically harming or degradingly touching another person (spitting on someone else, for example).
It involves direct contact between the offender and the victim.
For example, actually beating someone else up in order to steal his or her money will be considered as battery.
In general, basic assault and battery will be charged as a higher-level misdemeanor.
Aggravated Assault and Battery Assault and battery is elevated to the aggravated level if it is committed with the use of a dangerous or deadly weapon, if the victim is seriously harmed, if it is committed against protected people, or if it is committed in a protected place.
For example, assault and battery committed against a child in a school zone will be charged as aggravated assault and battery.
The addition of an aggravating factor will bump assault and battery from being a misdemeanor to being charged as a felony.
Contact Us If you would like to learn more about assault and battery, the punishment for this crime in Champaign or Urbana, then the Champaign criminal defense lawyers of Thomas A.
Bruno & Associates can help.
To learn more, please visit http://www.
tombruno.
com/ today.
In actuality, assault and battery are two separate crimes, although they are typically grouped together in criminal law.
You will be charged with assault and battery if you threaten or harm another person.
An assault and battery charge can be particularly harmful if you are seeking employment or trying to rent an apartment.
No employer wants to hire someone who may pose as a threat to other workers of the company.
On a similar note, no apartment complex wants to rent to a tenant who may cause harm to the other occupants of the building or property.
If you have been charged with assault and battery, it is very important for you to seek legal help immediately so that this offense does not go on your criminal record.
If it does, then the consequences can be extremely detrimental to all areas of your life.
The Difference between Assault and Battery Even though assault and battery are commonly charged together, there is a very clear distinction between these two crimes.
An act of assault involves an intentional threat of harm directed at another individual.
For example, threatening to beat someone up if he or she does not give you money is considered to be assault.
Battery, on the other hand, is the act of actually physically harming or degradingly touching another person (spitting on someone else, for example).
It involves direct contact between the offender and the victim.
For example, actually beating someone else up in order to steal his or her money will be considered as battery.
In general, basic assault and battery will be charged as a higher-level misdemeanor.
Aggravated Assault and Battery Assault and battery is elevated to the aggravated level if it is committed with the use of a dangerous or deadly weapon, if the victim is seriously harmed, if it is committed against protected people, or if it is committed in a protected place.
For example, assault and battery committed against a child in a school zone will be charged as aggravated assault and battery.
The addition of an aggravating factor will bump assault and battery from being a misdemeanor to being charged as a felony.
Contact Us If you would like to learn more about assault and battery, the punishment for this crime in Champaign or Urbana, then the Champaign criminal defense lawyers of Thomas A.
Bruno & Associates can help.
To learn more, please visit http://www.
tombruno.
com/ today.
