Assault
An assault is an attempt by a person to commit an injury to another person. If you or your loved one is charged with assault, the best thing that you can do is contact a lawyer who will fight for your rights. The punishment for assault can be severe. Contact our Los Angeles assault defense lawyers today.
Pursuant to the California penal code there are three types of assault and each carries different punishments:
- Simple Assault
- Aggravated Assault (otherwise known as assault with a deadly weapon or assault likely to cause great bodily injury)
- Assault with the intent to commit a felony.
A simple assault is a misdemeanor. An aggravated assault can either a felony or a misdemeanor, what is commonly called a “wobbler offense” and an assault with the intent to commit a felony is a generally charged as a felony.
Simple Assault
A simple assault is a crime that occurs when a person intentionally commits an act that by its nature would directly and probably result in the application of force to another person.
There are many variations to a simple assault and there are also defenses such as self-defense that can apply when someone is charged with simple assault. Only an experienced criminal defense lawyer can know how to properly defend a person against this type of charge.
Often times a criminal defense lawyer can resolve a charge without a person serving any jail time or paying any monetary fines. The best thing a person can do for themselves is to hire a lawyer to defend them as early as possible so that they may achieve the best results.
Aggravated Assault
An assault that is likely to cause another person great bodily injury (sometimes referred to as GBI) is an aggravated assault and a much more serious version of the simple assault. The assault does not have to actually produce the great bodily injury, only that it was done with an amount of force sufficient to cause the injury.
An example is when someone attacks a person with their feet or in a manner where it would leave a person bloodied or unconscious. This constitutes enough force because if accomplished such an attack would cause great bodily injury.
Often times there is a great deal of interpretation that can be done in the defense of case alleging assault with intent to cause great bodily injury. There are several factors that play into this kind of charge and only an experienced criminal defense lawyer will know how to best approach a case such as this.
Assault With A Deadly Weapon
Another version of an aggravated assault is an assault with a deadly weapon. A deadly weapon is one that is likely to produce death or great bodily injury.
Although certain weapons by their nature, such as guns or knives, may be classified as being dangerous, the manner in which they are used has a big role in determining whether it is a deadly weapon for the purposes of assault with a deadly weapon.
Other times certain objects that are not usually considered deadly weapons may be considered so in this context. Objects such as bottles, rocks or a broomstick all serve completely different purposes but can also be used as deadly weapons.
A person's hands or feet may not constitute a “deadly weapon” as it applies to assault with a deadly weapon but still can constitute force likely to produce great bodily injury as discussed above. Assault with a firearm requires that the firearm be loaded although in some circumstances the firearm may be used to attack someone by hitting them with it and that still constitutes assault with a deadly weapon.
For more information, contact The Sigal Law Group today at (888) 335-6008.