Assault and battery often go hand-in-hand. It is easy to make the leap from assault to assault and battery. It’s such an easy leap that potentially millions of criminals have gotten extended sentences because of it. criminal defense in Auburn should establish a real and valid reason for that logical jump, and make sure they are not so easily connected.
Assault can be a threat. A defendant may have allegedly said that they would kill a person. But, without the action, it is not considered battery. Battery is, of course, the intention of physical harm to another.
It seems clear, but is often not. Take for example an ambiguous battery charge. A man threatened another man outside of a gym. He said that he is going to kill him. This is a clear example of assault and the predisposed threat is present. The man, after threatening, pushed the man in the shoulder. The below facts include:
* The man who punched the other did not have a weapon.
* Both men were intoxicated.
* The man who punched the other was half the size of the other man.
So, here is where the situation is muddied. The case could lead to a battery charge, but it is not clear. For one, alcohol was involved. That always blurs the matter. Furthermore, the man may not have been as threatened considering the lack of a weapon, the location of the injury, and the size of the man. These facts present a blurrier case, and would not automatically justify a battery charge.
It may be simple for the prosecution to push evidence that may be based on assumption. For example, a defendant may have a history. A witness may say that they “felt he was going to hurt him.” A fleeting feeling isn’t an actual “committing.” Even with a prior history, there was no extreme physical contact. The physical contact could have been marginal, and not worthy of any battery charge.
These examples show that there is, indeed, a gray area with battery criminal defense in Auburn. Yoder & Kraus will explore the areas that are not in cement, and potentially fight against an unnecessarily aggressive prosecution.
