ASSAULT AND BATTERY

California Assault and Battery Personal Injury Attorneys

Although we generally associate assault and battery as a single offense, they are really two distinct torts under common law and are comprised of different elements. You could be the victim of an assault without a battery, or of a battery without an assault.

If you have been the victim of an assault or a battery, you have the right to file a lawsuit against the offender and other responsible parties in some cases. With the representation of experienced California assault and battery injury lawyers, you may be able to recover monetary compensation for your injuries.

Assault

Under California law, an assault is an unlawful attempt to commit a violent injury on another person, or is conduct that is likely result in that person applying force on someone. For example, taking a swing at someone but missing but done so with the intent to inflict bodily harm on that person is an assault. In other words, an assault is an attempted battery.

Some examples of assault cases include the following:

  • Domestic abuse

  • Physical assault

  • Verbal assault such as a threat to inflict imminent bodily harm

  • Assault with a deadly weapon, such as robbery

  • Sexual assault

  • Assault at a bar, nightclub or office. You may also have a civil case against the owner for failing to provide adequate security.

Sexual assault includes many variations such as rape, aggravated rape, incest and molestation as well as sexual harassment, exhibitionism and voyeurism. Drugging someone and then committing sexual acts on the unconscious person is a sexual assault or a battery.

People who are most at risk for assaults are women, children and the elderly. In many cases, the victim is assaulted by someone with whom he or she is familiar such as a spouse, family member, friend or acquaintance. While some assaults are committed by strangers, others are hate crimes against targeted populations.

Battery

While an assault does not require physical contact, a battery does. Battery is an act of nonconsensual or offensive touching coupled with an intent to make the contact. You need not suffer any physical injury to be the victim of a battery, though for civil purposes the compensation you would obtain is based on the seriousness of your injury.

Just as assault is an attempted battery, a battery is a completed assault. Sexual battery, or the nonconsensual touching of a person’s intimate parts for sexual gratification, arousal or abuse is often the subject of a civil suit.

Contact Tovarian Law

Assault and battery are serious criminal offenses that are strictly prosecuted. If you were the victim of an assault or battery, immediately contact our attorneys at Tovarian Law for a free consultation to discuss your legal options.