Is There A Difference Between Battery And Assault?

Battery is a civil term, whereas assault and battery is essentially the same thing. According to the statute, someone commits assault if they intentionally, knowingly or recklessly cause physical injury to another person, placed them in a position to reasonably fear of imminent physical injury or if they knowingly touched another with the intent to injure or provoke. If someone just insults or provokes someone that can be considered assault, which is a class III misdemeanor.

What Types of People are Charged with Assault?

People charged with assault charges are not necessarily violent people; I handled an assault charge that was not charged as assault, but rather disorderly conduct, in which the man accidentally bumped into a girl on the side of the street. People charged with assault can be of any age, although some of the most common are people in a relationship, say as a boyfriend and girlfriend, fighting at home in a domestic violence situation, or employees and employers yelling at each other on the job.

Not all assaults are physical and they don’t have to result in injury; sometimes an assault charge can come from a threat made over the phone or something that merely provokes another person, in which no one has been injured.

What Happens When Alcohol And Drugs Are Involved?

I am sure there are cases involving alcohol and drug; if someone has drugs in their possession, they can also be charged with that, which is a class VI felony drug charge. It may also go to someone’s credibility if alcohol is involved because that would affect their ability to remember, which could mean their story might be discounted when they told it. If they were not drinking and the other person claimed they had, the person charged can take a PVT to show that their BAC was really low.

What Evidence is Needed To Prosecute A Case Like That?

We would need the victim, being the person who was allegedly assaulted, to show up and then there is usually some documentation of the injury. Also, because these types of stories tend to be inconsistent, it’s necessary to establish some consistency in the stories.

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