:''For the [[tort]]ious aspects of assault, see [[Assault (tort)]].'' {{otheruses}}
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{{CrimLaw}}
'''Assault''' is a [[crime]] of [[violence]] against another [[human|person]]. In some [[jurisdiction]]s, including [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]] assault refer to an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence, while in other jurisdictions, such as the [[United States]], assault refers only to the threat of violence caused by an immediate show of force. '''Simple assaults''' that do not involve any [[Aggravation (legal concept)|aggravation]] such as use of a deadly [[weapon]] are distinguished from aggravated assaults in some jurisdictions.

Assault is often defined to include not only violence, but any physical contact with another person without their consent. In [[common law]] jurisdictions, including [[England and Wales]] and the USA, [[battery (crime)|battery]] is the crime that represents the unlawful physical contact, though this distinction does not exist in all jurisdictions. Exceptions exist to cover unsolicited physical contact which amount to normal social behavior (for example, patting someone on the back): see (in England and Wales) ''Collins v. Wilcox'' [1984] 3 All ER 374.

In most jurisdictions, the intention to cause grievous bodily harm (or its equivalent) may amount to the mental requirement to prefer a charge of [[murder]] in circumstances where the harm inflicted upon the victim proves fatal. In England and Wales, this fact was criticised by Lord Edmund-Davies in ''Cunningham'' [1982] AC 566.

==American jurisprudence==
American [[common law]] has traditionally defined assault as an attempt to commit a [[battery (crime)|battery]].

Assault is typically treated as a [[misdemeanor]] and not as a [[felony]] (unless it involves a [[law enforcement]] officer). The more serious crime of aggravated assault is treated as a felony.

Four elements were required at common law:
# The apparent, present ability to carry out;
# An unlawful attempt;
# To commit a violent injury;
# Upon another.

Simple assault can be distinguished without the intent of injury upon another person. Simple assault can consist simply of the violation of ones personal space or touching in a way the victim deemed inappropriate. (i.e. ones personal space consists of arms reach.)

As the criminal law evolved, element one was weakened in most jurisdictions so that a reasonable fear of bodily injury would suffice. These four elements were eventually codified in most states.

Modern American statutes define assault as:
# an attempt to cause or purposely, knowingly, or recklessly causing bodily injury to another; or,
# negligently causing bodily injury to another with a deadly weapon.

Some states also define assault as an attempt to menace (or actual menacing) by placing another person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury.

States vary whether it is possible to commit an "attempted assault" since it can be considered a double [[inchoate offense]].

In some states, [[consent (criminal)|consent]] is a complete defense to assault. In other jurisdictions, mutual consent is an incomplete defense, with the result that the misdemeanor is treated as a ''petty misdemeanor''.

Furthermore, the crime of assault generally requires that both the perpetrator and the victim of an assault are human. Thus, there is no assault if an ox gores a man. However, the [[Unborn Victims of Violence Act|Unborn Victims of Violence Act of 2004]] treats the [[fetus]] as a separate person for the purposes of assault and other violent crimes, under certain limited circumstances. See [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c108:5:./temp/~c1082ah2oE::| H.R. 1997 / P.L. 108-212]

Some possible examples of defenses, mitigating circumstances, or failures of proof are:
*A defendant could argue that since he was drunk, he could not form the [[intention (criminal)|specific intent]] to commit assault. This defense would most likely fail since only involuntary [[intoxication defense|intoxication]] is accepted as a defense in most American jurisdictions.
*A defendant could also argue that he was engaged in mutually consensual behavior.

==Aggravated assault==
[[Aggravation (legal concept)|Aggravated]] assault is, in some jurisdictions, a stronger form of assault, usually using a deadly weapon.<ref>{{cite web | title=Crime in the United States 2004: Aggravated Assault | work=[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] | url=http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius_04/offenses_reported/violent_crime/aggravated_assault.html}}</ref> A person has committed an aggravated assault when that person:
* attempts to cause [[Grievous bodily harm|serious bodily injury]] to another person; or
* causes such injury purposely, knowingly, or recklessly in circumstances where the person has exhibited indifference to human life; or
* attempts or causes bodily injury to another person with a deadly weapon.

Aggravated assault is usually differentiated from simple assault by the offender's intent (i.e., to [[murder]], to [[rape]] etc.), the extent of the injury to the [[victim's rights group|victim]], or the use of a deadly [[weapon]], although [[law|legal]] definitions vary between jurisdictions. [[sentence (law)|Sentence]]s for aggravated assault are generally more severe, reflecting the greater degree of harm or malice intended by the [[perpetrator]].

==General defenses to assaults==
'''Although the range and precise application of defenses varies between jurisdictions, the following represents a list of the defenses that may apply to all levels of assault:'''

===Consent===
[[consent (criminal)|Consent]] may be a complete or partial defense to assault. In some jurisdictions, most notably [[England]], it is not a defense where the degree of injury is severe, as long as there is no legally recognised good reason for the assault.<ref>(RvG ref 6. 1980): see [http://www.lawteacher.net/Criminal/Non%20Fatal%20Assaults/Consent%20R%20v%20Brown.htm R v Brown (1993) 2 All ER 75])</ref>. This can have important consequences when dealing with issues such as consensual [[sadomasochism|sadomasochistic]] [[sexual activity]], the most notable case being the [[Operation Spanner]] case. Legally recognised good reasons for consent include; surgery, activities within the rules of a game (Burnes), bodily adornment (R v Wilson), or horseplay (Jones and others). However, any activity outside the rules of the game is not legally recognised as a defence of consent.

===Arrest and other official acts===
[[Police officers]] and court officials have a general power to use force for the purpose of effecting an [[arrest]] or generally carrying out their official duties. Thus, a court officer taking possession of goods under a court order may use force if reasonably necessary.
However in Scottish Law, consent is not a defense for assault.

===Punishment===
In some jurisdictions, [[caning]] and other forms of [[corporal punishment]] are a part of the [[culture]]. Evidently, if it is a state-administered [[punishment]], e.g. as in [[Singapore]], the officers who physically administer the punishment have [[immunity (legal)|immunity]]. Some states also permit the use of less severe punishment for [[child]]ren in [[school]] and at home by [[parent]]s. In [[English law]], s58 [[Children Act 2004]], limits the availability of the lawful correction defense to common assault under s39 [[Criminal Justice Act 1988]].



===Prevention of crime===
This may or may not involve self defense in that, using a reasonable degree of force to prevent another from committing a crime could involve preventing an assault, but it could be preventing a crime not involving the use of personal violence.

===Defense of property===
Some states allow force to be used in [[defense of property]], to prevent damage either in its own right, or under one or both of the preceding classes of defense in that a threat or attempt to damage property might be considered a crime (in English law, under s5 [[Criminal Damage Act 1971]] it may be argued that the defendant has a ''lawful excuse'' to damaging property during the defense and a defense under s3 [[Criminal Law Act 1967]]) subject to the need to deter [[vigilante]]s and excessive self-help.

==Assault in England and Wales==
In England and Wales, an assault consists of a person '''intentionally or recklessly causing another person to apprehend immediate and unlawful violence.'''

Causing a person to apprehend violence can be committed by way of action or words: ''Ireland'' [1998] AC 147. Of course, words can also mean that otherwise threatening actions are rendered not capable of being an assault, as in the celebrated case of ''Tuberville v. Savage'' (1669 1 Mod 3, T). In that case, the Defendant told the Complainant (while putting his hand on his sword) that he would ''not'' stab him, because the circuit judge was visiting town for the local assizes. On that basis, the Complainant was deemed to have known that he was not about to be injured, and no assault was held to have been committed.

The "immediacy" required has been the subject of some debate. The leading case, again, is ''Ireland'' [1998] AC 147. The House of Lords held that the making of silent telephone calls could amount to an assault, if it caused the victim to believe that physical violence might be used against him in the immediate future. One example of "immediacy" adopted by the House in that case was that a man who said, "I will be at your door in a minute or two," might (in the circumstances where those words amounted to a threat) be guilty of an assault.

Section 39 of the [[Criminal Justice Act 1988]] provides that common assault, like battery, is triable only in the [[magistrates court]] in England and Wales (unless it is linked to a more serious offense which is triable in the [[Crown Court]]). Additionally, if a Defendant has been charged on an indictment with assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH), or racially/religiously aggravated assault, then a jury in the Crown Court may acquit the Defendant of the more serious offense, but still convict of common assault if it finds common assault has been committed.

Because common assault is a summary-only offense, its maximum penalty is six months' imprisonment, or a "[[standard scale|level 5 fine]]" (currently up to £5,000). The "starting sentence" for a first time offender pleading guilty is normally a community penalty.

===Variations of assault in England and Wales===

[[English law]] makes distinctions based on the degree of injury, between:
* [[common assault]] (which includes even the most minor assault), and:
* assault occasioning [[actual bodily harm]] (ABH).

Furthermore, English law also provides for the offense of [[grievous bodily harm]] (GBH). GBH may be committed by way of an assault, though an assault is not a necessary ingredient of either inflicting grievous bodily harm pursuant to s20 of the [[Offences Against The Person Act 1861]] or causing grievous bodily harm with intent pursuant to s18 of the same Act (''Ireland'' [1998] AC 147, per Lord Steyn at p. 160).

====Racially/religiously aggravated assault====
If an assault is prosecuted as being racially or religiously aggravated, then it is triable either way (in the Crown Court or magistrates court). The maximum penalty in this case is up to two years' imprisonment, or a fine of up to the statutory maximum.

====Assault with intent to resist arrest====
The offender may intend to resist either his own or someone else's arrest. This offense is also triable either way, and punishable by up to two years' imprisonment.

====Assault upon a constable in the execution of his duty====
This offense is triable only in the magistrates court, so the maximum sentence is six months' imprisonment. The "starting sentence," however, is a short custodial sentence, and it is considered a more serious offense than common assault.

The constable (normally a police officer) must be acting "in the execution of his duty" for this offense to be made out. If he exceeds the remit of his duty (e.g. acts unlawfully in assaulting the Defendant), the offense will not be made out.

The Defendant does not actually have to be aware that the person he is assaulting is a constable (''Forbes'' (1865) 10 Cox CC 362).

==See also==
* [[Affray]]
* [[Battery (crime)]]
* [[Assault (tort)]]
* [[Street fighting]]
* [[Domestic violence]]
* [[Gay-bashing]]
* [[Hate crime]]
* [[Mayhem (crime)|Mayhem]]
* [[Misdemeanor]]
* [[Offences Against The Person Act 1861]]
* [[Terrorism|Terrorist threats]]

==References==
<references />

==External links==
* [http://www.crime-prevention.de/44101/44701.html| Crime prevention: theory & practice]
* [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c108:5:./temp/~c1082ah2oE::| H.R. 1997 / P.L. 108-212] Unborn Victims of Violence Act of 2004
[[Category:Assault|*]]
[[Category:Crimes]]
[[Category:Violence]]

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