Assault & Battery Attorney in Chicago, Illinois
When Does Assault Become Aggravated Assault?
When Does Assault Become Aggravated Assault?
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Assault and battery are always being confused by people. People interchange them. They say assault when they actually mean a battery. They say a battery when they sometimes mean assault. An assault is actually the imminent threat of harm. If you threat harm with a weapon and or with any type of a weapon, it can become an aggravated assault. But it’s the imminent threat of harm where the other person feels that he is going to be immediately hurt. If you threat harm in the future, that is not an assault. If you then proceed and harm the individual, then it becomes a battery. And if you harm the individual with a weapon – a bludgeon, a knife, a gun, whatever it is, a hammer, a stick – then it could become an aggravated battery. It depends on the injury. It could become aggravated battery if the injuries are a lot more severe. It can be aggravated battery even if the injuries are not severe but the individual is law enforcement, for example. So there’s different levels in the progression between assault to aggravated assault to battery and aggravated battery.
Chicago, IL criminal defense attorney Gal Pissetzky talks about when an assault rises to the level of aggravated assault. Assault and battery are commonly confused terms, with individuals frequently interchanging them. People often use “assault” when referring to battery and vice versa. In accurate legal terms, assault involves the imminent threat of harm. If a person threatens harm using a weapon, it can escalate to aggravated assault, creating a situation where the other party genuinely fears immediate harm. Importantly, the threat must be immediate for it to be considered assault; if the harm is threatened in the future, it does not constitute assault.
Once the threat is followed by actual harm, the offense transitions into a battery. The severity of the harm inflicted determines whether it might be considered aggravated battery, especially when a weapon is involved. Various weapons, such as bludgeons, knives, guns, hammers, or sticks, can elevate the charge to aggravated battery, depending on the injuries sustained. The severity of injuries is a key factor, but in some cases, the victim’s identity, such as being a law enforcement officer, can also lead to a charge of aggravated battery. The legal spectrum spans from assault to aggravated assault to battery and finally to aggravated battery, each level marked by different degrees of severity and circumstances.
