Are you facing charges of an assault or battery crime in Los Angeles? If so, it is important to understand the severity of these charges and how they can adversely affect your entire life.
First and foremost, you do not have to go through this alone. In fact, you should NEVER face criminal charges like assault or battery by yourself, reach out to a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney .
The key to protecting your future and your freedom is to hire an experienced Los Angeles assault defense attorney or battery defense lawyer immediately. Even if you think the deck is stacked against you - we can help.
Proven Former DA In Your Corner
Our award-winning former prosecutor assault, battery defense lawyers have handled over 8,500 cases, including felony aggravated assault and assault with a deadly weapon charges. We know the prosecutors and the courts throughout Los Angeles, and use this knowledge to build a swift and formidable defense.
Fighting for your rights and freedoms is what we do best. It’s why so many LA residents choose us to represent them after an arrest.
Don’t spend another night worrying about the outcome of your case. Let us take some of the burden off your shoulders. Our assault and battery criminal defense lawyers can get to work quickly. But we can’t help you - until you call!
The experienced Los Angeles assault and battery lawyers at Chudnovsky Law can answer all your questions and protect you from overzealous police and prosecutors who may have arrested the wrong person or charged you with an inappropriately harsh offense.
Call us today for your free consultation to find out how our award-winning lawyers can fight to prove your innocence or secure a plea bargain for a more appropriate, lesser charge.
We offer affordable fees and flexible payment plans.
What Is Assault, and What Is Battery?
Assault and battery happen more frequently than you might think. According to the FBI, an estimated 810,825 aggravated assaults took place in the U.S. in one recent year, about 18,000 in Los Angeles alone. This does not include the many simple assault cases without a deadly weapon or other aggravating circumstances.
The California Penal Code defines assault as an unlawful attempt to commit a violent injury on the person of another. The attempt must occur with the present ability to commit the injury. Note that assault refers to the attempt to commit an injury - not the injury itself. An attempt can occur through threats, gestures, or actions that lead to the injury without causing it.
The Penal Code defines a battery as any willful and unlawful use of force or violence on another person. This happens when a person commits the violent injury they attempted in an assault.
Think of it this way - when a person lunges at someone with the intent to hit, they have committed assault. As soon as their hand contacts another person, they have committed a battery. This is why courts often charge assault and battery together. However, this is not necessary, as prosecutors often charge assault by itself in cases where the defendant attempted to hurt someone but never made contact.
Aggravated Assault and Aggravated Battery
Many factors can aggravate assault and battery offenses. Section 245 of the Penal Code states the different conditions that can aggravate a sentence for assault.
These include:
- Assault with a firearm, machine gun, or assault weapon
- Assault with a deadly weapon or instrument other than a firearm
- Assault by any means of force likely to produce great bodily injury
- Assault on a peace officer or firefighter with a deadly weapon, firearm, semi-automatic firearm, or machine gun
Section 243 of the Penal Code also lists circumstances that can aggravate a sentence for a battery:
- The battery of a peace officer, custodial officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, lifeguard, security officer, custody assistant, process server, traffic officer, code enforcement officer, animal control officer, search and rescue member, physician, or nurse engaged in rendering emergency medical care.
- A battery that results in serious bodily injury
- The battery against a spouse, former spouse, fiancé, former fiancée, parent of the defendant’s child, or a person with whom the defendant has ever had a dating or engagement relationship (domestic battery)
Aggravated assault and aggravated battery come with long prison terms and higher fines. Courts can also charge them as felonies, subjecting the defendant to additional penalties (such as losing gun ownership rights).
The Potential Consequences of a Conviction For Assault or Battery
The penalties for assault and battery can be severe. Aggravated assault can lead to a prison term of up to 12 years, and aggravated battery can result in a four-year prison sentence. There are also fines, probation fees, and other costs associated with these charges. If you plead guilty as part of a plea agreement, the prosecutor can also require you to complete anger management counseling or meet other terms as a condition of the plea deal.
In addition to prison and fines, a conviction can also make it more difficult to get a job or find housing. Prospective employers and landlords can deny your application because of a criminal record. Such persons may also ask you to disclose criminal convictions on applications for credit and financing, admission forms for educational programs, or other government documents.
Criminal convictions are generally part of the public record. It is easy for these companies and agencies to find a criminal record, and there are few legal protections for those who must disclose convictions. Companies might deny applications due to your criminal record. A defense attorney can help mitigate this collateral damage by working to dismiss improper charges or securing a plea deal to lesser charges.
The right strategy will depend on your circumstances, but there is a lot a criminal defense lawyer can do to protect you from the lifelong consequences of a conviction for assault or battery.
Domestic Violence
Many assault and battery cases involve two parties who know one another. Prosecutors can charge the offense as domestic violence when the defendant is related to the alleged victim by blood or marriage. (Domestic violence also applies if the two were ever in a sexual or dating relationship.) We have seen that a domestic battery conviction carries more severe penalties than simple battery cases.
In addition to longer prison sentences and higher fines, a domestic violence case can permanently cost you your right to own firearms under the Brady Act.
A conviction for domestic assault or battery can also affect your parenting rights and the outcome of other legal matters in the family court. The best way to mitigate this damage is to hire a defense lawyer as soon as possible. Your criminal case will affect your gun ownership and parenting rights, so you need legal advice as soon as you learn there is a criminal investigation against you.
What a Local L.A. Defense Lawyer Can Do for You
The experienced defense attorneys at Chudnovsky Law are here to help you at every step of the criminal case process. Our Los Angeles lawyers are at the top of their field: many are former prosecutors, and they know how the government will try to make a case against you. This allows us to develop effective defense strategies in all assault and battery cases.
We know when to challenge the sufficiency of the government’s evidence or ask a court to throw out evidence that the government did not obtain lawfully. We also know how to leverage plea agreements to obtain the best outcome possible in any given case. This allows us to mitigate the collateral effects a conviction has on all aspects of your life. Our attorneys have years of experience, and many clients throughout Southern California have trusted us to deliver the case results they deserve.
Our defense lawyers are also familiar with the local courts throughout Los Angeles County. You might not think this is important, but it makes a big difference in case results. Our lawyers understand the inner working of the Clerks' offices and administrative departments. This allows us to more efficiently handle the paperwork and administrative matters.
We regularly appear before many local judges, and this enables us to learn their styles. By making the arguments a particular judge finds most persuasive, we are in the best possible position to deliver results for our clients.
We also know the local prosecutors. Here, too, understanding an individual's working style leads to more effective plea negotiations.
Familiarity with local courts is just one more reason why Chudnovsky Law is the right firm for all assault and battery cases.
Assault and Battery FAQs
Are assault and battery misdemeanors?
Prosecutors generally charge simple assault and battery cases as misdemeanors. There are, however, circumstances that can aggravate the charges. We have seen that these aggravated charges lead to longer prison terms and larger fines.
Prosecutors can also charge aggravated charges as felonies. Felony convictions come with the loss of civil rights (including voting, jury service, and gun ownership). A felony conviction on your criminal record can also make it more difficult to secure a job or housing.
Do not panic if a prosecutor charges you with a felony. Your attorney can reduce the felony charge to a misdemeanor through a plea deal. It is also possible to earn a misdemeanor designation by successfully meeting the terms of probation.
The sooner you have a defense lawyer fighting on your side, the better options you will have for mitigating assault and battery charges to keep a felony off your criminal record.
Will a conviction affect the outcome of other legal proceedings?
Many related legal proceedings can accompany criminal assault and battery charges. The alleged victim might take out a restraining order against you or even file a civil claim for compensation for their injuries.
If you have children, the other parent can ask the family court to restrict your parenting rights based on the incident that led to the criminal charges. (The incident does not even have to involve your children.)
Call us to resolve some of these matters immediately. A restraining order is a same-day court order, and a family court can issue temporary parenting orders without waiting for a criminal case to reach its resolution. Despite this, the outcome of your criminal charges does affect your legal rights in these related cases. The family court is unlikely to enter permanent custody orders until your criminal case reaches its conclusion.
Custody judges understand that the criminal court will explore the allegations in greater detail, and they trust the findings of these more thorough proceedings. This is just one more reason why you need a defense lawyer on your side as soon as you learn that anyone has accused you of assault or battery.
Will a conviction for assault or battery affect my visa or green card?
Arrests and convictions for any criminal offense can jeopardize your lawful immigration status in the U.S. Consult both a criminal defense attorney and an immigration lawyer as soon as you learn of any charges against you.
The sooner a defense lawyer is involved, the better options they have for resolving your case. This, in turn, can mitigate the effects of criminal charges on your immigration status. When your criminal defense lawyer can consult with your immigration attorney early in the case, they can work together to create a comprehensive legal strategy that protects your rights in both the criminal court and the immigration court.
Are there any legal defenses to assault or battery?
Yes! As assault requires the legal intent to carry out a criminal threat. A threat made in jest that no reasonable person can take seriously may not justify assault charges.
A defendant can challenge a battery charge if they were acting in self-defense, the defense of others, or even the defense of property. Battery also requires a defendant to make physical contact with the alleged victim against their will. If the event did not involve contact, or if the parties consented to the contact (for example, by entering a boxing match), then battery did not occur as a matter of law. These are just a few of many examples.
An experienced defense lawyer will know the best defense to use in any given situation.
The Right Los Angeles Defense Lawyers to Defend Against Your Assault and Battery Charges
In the criminal court, defendants face the full power of the government. Prosecutors and police work together against these defendants to get convictions however they can. You don’t have to face this powerful system on your own. You have the right to hire a lawyer to protect you from any violations of your constitutional rights.
At Chudnovsky Law, we fight hard to protect our clients’ legal rights. We have experience in handling all types of assault and battery charges. Contact us for your free consultation at (213) 212-5002. The sooner you have an experienced defense lawyer fighting on your side, the better we can protect your legal rights.
Los Angeles
Address: 1933 S Broadway #1100,Los Angeles, CA 90007
Phone: (213) 212-5002
Fax: 844 325-1444