Assault and battery are very serious criminal charges in Orange County, and offenders can face extensive penalties upon conviction. If you face a criminal charge for assault and battery, retain a skilled team of criminal defense lawyers to represent you at every stage of the legal proceedings in your case—the earlier the better.
The experienced and compassionate Orange County assault/battery attorneys at Chudnovsky Law understand the uncertainty and confusion many accused individuals face. Our legal team can meet with you right away to discuss your criminal charge, as well as the circumstances leading up to your arrest.
We can also help you explore potential defenses to your assault and battery charge and determine if those defenses will likely succeed in court. If so, we can represent you at all legal proceedings in your case, including your bench or jury trial, and advocate those defenses on your behalf. Alternatively, we can help you pursue a favorable plea deal from the state prosecutor handling your case.
Whatever you decide, our legal team will be by your side every step of the way, aggressively fighting for your legal interests and pursuing the best possible result on your behalf.
For a case evaluation and consultation with an experienced Orange County assault/battery lawyer, reach out to our legal team immediately. Time is of the essence; begin protecting your rights by meeting with our firm.
Why Choose Us to Defend You in Your Assault and Battery Case?
There is no disputing that assault and battery are very serious criminal charges. Given the potential penalties upon conviction, you want to have the best possible legal team on your side defending you and advocating for your rights and interests at every stage of the proceedings.
The knowledgeable California criminal defense attorneys at Chudnovsky Law have 65+ years of experience representing individuals accused of committing crimes. Because many of us are criminal defense lawyers and former prosecutors, we understand how police officers and prosecutors build criminal cases – and what they often look for when bringing charges. We can use all of this knowledge and experience to assert a powerful legal defense on your behalf.
Our skilled legal team has defended clients in over 9,000 criminal cases and jury trials. In addition, we have fostered strong working relationships with criminal court judges and district attorneys. These relationships help us achieve favorable results for our clients, including favorable plea deals from state prosecutors.
Our lawyers have also achieved numerous recognitions from:
- Top 100 Trial Lawyers
- NBC News
- The Washington Post
- Los Angeles Times
- CBS News
- The National Trial Lawyers
- NY Daily News
Additionally, we have received numerous accolades in recent years, including:
- 10.0 Superb Rating on AVVO
- 5 Star Ratings on Google Los Angeles, Orange County, Long Beach
- Top 100 Trial Lawyers, National Trial Lawyers Association
- 5 Star Rating on Findlaw
- 5 Star Rating on Lawyers.com
- 10.0 Lawyer Rating on Justia
- Rated best criminal defense lawyers in Los Angeles & Orange County by Expertise
- 5 Star Peer-Reviewed on Martindale-Hubbell
When you allow us to defend you against your criminal assault and battery charge, you can be sure that we will work diligently to safeguard all of your legal rights and aggressively fight for a favorable case outcome on your behalf.
Working to Secure a Favorable Result in Your Criminal Case
Criminal charges can have wide-ranging and long-lasting effects on your life. The stakes are too high not to reach out for help.
At Chudnovsky Law, our experienced and compassionate legal team will do everything possible to help you obtain a favorable case result, up to a complete acquittal and dismissal of your case.
First, we can determine if you can raise a legal defense to your assault and battery charge in court. If the judge or jury accepts your defense, your entire criminal case may be subject to dismissal.
Alternatively, we can help you secure a favorable plea deal by negotiating with the district attorney on your behalf. As part of a well-crafted plea deal arrangement, we can convince the prosecutor to reduce your charge or agree to a term of probation in exchange for a guilty plea in your case.
However, by accepting a plea deal, you will effectively waive certain legal rights, including your constitutional right to a jury trial and your right of appeal. You will also need to enter into the plea deal freely and voluntarily.
Our team can explore all of your legal options, given the facts and circumstances of your pending criminal charge, and help you obtain the best possible result in your case – whether that be an acquittal, charge dismissal, or favorable plea deal with the state prosecutor.
What is Assault and Battery in California?
Under the California Penal Code, a criminal assault occurs when an individual unlawfully attempts to commit a violent injury to someone else’s person. For the offense to constitute an assault, the accused individual must have the present ability to carry out the offense.
The attempt associated with a criminal assault can include:
- Gestures
- Threats
- Actions
On the other hand, criminal battery in California is any unlawful and willful use of violence or force on someone else. Ordinarily, for an offense to constitute battery, a touching to the alleged victim’s person must occur.
Other common criminal offenses in California include aggravated assault and aggravated battery.
Aggravating factors for an assault crime frequently include:
- Assaulting a firefighter or police officer with a firearm, machine gun, semi-automatic firearm, or other deadly weapon
- Assaulting an individual with a deadly instrument or weapon that does not include a firearm
- Assault by using some type of force that is likely to result in one or more severe bodily injuries to the victim
- Assault where the accused uses an assault weapon, machine gun, or firearm
Aggravating factors for a battery crime frequently include:
- Batteries that produce one or more serious bodily injuries
- Battery that involves a fiancé, former fiancé, spouse, former spouse, parent of the accused individual’s child, or a person to whom the accused individual was engaged or dating
- Batteries that involve certain public officials, including firefighters, peace officers, security officers, medical technicians, code enforcement officers, traffic officers, and animal control officers
If you are currently pending a criminal charge for assault and battery, you should consult with an experienced Orange County assault/battery lawyer right away.
At Chudnovsky Law, our skilled legal team can help defend you throughout your case and pursue a dismissal of your assault and battery charge by raising a successful defense on your behalf in court.
What Are the Potential Penalties Upon Conviction for Assault/Battery?
To obtain criminal penalties on an assault and battery charge, the district attorney handling your case must satisfy their legal burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
This is a very high legal burden to satisfy, and if the prosecutor does not prove their case successfully, you will not be subject to a criminal conviction or any criminal penalties.
The potential penalties upon conviction for aggravated assault include a maximum of 12 years of incarceration. Moreover, a conviction for aggravated battery can result in four years of incarceration.
In addition to serving potential jail time, convicted offenders may also be subject to other serious penalties, including:
- Payment of high monetary fines
- Supervised or unsupervised periods of probation
- Protective orders that prevent the accused individual from contacting a spouse, domestic partner, or minor children
- A prohibition from owning or possessing firearms
In addition to incurring these legal penalties upon conviction for assault and battery, an accused individual may also face numerous collateral consequences upon conviction.
First, the accused may suffer significant harm to their personal and professional reputations in the community. In addition, they may have difficulty finding or keeping a job. This complication is common because employers typically perform online criminal background checks on prospective employees.
Similarly, an individual with an assault and battery conviction on their record may have trouble gaining admission to a college, university, or other educational program of their choosing.
Educational institutions, like employers, frequently perform online criminal background checks as part of the application process. If they determine that an applicant has a conviction on their record for assault and battery, they may deny the applicant admission to the educational institution or program.
Additionally, if the individual is already a student, the educational institution may stop their current financial aid or scholarship funds. Finally, individuals with assault and battery convictions may have difficulty finding a place to live – especially at an apartment.
If you face a criminal charge for assault and battery, the experienced and compassionate Orange County criminal defense lawyers at Chudnovsky Law can assist.
Our legal team can represent you at your criminal sentencing hearing and pursue the least possible penalty on your behalf. We can also work to minimize any collateral consequences that you experience due to your assault and battery conviction.
Successfully Defending against Criminal Assault/Battery Charges in Court
In a criminal case, the accused individual has no obligation to prove anything in the case or establish any legal burden of proof. However, the accused individual, through their defense attorney, can argue one or more legal defenses at trial
Legal defenses work to poke holes in the prosecutor’s case and may ultimately negate one or more legal elements of the underlying charge. If that happens in your case, we can work to dismiss your assault and battery charge.
Some of the most common defenses that an accused individual can raise in response to a criminal charge of assault and battery include:
- Lack of the necessary criminal intent to commit the offense
- Alibi, meaning that you were somewhere else at the time of the alleged criminal offense
- Mistaken identity, meaning that the police officer arrested the wrong person for the offense
- Fourth Amendment violations, where a police officer violated your constitutional right against unreasonable searches and seizures
- Fifth Amendment violations, where a government official violated your constitutional right against self-incrimination, such as by questioning you after you already asserted your right to the presence of legal counsel
- Self-defense, where you used a proportionate amount of force, and the alleged victim was the initial aggressor
- Defense of others, where you used an appropriate (and proportionate) amount of force to defend someone else
Our legal team can help you determine if you are eligible to raise one or more of these legal defenses at your criminal court trial. If you are, we can raise the appropriate defense on your behalf and pursue a complete dismissal of your criminal case.
What Should You Do if You Face Criminal Charges for Assault/Battery in California?
If you’re currently pending a criminal charge for assault and battery, you should first speak with legal counsel as quickly as possible. At Chudnovsky Law, we can promptly enter an appearance on your behalf and begin safeguarding your legal and constitutional rights while your criminal case is pending.
During this time, you should not speak with police officers, investigators, or other government officials about your case without first having legal counsel present with you. If you say something incriminating in response to a question, the police officer or state prosecutor can use that statement against you at trial.
Contact an Experienced Orange County Assault/Battery Lawyer Today
Criminal assault and battery charges are serious and frequently incur significant penalties upon conviction. Therefore, you should have a skilled team of defense attorneys representing you from the very beginning stages of your case.
At Chudnovsky Law, our team will work hard to help you obtain the best possible result via a favorable trial result or plea deal with the prosecuting attorney in your case. Reach out to a Orange County criminal defence lawyer.
Facing charges of a violent crime can be life-changing and stressful. Our lawyers can offer you the support and legal representation you need. For a free case evaluation and consultation with an experienced Orange County assault/battery attorney, please call us at (949) 750-2500 or contact us online to learn more.