Define the terms ‘Assault and Battery’

Define the terms ‘Assault and Battery’

Introduction

There is a major difference between assault and battery the former is bodily harm or threat or cause of fear in person without any actual physical interference whereas battery is causing harm to the person via direct interference. In any case, if the person hasn’t suffered actual touch and there has been the only apprehension in once mind then that is termed to be assault, even one-sided has been touched violently causing bodily pain or any kind of apprehension in mind then it is termed as a battery. Even a minor harmful self-defense someone qualifies to be bod, this defense and termed as a battery.

Assault and battery across the jurisdiction

In some jurisdiction, battery and assault both are termed to be a serious crime and are always s paired to become and are often mistaken to be the same thing. When one commits are wrong of battery then he has prior knowledge and intent the o harm any person and at different levels of assault one qualifies to commit battery like initially when one just creates apprehension in the mind of one but with the intention to use physical force later then that action is visible as assault, but in correspondence, to that, it is the first stage of battery which further move on to the second and third stage. Each degree falls under the category of serious crime.

In other jurisdictions these terms do not have a different definition, assault there is used in a broader term every act of creating apprehension in the mind of some individuals, creating nuisance and interference is qualified to be assault, further assault is also distinguished into further division and stages.

Degree of Assault

The most serious stage of assault is the first stage of assault also called an aggravated form of assault, in which the harshest punishment is awarded it generally causes severe bodily harm and extreme indifference in human values and life. It is the most serious form of assault.

The first stage of assault includes the use of most dangerous weapons and makes it most aggravated whereas the second stage uses harmful weapons as well but the major difference between both is that of the level of intention and intensity and nature of the harm caused. The third stage of committing the assault is the easiest and lightest degree where one intends to cause harm but end up not doing so, or where one harm the other but does not cause any physical harm.

Punishment for Assault and Battery

No matter under which jurisdictions the following crimes fall or what separates assault from the battery, the first degree of assault or the most aggravated one is classified as Felony. For this category, the punishment varies from 5-25 years in prison. Further moving on to second degree which also falls under the category of felony the year of punishment varies from 1-20 years. The third degree under this category is termed as a misdemeanour which means that a person can not be punished for more than a year as such no bodily injury has been caused.

Also Read: General Exceptions under IPC: Section 76-106

Variations of assault and battery

Variations in assault include sexual assault which can be on minor or major, assault on a peace officer, gang assault, assault with the intention to murder. These are generally classified as felonies. These all crimes are punished with imprisonment for a certain time along with the fine as demanded.

Defenses to assault and battery

Though there are the different definition of assault in different jurisdictions, the most common and general defense in such type of crime is mutual consent, i.e. when both the parties arrive at a common conclusion with full consent, and when there be no one-sided attack of any dominant party. Defences are not limited to this only there are some other defences as well like, defense of property, self-defense, defence of others. However, this defence can be used only when one justifies to stop the force being used against him. It’s use should be proportionate and to prevent any bodily harm, if exceeded then victim may became the culprit.

Case of threatening behavior ( example for assault and battery)
Tossing a stone at somebody to hit him is battery if the stone in truth strikes the individual and is an ambush if the stone misses. The way that the individual may have been ignorant that the stone had been tossed at him is unimportant under this meaning of ambush.

A few purviews have fused the meaning of common attack into the meaning of the wrongdoing making it a criminal ambush to purposefully put someone else in “dread” of a destructive or hostile contact. “Dread” signifies just trepidation – mindfulness instead of any enthusiastic state.

Criminal Versus Civil

All in all, since we know what they are, what is the distinction between the lawbreaker and common forms of battery and attack? The short answer is that common cases require an additional component of harms. At the end of the day, some genuine damage that is quantifiable in dollars and pennies must exist or there would be little point in bringing a common activity. In the event that somebody smacks you in the face, you most likely won’t have noteworthy hospital expenses, lost wages, or agony and enduring adequate to legitimize the time and cost of employing a lawyer and recording a common claim, however, that doesn’t mean you were unable to squeeze criminal accusations.

Keep in mind, brutality is never the appropriate response. On the off chance that somebody undermines you or somebody you know with savagery, don’t trust that the circumstance will raise. Call the police, get some place safe, and stay away from the hazardous circumstance. The law is just ready to fix issues after they have happened, and frequently that can be past the point of no return. There is not a viable alternative for decision making ability and maintaining a strategic distance from risky circumstances in any case.

References

1. https://www.illinoislegalaid.org/legal-information/assault-vs-battery-whats-difference.
2. https://criminal-law.freeadvice.com/criminal-law/violent_crimes/assault_battery.html.
3. https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/assault-battery-aggravated-assault-33775.html.

EDITED BY- ANKITA ROY