We have addressed assault and battery before, but without much emphasis on whether they are essentially the same offense or completely different. While often related in criminal defense cases, assault and battery in Florida are two separate charges. A criminal battery...
When Your Life Is On The Line
Assault
Deadly force in self-defense: When is it legally justified?
Everyone knows that, if someone attacks you, you don’t have to submit to the attack without fighting back. But if your self-defense leaves your attacker dead or severely wounded, you might sometimes face legal consequences, depending on the circumstances. How can you...
Confusion can lead to date rape accusations among teenagers
During the last few years, there has been considerable progress toward highlighting the importance of giving explicit consent in any sexual encounter. Yet, many teenagers will still be confused about how this works in a real-life situation. If you are the parent of a...
Is an unloaded gun a deadly weapon?
You're facing serious charges after being accused of threatening someone with a firearm. The authorities are claiming that you assaulted the other party with a deadly weapon. While you did have a handgun on you at the time, you contend that it was not actually a...
Can you seriously injure someone with one punch?
When you think about causing serious injuries in a fight, you probably think of a long brawl. You assume the fighting would have to go on for some time, it may involve weapons and things could escalate out of control. You certainly don't think that those injuries...
What is self-defense?
If you get into a fight with someone, you run the risk of facing assault charges. However, just getting arrested does not mean you are guilty. These are often chaotic situations, and it's hard for the police to decipher exactly what happened on the spot. They may...