Assault allegations can occur in a variety of contexts involving physical confrontations or threats of violence. These cases do not always result in a criminal prosecution or conviction because of reasonable defenses and other issues in the state’s case.
An Anderson assault lawyer from Ellis Hinton, LLC, can provide clients with a professional, experienced, and personalized criminal defense. Our attorneys draw on their prior experience as federal and state prosecutors to provide clients with a practical understanding of their case, along with strategies for navigating court proceedings in their best interests.
Assault charges are classified into four types under South Caroline Code § 16-3-600, with the severity of a charge depending on the nature and outcome of the incident. The most serious type of assault is that of a high and aggravated nature, which applies in cases that result in great bodily injury or involve means likely to cause great bodily injury or death. Great bodily injury is any injury that causes a substantial risk of death, a serious and permanent disfigurement, a protracted loss, or an impairment of a bodily member or organ’s function. This is classified as a felony offense, carrying a 20-year prison sentence upon conviction.
The next highest assault charge where our Anderson lawyers represent clients is first-degree assault, which is a felony charge with a 10-year prison sentence. This charge could apply in the context of a physical confrontation that results in injury to another person through the nonconsensual touching of the person’s private parts with a lewd and lascivious intent, the commission of a robbery, burglary, kidnapping, or theft, or the offer or attempt to injure another person with the present ability to do it.
Assault in the second degree is classified as acts that caused or could have caused moderate bodily injury to a person or that caused injury through nonconsensual touching of a person’s private parts. Second-degree assault is a misdemeanor offense with a maximum punishment of a $2,500 fine and three years in prison. The final category of assault charge is third-degree offenses, which apply to any case that involves the unlawful injury of another person or the offer or attempt to injure a person, with punishment upon conviction being a fine of $500 and 30 days in jail.
The circumstances of an incident resulting in an arrest for assault in Anderson could enable an experienced attorney to raise several arguments in your defense. The first involves a claim that the assault was an act of self-defense or an act made in the defense of others. These arguments are often fact-specific and could depend on answers to the following questions:
Any of these could create a legal defense to an assault charge.
Our lawyers may be able to identify other problems with the prosecution’s case, including the class of assault not fairly aligning with the facts because of the type of injury a person suffered or the events leading up to it. The prosecution may also face issues with its case due to the methods used to obtain or process evidence or other constitutional rights violations.
Based in Greenville, servicing SC and beyond, Ellis Hinton, LLC, brings an honest and goal-oriented approach to each client’s case. Schedule a free case evaluation with an Anderson assault lawyer today. We can help you consider your defense options and provide you with the resources to make informed choices about the strategy for your case.
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