If you or someone you know is facing charges of simple assault in Delaware County or the greater Philadelphia area, it’s critical to have an experienced and knowledgeable defense attorney on your side. Enrique Latoison is a highly-rated Delaware County assault defense Lawyer with years of experience representing clients in all types of assault cases. In this video, Enrique will dive deep into the specifics of simple assault, breaking down the various types of charges and what they involve. Whether you’re being charged with bodily injury, negligent use of a deadly weapon, or mutual combat, Latoison Law is here to defend you. Don’t hesitate to reach out to us today to schedule a consultation and start constructing your defense.
Explanation of Simple Assault
This is kind of part two of the aggravated assault. Now we’re talking about simple assault. Simple assault is easy for the most part. It’s a misdemeanor second-degree, title 18, section 2701. OK, so we’re talking about simple assault.
Types of Charges Covered in Simple Assault
We discussed in the previous video for aggravated assault. And I’m actually filming this on the same day. I just took my jacket off to try to mix this up a little bit. But in the first video, we talked about serious bodily injury and bodily injury. Simple assault is much easier to understand in Pennsylvania because we’re just dealing with bodily injury.
Attempt to Cause or Causing Bodily Injury
Okay, so first part of the statute deals with attempting to cause or you did cause bodily injury. So using another example, I smack the hell out of somebody. I’m in a fight. I punch somebody. I kick someone in the head, I’m in a fight.
It’s basically kind of your fight statue. It’s kind of a charge I see all the time, especially in domestics with women and men fighting each other, going both ways. Simple assault is a very common charge in Pennsylvania. Misdemeanor second degree. Then what you have is simple assault for trying to scare the mess out of someone who’s not a protected class like aggravated assault, but just a normal fellow walking down the street.
Someone were to pull a gun out and pointed it at their face, scaring the living crap out of somebody. That also is simple assault, misdemeanor, or second-degree.
Negligent Injury with a Deadly Weapon
Then we also have something where you’re dealing with a deadly weapon. Unlike the aggravated assault where you’re attempting to cause injury, we’re dealing with negligent injury with the daily weapon. So now I have two knives, thanks to my assistants Kayla and Kaylee.
Related: Understanding Your Gun Rights Under State And Federal Law
But if I took these knives and I started juggling them around because I wanted to be an idiot, and accidentally a knife comes down and hits the person next to me in the leg, I negligently caused them bodily injury while using a deadly weapon. That’s also a misdemeanor in the second degree.
Failure to Disclose Presence of Needle
And then we also have something that you hear often. You see this on TV all the time. Officers will ask someone, do you have a needle in your pocket?
Do you have anything that will poke me? And if you’re wondering why they ask that question is because if that officer gets poked with a needle, of course, it’s very dangerous for that person. But it also is a simple assault for not disclosing that or allowing a needle to poke an officer.
Mutual Combat
Then we get to my favorite part of the statute probably, which is mutual combat. So in Pennsylvania, we have something that says mutual combat, which actually sounds like some sort of gladiator warrior situation.
But in Pennsylvania, you’re not allowed to fight each other. So if you have two people that say, I want to fight you, and he says, I want to fight you. And let’s say, let’s go outside, like Fight Club with Brad Pitt, and you go outside and you start fighting each other, and the police come. Believe it or not, that is simple assault in Pennsylvania. But it’s mutual combat, which is a misdemeanor in a third degree instead of second degree.
So mutual combat is something that gets argued a lot if you think there’s a situation where two people kind of agreed to fight each other, but one called the police before the other one did, and the other one got charged the other one didn’t. So that’s simple assault. The previous video was aggravated assault, both under Title 18 in Pennsylvania. I’m Enrique Latoison your three-minute lawyer.
In conclusion, simple assault charges can have serious consequences, including fines, jail time, and a criminal record. That’s why it’s crucial to have a skilled and experienced defense lawyer like Enrique Latoison on your side. With his extensive knowledge of assault law and his dedication to his clients, he can help you navigate the complex legal system and build a strong defense to fight the charges against you. If you or someone you know is facing simple assault charges in Delaware County or the greater Philadelphia area, don’t hesitate to contact Latoison Law today. We’ll work tirelessly to protect your rights and ensure the best possible outcome for your case.
