Alexandria Assault Lawyer
Looking for an Alexandria assault lawyer to help you with your assault or battery charges? The Law Office of Kimberly Stover, PLLC has the team you are looking for that can help you build the legal strategy to uphold your rights and reduce a case’s potential impacts on you and your loved ones.
Assault and battery involve an act where a person threatens or uses force or dangerous weapons to harm another person knowingly or recklessly. The penalties for either crime are severe considering that these are violent crimes, and their severity increases if you have prior convictions. Whether this is your first offense or your second (or more) offense, you will need a legal team who can explain the state’s criminal code to you and prepare your defense.
We are a trusted Alexandria, VA criminal law firm ready to help clients with legal cases and represent them in court. Whether you need legal advice or a guide during this difficult time in your life, you can count on us to provide it to you, and we will do our best to get the outcome that works for you.
Call The Law Office of Kimberly Stover, PLLC at (703) 810-3571 for your Free Case Consultation!
Definition of Assault and Battery in Virginia
Under Virginia’s criminal code, assault and battery are considered Class 1 misdemeanors, and the penalties are dependent on the severity of the offense and other factors surrounding the case.
Assault is defined in the criminal code as an intentional, offensive, or harmful act that may cause reasonable fear or anxiety of expected injury. Examples of assault include intimidation by non-physical acts that cause fear in another person, and intentional or physical acts to inflict injury and bodily harm. Even if you do not injure the victim physically, it can still qualify as assault if you intimidate them into believing you will harm them.
Battery, meanwhile, involves intentionally contacting another person physically in an offensive or harmful manner without their consent or legal basis. It also includes touching a person with an object or using the object to commit the act. The contact must be offensive and intend to cause harm, but the contact doesn’t need to be serious.
Our Alexandria assault lawyer can help you determine whether you are indeed charged with either assault or battery. We will also guide you throughout the court case and help you with your defense.
Types of Assault and Battery and Their Penalties in Alexandria, VA
As mentioned above, the penalties for both assault and battery can depend on the gravity of the offense and other facts involved in the case. It can range from fines to incarceration or both, and if you have a prior conviction, the penalties can be severe.
Below is a short overview of the types of assault and battery and what penalties are attached to them.
- Simple assault
This act occurs if you intentionally attempt to cause bodily injury to another person or intentionally threaten them to make them fear you will harm them. The fear must be reasonable in the sense that ordinary people would feel threatened by the action.
Simple assault is classified as a Class 1 misdemeanor with a penalty of up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. There is no minimum sentence, which means the court can determine the coverage of the sentence.
- Domestic assault
Domestic assault involves battery against a family or household member, and it is a separate offense from traditional assault and battery. Battery against a former spouse, children, or parent also falls under this category, even if they don’t live with you.
Domestic assault is a Class 1 misdemeanor with a one-year jail sentence and a $2,500. The penalties can be doubled if you are also charged with domestic violence. If you have a previous conviction of either assault, battery, or domestic violence in the past 20 years, you will be charged with a Class 6 felony, which will have penalties of one to five years in prison and a fine not exceeding $2,500.
- Unlawful wounding
Some acts of malicious wounding qualify as assault and battery, and it is considered a felony offense. In this case, if you injure a person by stabbing, cutting, shooting, or in another similar manner with the intent to injure, disable, maim or kill the victim, it qualifies as an unlawful wounding offense. The offense also qualifies if a gun was used in the act. The victim’s skin must be broken during the course of the action.
Unlawful wounding is a Class 6 felony with a prison sentence of one to five years and a maximum fine of $2,500. If you shoot the victim, you may face additional penalties associated with unlawful use of a firearm.
- Malicious wounding
Malicious wounding is a type of battery that has a high likelihood of leading to extreme injuries such as cutting, stabbing, or shooting. If you intentionally or purposefully caused extreme injury, you will be guilty of committing the act with malice, and it will be considered malicious wounding.
Malicious wounding is considered a Class 3 felony, and the penalties include 5 to 20 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $100,000. For strangulation incidents, it is a Class 6 felony and has a penalty of both a one-year prison sentence and a maximum fine of $2,500.
If the victim was a pregnant woman and they suffered a miscarriage or had a significant or permanent physical disability, it would be considered aggravated malicious wounding, a Class 2 felony. The penalty is 20 years to life in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. If a firearm was used, additional charges might be added.
There are also enhanced penalties for assault and battery geared against specific groups of people. For example, if the victims were targeted because they were from a religious group, people of color, or race, the jail sentence can be from six months to 1 year and a $2,500 fine. If the victim suffered bodily injury, you would be charged with a Class 6 felony and a prison term of up to 5 years.
Let our Alexandria assault lawyer guide you through these penalties and help you build the strongest defense to clear your name in the process.
Comprehensive Assault Defense
Our Alexandria assault lawyer is always ready to help you with any type of assault or battery charge and mobilize to provide you with the right legal service. We will check the charges against you and handle your defense to get the best possible outcome you desire.
We can represent you for the following assault charges:
- Simple assault and battery
- Aggravated assault
- Resisting arrest
- Assault with a deadly weapon
- Bar fighting
- Armed robbery
- Domestic assault
- Criminal assault
- Sexual assault
- Criminal battery
Rest assured that we will make the legal process easy to understand and provide you with a personalized legal service that matches your case. We are always ready to give answers or provide you with all the resources to help you keep up with the case.
Trusted Alexandria Assault Defense Lawyer
Whether you are charged with battery or assault, you can trust our Alexandria, VA criminal law firm to provide you with the legal support you need.
We believe that every person deserves access to an experienced and trusted legal team to help with their legal situation and get the right assistance whenever needed. This is why we make it a point to get to know our clients and review all the information regarding their cases to determine the best legal advice or strategies that can be used. We will explain these legal strategies to you so you can also have a say on what legal steps we will take for the case.
You can count on us to use the legal strategies we developed for you in court and actively advocate for your rights. We will also adjust the defense as the case continues to achieve the best possible outcome and prepare you for any outcome. No matter when you need us, we will be ready to assist.
Let’s Talk – Free Case Consultation
Assault and battery charges do not bode well with your future if you leave it alone and do not defend yourself properly in court. The penalties are also very severe that you will be unable to exercise several key rights and freedom, making it difficult for you to live your life like before.
You will need an assault lawyer to help you understand your charges and work on a strong defense that fights to clear you from the charges or get a reduced sentence. Our legal team will be your legal support and representative from start to finish, so you do not have to handle everything on your own.
Call The Law Office of Kimberly Stover, PLLC at (703) 810-3571 for your Free Case Consultation!