How to Beat a Simple Assault Charge

May 15, 2021 Criminal Defense

Every simple assault case is unique with its own set of facts and circumstances.  Beating any simple assault case in Arizona depends upon your case particulars and which of the three types of simple assault you are charged.  

The three types of simple assault in Arizona are as follows:

  1. Intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causing any physical injury to another person;
  2. Intentionally placing another person in reasonable apprehension of imminent physical injury; and
  3. Knowingly touching another person with the intent to injure, insult, or provoke that person.

                                                                   

Defense Strategies Used in Simple Assault Cases 

Defenses to simple assault charges range from simple factual defenses to legally complicated ones.  There are three basic types of defenses to a simple assault charge:  affirmative defenses, disputative defenses, and evidentiary defenses.  An experienced criminal defense attorney will review the facts of your assault case to decide which of these defenses or if multiple defenses may be used on your behalf.

Affirmative defenses are the first type of defense to simple assault.  They admit the act in question was committed but deny the behavior was an assault. 

An affirmative defense may be appropriate in the following situations: 

  • You acted in self-defense;
  • You were acting in defense of others;
  • You were reacting to a situation you perceived as threatening;
  • You were provoked, threatened, or intimidated into committing the act; and
  • You were defending your home or other immovable property;
  • The act was accidental; 
  • The circumstance was unseeable and unpreventable; and
  • The act was consensual.

Disputative defenses are another kind of defense to simple assault.  Disputative defenses call the facts of the victim’s allegations into question and their ability to recall events correctly and accurately. 

A disputative defense might include: 

  • The victim’s credibility;
  • You were incorrectly identified as the assailant; and
  • You have a solid alibi for the time of the assault with proof of such.

 

Finally, some defenses are based on the constitutional procedure and proper evidence collection by police officers.  These are evidentiary disputes. 

An evidentiary dispute may include any of the following and more:

  • The prosecution does not have enough evidence for a conviction;
  • Law enforcement violated your Constitutional rights during the arrest;
  • Evidence was collected through an illegal search.

 

If you would like to know more about affirmative, disputative, or evidentiary defenses and how they may apply to your simple assault case, reach out to an experienced Phoenix criminal defense attorney like ours at Younglove Law Firm. 

With over thirty years of legal experience, including more than one hundred jury trials, Younglove Law Firm can provide you answers to your questions about simple assault or any other Arizona criminal charge.  

At Younglove Law Firm, we believe you have the right to competent and experienced legal defense when you are charged with a crime and will back you with our total resources.  Contact the legal team headed by a former prosecutor. 

Younglove Law Firm handles cases in federal, state, municipal, and appellate courts throughout the greater Phoenix Metropolitan area and all of Arizona.  

 

Free Consultation

  • Fields required *
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.