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NYC Aggravated Assault Lawyers
In the state of New York, it is considered a felony to commit aggravated assault. While there are several different forms of assault, aggravated assault is one of the most serious forms that results in a very severe punishment. If you are charged with committing aggravated assault, you will be looking at a long prison sentence than had you committed another form of assault. Aggravated assault includes sexual assault, assault with a deadly weapon, and other forms of assault, and due to the danger associated with this crime, this is why the punishment is so severe.
In New York, there are two instances when the crime of assault is considered to be aggravated assault and that is when the victim is a police officer or the victim is under the age of 11. If a case of aggravated assault ends in the death of an individual, it is no longer considered aggravated assault – it is now considered murder. If the victim survives any injuries associated with the assault, then the prison sentence will be much shorter than if that person dies and the defendant is accused of murder.
In these cases, the prosecutor has to prove the intent of the defendant and whether or not they purposefully were trying to hurt another individual. For example, if you accidentally hit somebody with your car while you were looking for something on the back seat, you were not trying to cause harm to anybody, it was simply an accident. The car is considered to be the deadly weapon in a case where someone is hit by a motor vehicle. If this same accident occurs while the driver of the vehicle is under the influence of drugs or alcohol or speeding, they can be guilty of trying to cause injury to another person.
Let’s say that the victim said something to upset the driver and the driver decided to chase him down with his car and hit him on purpose. In this case, it is aggravated assault and charges will be pressed and punishments will be demanded.
What Are The Punishments?
If you are brought before a court for class E felony where no one was severely hurt or killed, the maximum time you will have to spend in prison is 4 years. In some cases, however, you might be let go with just probation and not demanded to serve time in jail. While each situation is slightly different, the judge will take a variety of different factors into consideration before their final decision is made regarding your punishment.
An aggravated assault that is a class B felony has a punishment of a minimum 5 years in prison. Depending on the judge’s ruling on the case, the maximum amount of time you would have to serve in prison is 25 years. New York laws have set a limit on the amount you can be fined and it will not be able to exceed $5,000.
The penalties for committing this type of crime are oftentimes more severe than just a fine you have to pay and time you have to serve behind bars. After you have paid what is due and served your time, it will be very difficult for you to find future jobs, apply for a home loan, or even find a place to live because of this being on your record. When background checks are run by lenders or employers, they will see your history and might not want you working for them or giving you a loan if you have committed aggravated assault. With a felony on your record, you will fail any background check they ever run on you, making it an incredibly high risk move to commit this type of crime in the first place, aside from the damage it will cause to the victim.
The same crime can be committed by different people and their punishments are not going to look identical. When determining your punishment, the judge will look at your history, the seriousness of the crime committed, the damages that were caused, along with personal information such as your age.
If you are in this situation and have committed aggravated assault, there are luckily lawyers available for you to use to help you navigate the case. Having a lawyer will ensure that you know all of your rights, potential punishments, as well as what to do to fight the case. These lawyers are experienced in this field and know the ins and outs about an aggravated assault and will do their best to get you the fairest and reasonable sentence for the crime you have committed. When dealing with cases as severe as this, you want a lawyer who is experienced and knows what to expect. There is no chance of you going before the judge without a lawyer by your side and things ending in your favor.