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What is assault on federal property
|Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group. We’re a second-generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek, with over 40 years of combined experience handling federal criminal cases that others say are unwinnable. Our clients include Anna Delvey from the Netflix series, the juror in the Ghislaine Maxwell case, and defendants facing serious federal charges across the country.
Assault on federal property means you’re facing federal prosecutors—not state charges, not local police. The government takes violence on federal land seriously, and they have resources most defendants don’t understand until it’s too late. This article explains what qualifies as federal property, which statute prosecutors use, what penalties you’re looking at, and why these cases move faster and hit harder than state assault charges.
Federal assault charges fall under a completely different legal system. Federal judges, federal sentencing guidelines, mandatory minimums in some cases. The conviction rate in federal court is over 90%. Most people don’t realize how serious this is until they’re already in custody.
What Counts as Federal Property
Federal property isn’t just government buildings downtown. The federal government owns roughly 30% of all land in the United States—around 670 million acres. Military bases. National parks like Yellowstone or the Grand Canyon. Federal courthouses. Post offices. VA hospitals. Native American reservations in some jurisdictions. Ships in federal waters.
The legal term is “special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States.” That’s in 18 USC Section 7, which defines where federal law applies instead of state law. Fight at Yosemite, that’s federal. Punch someone at a VA hospital, that’s federal.
You get into an argument over a parking spot at a national park, someone gets hit—you’re not dealing with local cops. Federal officers respond. Federal prosecutors charge you. The penalties are completely different from state charges.
The Statute: 18 USC 113
Federal assault charges come from 18 USC Section 113. This statute lists different types of assault with different maximum sentences. The penalties depend on what you did and whether anyone got hurt.
Simple assault—no weapon, no serious injury—carries up to six months in federal prison. If the victim is under 16, the maximum jumps to one year. Assault by striking, beating, or wounding someone gets you up to one year.
Assault with a dangerous weapon carries up to ten years. Dangerous weapon doesn’t just mean a gun. Cars, bottles, heavy objects count depending on how they’re used.
Assault resulting in serious bodily injury also carries up to ten years. “Serious bodily injury” means substantial risk of death, extreme physical pain, protracted disfigurement, or protracted loss of a bodily function. Broken bones can qualify.
Assault with intent to commit murder carries up to 20 years in federal prison. The government just has to prove you intended to kill the victim when you assaulted them.
Domestic violence assaults on federal property get separate subsections. Assault by strangling a spouse or intimate partner—up to ten years. Federal prosecutors are charging these cases more frequently in 2025.
How Federal Prosecutors Charge These Cases in 2025
In August 2025, a federal grand jury in Los Angeles indicted two people for assaulting federal officers at a federal building during a protest. Erin Petra Escobar, 34, faces eight years. Nick Elias Gutierrez, 20, was charged with assault resulting in bodily injury—he’s looking at up to 20 years.
That case shows how fast things escalate. They attended a protest. Something happened. Now they’re both facing years in federal prison, not a misdemeanor in state court.
Marcus Sharpe assaulted a park ranger at Grand Canyon National Park. He got 90 days after pleading guilty. Light sentence because he pleaded early and the injuries weren’t severe. But the conviction stays on his record as a federal offense.
Federal prosecutors don’t charge every assault on federal property. But when they do, they pursue it aggressively. They have resources—FBI investigators, federal agents, crime labs. They prepare. They don’t offer lenient plea deals unless you cooperate against someone else.
Why Federal Charges Hit Harder
State assault charges usually give you options. Diversion programs, deferred adjudication, reduced charges if it’s your first offense. Federal court doesn’t work that way. There’s no deferred adjudication in federal court. No pretrial diversion for violent crimes. If you’re charged, you’re either pleading guilty or going to trial.
Federal sentencing guidelines calculate your sentence using a point system. Your offense level depends on what you did. Your criminal history category depends on your past convictions. Judges can depart from the guidelines after United States v. Booker, but they start with that range.
If you used a weapon, you get additional points. If the victim was a law enforcement officer, you get a four-level enhancement. That adds years to your sentence. Most federal defendants don’t qualify for probation on assault charges.
Federal prison is different from state prison. No parole in the federal system. You serve at least 85% of your sentence. If you get five years, you’re doing at least four years and three months.
What You’re Actually Looking At
Say you’re at a national park and you punch someone during an argument. A ranger saw it happen. Federal agents investigate. They interview witnesses, take photos, get your statement if you talk without a lawyer.
Simple assault carries up to six months. That doesn’t sound terrible. But you’re now a convicted federal felon if the assault charge is a felony. Employers see “United States of America v. [Your Name]” and assume the worst.
If the victim broke a bone or needed stitches, prosecutors charge assault resulting in serious bodily injury. That’s up to ten years. Even if you plead guilty, you’re probably doing two to three years in federal prison.
If you used any kind of weapon—a stick, a rock, a bottle—prosecutors charge assault with a dangerous weapon. Also up to ten years. Federal prosecutors love stacking charges. The leverage is theirs.
What to Do If You’re Charged
Don’t talk to federal agents without an attorney. Anything you say will be used against you, and federal agents are trained interrogators. They’ll act friendly. They’ll say they just want your side of the story. Ask for a lawyer immediately and then shut up.
Federal cases move fast. From indictment to trial is usually four to six months unless you request extensions. If you’re going to negotiate a plea, you need to do it early. Federal prosecutors don’t drag things out like state prosecutors sometimes do.
At Spodek Law Group – we’ve handled federal assault cases, federal weapons cases, and other violent crime charges in federal court. Many of the cases we’re famous for handling – are cases that others say were unwinnable. Todd Spodek is a second-generation criminal defense lawyer who has handled hundreds of federal cases. He knows federal prosecutors, federal judges, and how the system works.
We’re available 24/7 because federal arrests happen at all hours. Federal agents don’t wait until business hours to show up at your door. They come early in the morning or late at night.
If you’ve been charged with assault on federal property, or if federal agents want to talk to you about an incident, contact us before you do anything else. Federal cases don’t get easier over time. You need someone on your side from day one.