Massachusetts Assault and Battery Attorney

Assault and Battery in Massachusetts is typically charged after a fight. It is defined in the Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 13A. According Massachusetts there is either intentional or reckless assault and battery.

What is Assault and Battery?

The Assistant District Attorney must prove three elements to get an assault and battery conviction.

1. The defendant touched the victim with any right to do so,
2. That the defendant intentionally touched the person, and
3. That the touching either was likely to cause bodily harm or was not consented to.

Reckless is when the defendant did not intend to touch the victim yet still did. In order to get a conviction the Assistant District Attorney must prove two elements

1. That the person intentionally acted in a way that caused bodily harm to another and caused an injury more that “trifling,” something more that a brief discomfort, and
2. It must be proven that the person’s actions were a reckless conduct. In order to prove that it was a reckless conduct it has to be more than a negligent conduct and that the person know or should have known the actions was likely going to hurt someone yet did so anyway.

Penalties

Both intentional and reckless assault and battery are considered misdemeanor crimes in Massachusetts. That means it is still punishable by jail. It is also punishable for up to two and half years in the house of correction or not less than a $1000 fine. In addition to potential jail time, other potential penalties include probation, fines, anger management classes.

Defenses

One typical defenses is self defense. Where the person was simply trying to defend themselves. Another defense is defense of others. Where someone is defending someone else. One common defense is showing that both people were wrong and the victim decides not to incriminate himself or herself and chooses to exercise the fifth amendment and not testify.

Other defenses include arguing the the person was not injured or that the person did not intention engage in reckless conduct.

The Law Office of Patrick T. Donovan represents clients in: Abington, Avon, Braintree, Bridgewater, Brockton, Canton, Carver, Cohasset, Dedham, Duxbury, East Bridgewater, Easton, Foxborough, Freetown, Halifax, Hanover, Hanson, Hingham, Holbrook, Hull, Kingston, Lakeville, Mansfield, Mattapoisett, Marion, Marshfield, Middleborough, Milton, Norton, Norwell, Norwood, Pembroke, Plymouth, Plympton, Quincy, Randolph, Raynham, Rochester, Rockland, Scituate, Sharon, Stoughton, Walpole, Wareham, West Bridgewater, Westwood, Weymouth, Whitman, Acton, Amesbury, Andover, Arlington, Ashland, Ayer, Bedford, Bellingham, Belmont, Beverly, Billerica, Bolton, Boxborough, Boxford, Brookline, Carlisle, Burlington, Chelmsford, Chelsea, Concord, Dunstable, Danvers, Dover, Dracut, Essex, Everett, Framingham, Franklin, Georgetown, Gloucester, Groton, Groveland, Hamilton, Harvard, Holliston, Haverhill, Hopkington, Hudson, Ipswich, Lawrence, Lexington, Lincoln, Littleton, Lowell, Lynn, Lynnfield, Malden, Manchester, Marblehead, Marlborough, Maynard, Medfield, Medford, Medway, Melrose, Merrimac, Methuen, Middleton, Milford, Millis, Nahant, Newbury, Natick, Needham, Newburyport, Newton, Norfolk ,North Andover, North Reading, Northborough, Peabody, Pepperell, Plainville, Reading, Revere, Rockport, Rowley, Salem, Salisbury, Saugus, Sherborn, Shirley, Shrewsbury, Somerville, Southborough, Stoneham, Stow, Sudbury, Wakefield, Waltham, Watertown, Wayland, Wellesley, Wenham, West Newbury, Westborough, Westford, Weston, Wilmington, Winchester, Winthrop, Woburn, Wrentham, Bourne, Sandwich, Falmouth, Barnstable, Yarmouth, Dennis, Brewster, Harwich, Chatham, Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, Boston, Dorchester, South Boston, East Boston, Roxbury, West Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, North End of Boston, South End of Boston, Chinatown, Chestnut Hill, Roslindale, Hyde Park, Mattapan, Mission Hill, Beacon Hill, Charlestown, Allston, Brighton