New York State law classifies assault crimes based on severity, pitting misdemeanors against felonies. While any assault accusation is serious and terrifying, felonies carry the highest stakes, putting your freedom at risk with possibly years in state prison and potential lifelong consequences.
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When does an assault charge become a felony?
Prosecutors in Queens and other NYC boroughs use two key factors to decide whether to charge an assault as a misdemeanor or a felony.
Assault in the third degree (a Class A misdemeanor) can be charged for intentionally causing physical injury, recklessly causing physical injury, or criminally negligently causing physical injury with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument.
Felony charges are far more serious. The law elevates the charge to a felony level based on:
- Severity of injury: The victim suffered a serious physical injury (SPI). An SPI is life-altering, which typically creates a substantial risk of death, causes severe disfigurement or results in a long-term health impairment.
- Aggravating circumstances: Using a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument can trigger a felony charge, regardless of the injury’s severity. Attacking a protected victim, like a police officer or a child under a certain age, also elevates the crime.
Understanding these distinctions is crucial. Your attorney must aggressively challenge the prosecution’s claims about the severity of the injury or criminal intent.
Consequences for a guilty verdict
A felony assault conviction carries devastating penalties. You face the threat of long sentences in state prison, including:
- A Class D violent felony conviction (like assault in the second degree) carries a determinate sentence of two to seven years in state prison.
- A Class B violent felony conviction (like assault in the first degree) carries a determinate sentence of five to 25 years in state prison for a first-time offender. You also face substantial fines and get a permanent criminal record.
- A felony record brings a lifetime of collateral impacts. You may lose your right to own a gun, face difficulty securing employment and struggle to find housing.
Assault in the second degree (Class D felony) can be charged either by using a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument with the intent to cause physical injury, OR by intending to cause and actually causing serious physical injury without a weapon.
Assault in the first degree (Class B felony) includes intending to cause and causing SPI with a deadly weapon, acting with depraved indifference and recklessly causing SPI, or causing SPI during the commission of another felony.
Possible defenses to assault charges
A skilled defense attorney looks for powerful legal options. Defense strategies used in these cases include:
- Justification, such as self-defense or defense of others, using only necessary force
- Lack of requisite intent, arguing the injury was accidental, not intentional
- Challenging the injury, disputing the claim that the injury meets the SPI threshold
An experienced lawyer scrutinizes the prosecution’s entire case against you. Every criminal accusation is merely an allegation, not proof of guilt.
New York aggressively prosecutes felony assault cases. If you or a loved one faces these serious charges, having a skilled criminal defense attorney is crucial for navigating these legal complexities and high stakes.
