In recent years, sports and entertainment have provided Edinburg-area residents with plenty of opportunities to cheer on their favorite teams and dance at their favorite clubs. But with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, those opportunities grew fewer and fewer.
Now, much of these celebrations have shifted to backyards where friends, neighbors and newcomers congregate while the alcohol flows freely; sometimes, a great amount of it. Then people get drunk, lose their inhibitions, misinterpret conversations and verbal flare-ups evolve into physical assaults. Punches fly, injuries occur, and partygoers flee, except the wounded person lying on the ground.
Self-defense and justification among them
It was not supposed to come to this. But, now that it has, you face assault charges. Such charges may be misdemeanors or felonies, depending on the circumstances. For example, it is a felony if the victim is a family member or if you are in a domestic relationship with them.
Among the common defenses for a person charged with assault include:
- Self-defense: If provoked and attacked, you likely must defend yourself from injury by an aggressor.
- Justification: In such situations, you are forced to take pro-active measures in order to avoid injury from another.
- Duress: Instincts kick in when another person attacks you, requiring you to use force against that person.
- Unintentional: In these circumstances, you had no intent to harm the other person, but an injury resulted anyway.
The legal outcome of assault cases can lead to incarceration, fines, probation as well as civil action from the victim. It is important to keep a cool head in these situations. However, an arrest is problematic, so it is a good idea to seek an experienced criminal defense attorney.