What Is the Penal Code for Aggravated Assault in Texas?
The common law rule provides that an assault has been committed when a person intends to put another person in reasonable apprehension of fear. Thus, when a person points a water gun at another person's head, and that person has reason to believe it is a real gun, the first person has committed the crime of assault. Under Texas law, certain factors can bump a simple assault up to an aggravated assault.
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Assault
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Under the Texas Penal Code, a person commits an assault when he intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes bodily injury to another person or the other person's spouse; when he intentionally or knowingly threatens to cause imminent bodily harm to another person or that person's spouse; or when he intentionally or knowingly physically contacts of causes a physical contact that he knows a person would reasonably regard as an offensive contact.
Aggravated Assault
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Under the Texas Penal Code, a person commits an aggravated assault when committing an assault plus an aggravating factor. To prove that an assault was an aggravated assault, there must be one of these two aggravating factors: the person who committed the assault causes serious bodily injury to a person or to that person's spouse; or the person uses or shows off a deadly weapon while committing the assault.
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Degree of Felony
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Texas law classifies an aggravated assault as a second-degree felony. Other circumstances can bump the crime up to a first-degree felony. Those circumstances are as follows:
First Degree Felony
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The person uses a deadly weapon during the aggravated assault and causes serious bodily harm to a family member; a public servant acting under the color of his employment commits an assault on a person he knows to be a public servant who is in the process of conducting his lawful duties, or a public servant acts in retaliation while exercising his duties as a public servant; a person commits an assault while acting in retaliation against or on account of another person serving as a witness, prospective witness, a person reporting a crime, or an informant; or a person commits an assault against a security officer while the officer is performing his security duties. The law will presume that the person committing the assault knew the security officer was a security officer by virtue of the officer's uniform or badge indicating his position.
Punishment
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Felonies committed in Texas are punished as follows: If a person commits the first-degree felony of aggravated assault, he could receive five to 99 years imprisonment and a fine of no more than $10,000. If a person commits the second-degree felony of aggravated assault, he could receive two to 20 years imprisonment and a fine of no more than $10,000.
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References
- Photo Credit a gun image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com
