Once a phone call is made to the police, either by a party to the argument or a passerby, you can almost be certain someone is going to jail.  One would be amazed at how quickly an argument will quickly escalate into your arrest.  It is generally the policy of San Antonio, Texas Police and the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office to arrest when an assault investigation has concluded.  It is not uncommon for an arrest to be made even though both parties to the dispute ask the officer to no longer investigate.

Assaultive offenses come in several varieties and penalty ranges under Texas law and are governed by Section 22.01 of the Texas Penal Code. Below are some of the more common.

• Assault: Class A Misdemeanor up to 1 year in Jail & $4,000 Fine.

Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causing bodily injury to another.  This bodily injury is not required to be significant or even noticeable.  Generally, the most common forms of assault are by punching, slapping, pushing and simply by the grabbing of arms.

• Assault (family violence): Involves the same intent and actions as simple assault mentioned above, however the alleged victim is in a familial relationship with the defendant.  This form of assault, although the same level of offense as that listed above, has numerous legal pitfalls that make allegations of this nature very dangerous. Issuance of protective orders by the Bexar County District Attorney and the numerous ways in which one arrest can snowball into a felony makes it imperative that the charges are handled with the utmost care.

Other assaultive offense in Texas include sexual assault and the aggravated assaults which involve the use of instruments or victims that are of certain protected ages.  Other offenses that do not involve the actual touching but are listed as assaultive offense are Deadly Conduct (Texas Penal Code 22.05 ) which most often involves the pointing of a firearm at an individual and Terroristic Threat (TPC  22.07) which deals with threats that put another in fear of their safety.

Some potential legal consequences of a conviction for assaultive offense:

• Disqualification from obtaining a concealed weapons license.
• May not vote in a public election
• May not run for, appointed to, a public office
• Career implications for jobs including, but not limited to: physician, chiropractor, physical therapist, social worker, veterinarian, marriage therapist, athletic trainer

San Antonio criminal defense attorney Carlo Key has litigated all degrees of assault in San Antonio, Texas and can be your best defense in your time of need.