Lara Bracamonte Davila

Doing What Is Right For You

Is there a difference between assault and battery?

On Behalf of | Aug 2, 2022 | Criminal Defense

When people are charged with any type of crime in Texas, they should expect a vigorous prosecution effort to attempt to secure a conviction against them. Prosecutors may be even more zealous in cases involving violent crime charges because there is an alleged victim involved. Assault and battery are common enough charges in Texas – but what is the difference between these two terms?

Traditionally, the difference between the terms comes down to what actually occurs in the situation in question.

Assault might occur even with no physical contact between two people. If a person feels a reasonable fear of imminent harm from another person, that is usually the definition of assault. Battery occurs when a person actually physically harms another person.

However, today Texas law generally uses the term “assault” for both types of crimes.

Defending against violent crimes

When we think of assault and battery, we probably think of bar fights or domestic disputes. And, that isn’t wrong. There are certainly many cases of assault and battery – as well as other violent crimes – that come from those types of situations. For a defendant, however, defending against charges of violent crimes comes down to the unique facts of the specific situation. Your case is different from others.

At our law firm, we do our best to understand the facts of any given case that arises for our clients and, then, attempt to determine the best path forward for a criminal defense effort. An arrest is not the same as a conviction. You have the constitutional right to defend yourself against violent crime charges. For more information, please visit the criminal defense overview section of our law firm’s website.