Civil Assault and Battery Claims in DFW

In Texas, there are two elements of assault and battery:

  1. Intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly;
  2. Causing bodily injury to another, threatening another with imminent bodily injury, or causing physical contact with another when you know or should reasonably believe that the other will regard the contact as offensive or provocative.

If you press criminal charges against someone for assaulting you, the elements of civil and criminal assault/battery are the same in Texas.

What are defenses to assault and battery?

  1. Self Defense: A person is justified in using force against another when and to the degree the person reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary to protect himself or herself against the other’s use or attempted use of unlawful force. The person’s belief that the force was immediately necessary is presumed to be reasonable under certain circumstances if they did not provoke the other against whom the force was used, and the person was not engaged in criminal activity other than a class C misdemeanor.
  2. Retreat Not Required: A person who has a right to be present at the location where the force is used, who has not provoked the other person against whom the force is used, and who is not engaged in criminal activity at the time the force is used is not required to retreat before using self-defense force. 
  3. Use of Deadly Force: A person is justified in using deadly force against another person: 1) if the person would be justified in using force against the other person as discussed above, and 2) when and to the degree the person reasonably believes deadly force is immediately necessary to protect the person against the other person’s use or attempted use of unlawful deadly force; or to prevent the other person’s imminent commission of aggravated kidnapping, murder, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, robbery, or aggravated robbery.
  4. Defense of Third Person: A person is justified in using force or deadly force against another person to protect a third person if: 1) under the circumstances as the person reasonably believes them to be, the person would be justified to use force or deadly force to protect himself or herself against the unlawful force or unlawful deadly force he/she reasonably believes to be threatening the third person he/she seeks to protect; and 2) the person reasonably believes that his/her intervention is immediately necessary to protect the third person.
  5. Preventing Another from Committing Suicide: A person is justified in using force, but not deadly force, against another when and to the degree he/she reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary to prevent the other person from committing suicide or inflicting serious bodily injury to himself.
  6. Protection of One’s Own Property:   A person in lawful possession of land or tangible, movable property is justified in using force against another person when and to the degree the person reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary to prevent or terminate the other person’s trespass on the land or unlawful interference with the property. 
  7. Deadly Force to Protect Property: A person is justified in using deadly force against another person to protect land or tangible, movable property if he/she would be justified in using force against the other in protection of his own property, and when and to the degree he reasonably believes the deadly force is immediately necessary to prevent the other person’s imminent commission of arson, burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, theft during the nighttime, or criminal mischief during the nighttime; or to prevent the other who is fleeing immediately after committing burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, or theft during the nighttime from escaping with the property. To be justified, the person must also reasonably believe that the land or property cannot be protected or recovered by any other means; or the use of force other than deadly force to protect or recover the land or property would expose the person or another to a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury.
  8. Protection of a Third Person’s Property:  A person is justified in using force or deadly force against another to protect land or tangible, movable property of a third person if, under the circumstances as he reasonably believes them to be, the person would be justified in using force or deadly force to protect his own land or property and: 1) he reasonably believes the unlawful interference constitutes attempted or consummated theft of or criminal mischief to the tangible, movable property; or 2) he reasonably believes that the third person has requested his protection of the land or property; he has a legal duty to protect the third person’s land or property; or the third person whose land or property he uses force or deadly force to protect is the defendant’s spouse, parent, or child, resides with the defendant, or is under the defendant’s care.
  9. Use of Device to Protect Property: The justification afforded by the Penal Code regarding the use of force as to property, not deadly force, applies to the use of a device to protect land or tangible, movable property if: 1) the device is not designed to cause, or known by the actor to create a substantial risk of causing, death or serious bodily injury; and 2) use of the device is reasonable under all the circumstances as the actor reasonably believes them to be when he installs the device.
  10. Immunity from Civil Liability:   A person who uses force or deadly force that is justified under Chapter 9 of the Texas Penal Code is immune from civil liability for personal injury or death that results from the person’s use of force or deadly force.

What is not a defense to assault and battery?

Some examples of things that aren’t a defense to assault and battery are:

  1. Mistakenly hurting the wrong person (Morrow v. Flores, 225 S.W.2d 621, 624 (Tex. Civ. App.–Fort Worth 1949)).
  2. Not intending to cause that type of harm (Bennight v. Western Auto Supply Co., 670 S.W.2d 373, 377 (Tex. App.–Austin 1984)).

Call our DFW-Plano Area Assault and Battery Lawyers Today!

At Carpenter & Associates, we typically handle assault and battery claims from victims of domestic violence seeking justice against their abusers. However, if you’re a victim of assault, you may be entitled to damages, including mental anguish damages. Call our Collin County Assault and Battery Lawyers for a free consultation today at (972) 455-8700.

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