"Assault" covers an enormous range - from a misdemeanor shoving match to a 20-year aggravated felony. The specific facts of your case - what happened, whether a weapon was involved, the extent of injury, and who started it - determine both the charge level and which defenses apply. This intake walks through those facts to give you a clear picture before you speak to an attorney.
An attorney evaluates self-defense, defense of others, and mutual combat arguments, gathers witness statements and video evidence before it disappears, and negotiates charge reductions. Free consultation.
Simple assault is typically a misdemeanor involving minor or no injury and no weapon. Aggravated assault - a felony in every state - is triggered by any of several factors: use of a deadly weapon, infliction of serious bodily injury (broken bones, disfigurement, loss of consciousness, injuries requiring surgery), assault on a protected class of victim (police officers, teachers, healthcare workers in many states), or assault with intent to commit another felony (such as assault with intent to rob or rape). Any one of these factors can elevate a misdemeanor-level incident to a felony carrying years in prison.
The weapon enhancement is particularly significant - "deadly weapon" definitions in many states include not just firearms and knives but any object used in a manner capable of causing death or serious injury, including everyday items like bottles, bats, or even vehicles. If your case involves a domestic relationship, also review the domestic violence defense screener, since DV-related assault charges carry additional collateral consequences including firearm restrictions and protective orders. If self-defense is your primary argument, the self-defense claim evaluator provides a deeper analysis of that specific defense.
Self-defense is an affirmative defense - you're not denying the physical act occurred, but arguing it was legally justified. The general requirements are: you reasonably believed force was necessary to prevent imminent harm to yourself or another, the force you used was proportional to the threat (deadly force is only justified in response to a threat of death or serious bodily injury in most states), and you did not provoke or initiate the confrontation (in "stand your ground" states, there's no duty to retreat even if retreat were possible; in other states, a duty to retreat may apply before using force, especially deadly force).
Mutual combat refers to situations where both parties willingly engaged in a fight - as opposed to one party being a clear aggressor and the other a clear victim. In mutual combat situations, both participants can potentially face charges, self-defense claims become more complicated (since both parties arguably consented to the physical confrontation), and prosecutors sometimes decline to pursue charges against either party or pursue lesser charges against both. If your case involves mutual combat, the analysis often shifts to who escalated the level of force (introducing a weapon, for example) beyond what the other party consented to.