Are you facing an aggravated assault charge?

It is not unusual for people to get into fights at some point in their lives. Those fights may occur as children on a playground, and the repercussions may be little more than a time-out or grounding. However, if you end up in a physical fight as an adult, you could face more serious consequences.

Unfortunately, when a physical altercation is taking place, it can be difficult to determine who started what, whether someone is a victim and why the incident is occurring. As a result, if you find yourself in a fight and someone calls the Colorado police, you and others involved could end up under arrest and facing charges for aggravated assault.

Why aggravated assault?

In some cases, a standard assault charge may be filed, but in others, authorities may believe that certain circumstances of the situation warrant an enhanced charge. If you wonder whether this enhanced charge truly fits your case, you may want to ask yourself the following questions:

• Did you know that the person you allegedly fought with was a firefighter, police officer, teacher or another person in a highly respected field? The identity of the victim could lead to an aggravated charge in some cases, but the person must have been carrying out work-related duties when the incident occurred.
• Did you intend to seriously harm the other person? If the other person started the incident, you may have simply been trying to defend yourself, but if authorities believe you intended to cause serious harm, they could enhance your charges.
• Did the other person suffer serious harm? In addition to having the intent of harming someone, the actual injuries suffered can play a role in the type of allegations brought against you.
• Were there weapons involved? It is common for altercations that involved deadly weapons to result in aggravated assault charges.

You may worry that the answers to these questions could mean that the aggravated charge suits your situation. However, if you were defending yourself, did not know the person’s identity or occupation, or if the other person had the weapon, you may have a strong case for defending against the allegations.

Creating your defense

When it comes to criminal cases, the manner in which one presents information can play a significant role in the outcomes of the case. As a result, it is important that you detail exactly how the altercation began and why it escalated. If it appears that the other party was the instigator and that you were simply trying to protect yourself, that information will be vital to your case.