Battery is a serious offense, with many different subcategories, each with different penalties. If you or someone you know is being charged with battery, call criminal defense attorney Alex Mendoza today to set up a consultation.

Battery

Battery is when a person intentionally touches another person in a “rude, insolent, or angry manner” and is typically classified as a Class B Misdemeanor. However, battery does become a Class A Misdemeanor if the touching results in bodily injury to the other person.

There are also some situations in which a battery accusation can turn into a Level 6 Felony. These include the following:

• When the battery results in moderate injury to the victim
• When the battery is committed against a public safety official (this includes police officers, firefighters, judges, EMS personnel, probation officers, etc)
• When the battery is committed by a person 18 or older and the victim is 14 or younger
• When the battery is committed against a disabled person by their caretaker
• When the battery is committed against an endangered adult (adults with mental illnesses, disabilities, dementia, excessive drinking problems or drug problems that inhibit their ability to care for themselves)
• When the battery is committed against a family or household member and a child 16 or younger is present

In addition to these, there are situations in which a battery accusation can turn into a Level 5 Felony. These include:

• When the battery results in serious injury to the victim
• When the battery is committed with a deadly weapon
• When the battery is committed against a pregnant woman and she becomes injured (and the batterer knew of the pregnancy)
• When the battery results in injury to a public safety official
• When the battery results in injury to a person 14 or younger
• When the battery results in injury to an endangered adult or a disabled individual

Other enhancements to the battery charge include:

• Battery resulting in serious injury to an endangered adult—Level 4 Felony
• Battery resulting in serious injury to a child 14 or younger by an adult—Level 3 Felony
• Battery resulting in death of an endangered adult of a child 14 or younger—Level 2 Felony

If you have been charged with battery, you need an aggressive criminal defense attorney. Call criminal defense attorney Alex Mendoza today.

Battery also includes the placing of any bodily fluid or waste onto another person. This is typically a Class B Misdemeanor. However, if the person had knowledge of or recklessly failed to know that they had hepatitis, tuberculosis, or HIV at the time of the battery with bodily fluid, the offense is elevated to a Level 6 Felony. If this is the case and the offense is committed against a public safety official, it becomes a Level 5 Felony (I.C. 35-42-2-1).

On top of all of these different levels of battery, there are different types of battery. These include domestic, aggravated, and sexual battery.

Domestic Battery

Domestic battery occurs when a person intentionally touches their spouse (or a person living as a spouse) in a rude, insolent, or angry manner that results in bodily injury. A spouse, an ex-spouse, a person living as a spouse, a person who was previously living as a spouse, or two people who share a child qualify under this statute. Determining whether two people are or were “living as spouses” is dependent upon factors such as: duration of relationship, financial interdependence, whether they have children, evidence that they took steps to maintain a common household, etc. However, it is entirely possible for a person to be convicted of domestic battery due to living as a spouse with one person while still being married to another (Bowling v. State, 995 N.E.2d 715 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013)). Domestic battery is typically a Class A Misdemeanor. However, it can be enhanced to a Level 6 Felony if the batterer has a prior conviction of battery or if the battery is committed in the presence of a child 16 or younger (I.C. 35-42-2-1.3). According to Williams v. State (798 N.E.2d 457, 461 (Ind.Ct.App.2003)), the purpose of a separate offense for domestic battery is to act a disincentive for battery in a domestic setting. Have you been charged with domestic battery? Do not take it lightly. Call criminal defense attorney Alex Mendoza and set up a consultation today.

Aggravated Battery

Aggravated battery is when a person intentionally inflicts injury on a person, and that injury creates a risk of death, permanent disfigurement, loss or impairment of functioning of a bodily member or organ, or the loss of a fetus. All of these are Level 3 Felonies. However, if the aggravated battery results in the death of a child under the age of 14, it is a Level 1 Felony (I.C. 35-42-2-1.5).

If you or someone you know has been charged with aggravated battery, call Alex Mendoza, criminal defense attorney, today.

Sexual Battery

Sexual battery occurs when a person touches someone else with the intent to arouse or satisfy their sexual desire (or someone else’s), and the victim is threatened by force, mentally disabled to the extent that they cannot consent, or does not know it is happening. Sexual battery of this nature is typically a Level 6 Felony. However, if the batterer uses or threatens to use deadly force, is armed with a weapon, or knows the victim is drugged, sexual battery becomes a Level 4 Felony. It does not matter whether the batterer is the one who drugged the victim or someone else, if they are aware that the victim has been drugged (without the victims knowledge) then it still qualifies as a Level 4 Felony (I.C. 35-42-4-8).

Have you been charged with sexual battery? Do not delay, call criminal defense attorney Alex Mendoza right now.

Criminal Recklessness

Criminal recklessness occurs when a person recklessly and intentionally performs an act that creates a serious risk of bodily injury to another individual. This is typically a Class B Misdemeanor. However, if that person is armed with a deadly weapon or driving aggressively and injuries someone, criminal recklessness becomes a Level 6 Felony. If that person is shooting a firearm into a place where people gather (house, building, etc) or aggressively driving and kills someone, it becomes a Level 5 Felony (I.C. 35-42-2-2).

Criminal recklessness is a serious offense, and you will need the guidance of a criminal defense attorney. Call Alex Mendoza, criminal defense attorney, to set up a consultation.

Strangulation

Strangulation is a separate offense altogether. The statute states that if a person applies pressure to the throat/neck of another person, or obstructs the nose/mouth of another person in a way that obstructs normal breathing and/or blood circulation, and does so in a rude, insolent, or angry manner, they are committing a Level 6 Felony (I.C. 35-42-2-9).

Have you been convicted of strangulation, battery, or criminal recklessness? Call criminal defense attorney Alex Mendoza to set up a consultation.

Provocation

Strangely enough, provocation is an infraction under the same section as battery. Provocation occurs when a person recklessly or intentionally engages in activity likely to provoke a reasonable person to commit battery. Provocation is a Class C Infraction (I.C. 35-42-2-3).

Are you being charged with provocation? Do you feel that this is a wrongful accusation? Call criminal defense attorney Alex Mendoza to fight for your rights!