New Canaan First-Degree Assault Lawyer
In Connecticut, the crime of assault has many different degrees of severity. While in some cases the offense is treated as a misdemeanor, in many others, assault is classified as a felony with much more severe penalties.
First-degree assault is the most serious type of assault, and those convicted face up to 20 years in prison in addition to onerous fines and other unwelcome consequences resulting from a felony record.
If you’ve been arrested or charged with this offense, contact a New Canaan first-degree assault lawyer. With an experienced assault attorney on your side, you can immediately begin efforts to preserve evidence and work toward the best possible resolution of your case.
What Constitutes Assault?
The Connecticut penal code describes five different situations that the law construes as assault in the first degree. While this offense is frequently referred to as assault with a deadly weapon, the language of the statute clearly does not require the use of a weapon in every arrest-worthy scenario.
As a New Canaan attorney can attest, an individual can get arrested in for committing assault in the first degree by:
- Intentionally causing serious physical injury to another by use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument,
- Intentionally disfiguring or destroying the organ or body part of another,
- Recklessly taking dangerous action and causing serious physical injury to another,
- With the assistance of two or more others, intentionally causing serious physical injury to another, or
- Intentionally injuring another while firing a gun.
Importance of Intent in Assault Cases
Although these scenarios outlined in Connecticut’s assault statutes cover a range of different circumstances, one aspect they share is the requirement that an individual must be acting with a certain state of mind in order to be arrested for assault.
In most cases, the individual must intend to cause the harm that results, although the intent may be to harm an individual other than the one who suffered the actual harm. Or the individual may act with reckless disregard for the safety of others.
The issue of intent can be proven by either direct or circumstantial evidence, including proof of how you behaved and statements made before, during and after the assault. That is why it is critical that a New Canaan first-degree assault attorney files motions with the Norwalk Superior Court to preserve video surveillance evidence in order to ensure that the judge and jury have all relevant evidence before a decision is reached on a client’s innocence or guilt.
Contacting a New Canaan First-Degree Assault Attorney
As a Class B felony in Connecticut, first-degree assault carries very heavy penalties. In some cases, the law requires the court to impose a mandatory minimum sentence and does not allow the court to suspend or substantially reduce a sentence. In addition to prison sentences, a conviction carries a fine of up to $15,000.
Those arrested for first-degree assault are advised to seek advice and counsel from a New Canaan first-degree assault lawyer who will work to ensure that all evidence is made available to the court and who will advocate tirelessly for the best possible resolution.