What is Attempted Murder, and what is the penalty? Attempted Murder is the intentional attempt to kill someone and, but for some intervening circumstance not caused by the defendant, the intended victim would have died. A defendant may think “Well, I only shot at him a few times, and I missed. How can they charge with me Attempted Murder?” The answer is that the INTENT and the acting on that intent is the crime, not the actual outcome. The prosecution will often make the argument that the defendant shouldn’t get credit for being a bad shot. The penalty for attempted murder can vary: if a judge or jury determines that serious bodily injury was caused to the victim, then the maximum penalty for attempted murder is 20-40 years. Otherwise, it is 10-20 years maximum. If you are facing attempted murder charges, you need an experienced criminal attorney like Tom to combat the prosecution’s arguments, and fight the case for you, every step of the way.
Aggravated Assault can be proven in a number of different ways by the government. Often times, the government will proceed under a number of theories of aggravated assault , with the hopes of securing a conviction on at least one of them. The penalty for Aggravated Assault can be as high as 10-20 years, and so if you are facing charges of Aggravated Assault, you NEED an experienced criminal lawyer, like Tom, who knows the difference between the elements of the various theories, and who can fight the government on the facts and the law.
- The attempt to cause “serious bodily injury”* to another, or the causing of “serious bodily injury” intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly under circumstances which indicate that the defendant didn’t care about the value of human life.
*Serious bodily injury is defined in the law as “bodily injury which creates a substantial risk of death or which causes serious, permanent disfigurement or protracted loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ.”
To demonstrate the difference, let’s use examples: A intentionally shoots B in the stomach/chest area, causing B to undergo multiple surgeries and remain hospitalized. In that instance, the government will argue that serious bodily injury was actually caused. In other example, let’s say A shoots B in the chest, but it’s a “through-and’through” wound, and B is released that night with relatively minor injuries. While “serious bodily injury” may not have been caused, as defined in the law, A can still be charged with Aggravated Assault under the theory that he “attempted” to cause serious bodily injury by shooting B in the chest. And the same penalties can apply. Even if A shoots at B and missed, A can (and will) still be charged with Aggravated Assault under the theory that he attempted to cause serious bodily injury when he attempted to shoot B. Only an experienced criminal lawyer can pick apart the facts, and argue the law, to create reasonable doubt.
- Attempting to cause or intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causing bodily injury to a police officer or other “protected class.” Yes – that’s right. If you get into a fight with another civilian, you will most likely be charged with misdemeanor simple assault. However, if you get into a fight with a cop, firefighter, parole/probation officer, sheriff, CO (correctional officer), prosecutor/defense attorney or parking enforcement officer (PPA) while that person is on duty performing his or her job, or even if there is a just a struggle during an arrest, you can be charged with Aggravated Assault as a 2nd degree felony, which carries a maximum penalty of 5-10 years in state prison. Hire a lawyer who knows the law, and how to fight these charges.
- Attempts to cause or intentionally or knowingly causes “bodily injury” to another with a deadly weapon. If you use deadly weapon, such a baseball bat, knife, gun (for a pistol-whipping), or something else on a person and, even if you only cause regular “bodily injury”, which is a much lower threshold in the law compared to serious bodily injury, you can still be charged with, and convicted of 2nd degree felony Aggravated Assault, which carries a maximum of 5-10 years in prison.
- Attempting to cause or causing bodily injury to a teacher or other school staff member (normally applies to juvenile defendants).
- Putting a cop or other law enforcement officer in fear of “imminent serious bodily injury” while on duty. Fear of “imminent serious bodily injury” means that the cop felt that he or she was about die or be seriously injured. A classic example of this is when a person points a gun (or look-alike gun) at a cop, and the cop believes the gun to be real, and that s/he is about to be shot.
- If an individual is over 18 years of age, and causes bodily injury to a child under age 6, or serious bodily injury to a person under age 13, that will also be charged as Aggravated Assault.
***No matter what type of criminal charge you are facing, call Tom immediately.