Battery is a criminaloffense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct fromassault, which is the act of creating reasonable fear or apprehension of such contact.
Battery is a specificcommon law offense, although the term is used more generally to refer to any unlawful offensive physical contact with another person. Battery is defined by American common law as "any unlawful and/or unwanted touching of the person of another by the aggressor, or by a substance put in motion by them". In more severe cases, and for all types in some jurisdictions, it is chiefly defined bystatutory wording. Assessment of the severity of a battery is determined by local law.
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Specific rules regarding battery vary among different jurisdictions, but some elements remain constant across jurisdictions. Battery generally requires that:
Under the USModel Penal Code and in some jurisdictions, there is battery when the actor acts recklessly without specific intent of causing an offensive contact. Battery is typically classified as either simple or aggravated. Although battery typically occurs in the context ofphysical altercations, it may also occur under other circumstances, such as in medical cases where a doctor performs a non-consented medical procedure.
Battery is not defined in the CanadianCriminal Code. Instead, the Code has an offense of assault, and assault causing bodily harm.
Battery is acommon law offence within England and Wales.
As with the majority of offences in the UK, it has two elements:
This offence is a crime againstautonomy, with more violent crimes such asABH andGBH being statutory offences under theOffences against the Person Act 1861.
As such, even the slightest of touches can amount to an unlawful application of force.[1] However, it is assumed that everyday encounters (such as making contact with others on public transportation) are consented to and not punishable.[2]
Much confusion can come between the terms "assault" and "battery". In everyday use the term assault may be used to describe a physical attack, which is indeed a battery. An assault is causing someone to apprehend that they will be the victim of a battery. This issue is so prevalent that the crime ofsexual assault[3] would be better labelled a sexual battery. This confusion stems from the fact that both assault and battery can be referred to as common assault. In practice, if charged with such an offence, the wording will read "assault by beating", but this means the same as "battery".
There is no separate offence for a battery relating todomestic violence; however, the introduction of the crime of "controlling or coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship" in section 76 of theSerious Crime Act 2015[4] has given rise to new sentencing guidelines[5] that take into account significant aggravating factors such asabuse of trust, resulting in potentially longer sentences for acts of battery within the context of domestic violence.
InDPP v Taylor, DPP v Little,[6] it was held that battery is astatutory offence, contrary to section 39 of theCriminal Justice Act 1988.[7] This decision was criticised inHaystead v DPP[8] where the Divisional court expressed theobiter opinion that battery remains a common law offence.
Therefore, whilst it may be a better view that battery and assault have statutory penalties, rather than being statutory offences, it is still the case that until review by a higher court,DPP v Little is the preferred authority.[9]
In England and Wales, battery is asummary offence under section 39 of theCriminal Justice Act 1988. However, by virtue of section 40, it can be tried onindictment where anotherindictable offence is also charged which is founded on the same facts or together with which it forms part of a series of offences of similar character. Where it is tried onindictment aCrown Court has no greater powers of sentencing than a magistrates' court would, unless the battery itself constitutesactual bodily harm or greater.
It is punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or a fine not exceedinglevel 5 on the standard scale, or both.
There are numerous defences to a charge of assault, namely[10]
For provocation, seeTuberville v Savage.
There is an offence which could be (loosely) described as battery in Russia. Article 116[11] of theRussian Criminal Code provides that battery or similar violent actions which cause pain are an offence.
There is no distinct offence of battery inScotland. The offence ofassault includes acts that could be described as battery.
In the United States,criminal battery, or simple battery, is the use offorce against another, resulting in harmful or offensive contact, including sexual contact.[12] Atcommon law, simple battery is amisdemeanor. Theprosecutor must prove all three elements beyond a reasonable doubt:
The common-law elements serve as a basic template, but individual jurisdictions may alter them, and they may vary slightly from state to state.[citation needed]
Under modern statutory schemes, battery is often divided into grades that determine the severity of punishment. For example:
In the state ofKansas, battery is defined as follows:[16]
The law on battery inLouisiana reads:[17]
In some jurisdictions, battery has recently been constructed to include directing bodily secretions (i.e.,spitting) at another person without their permission. Some of those jurisdictions automatically elevate such a battery to the charge of aggravated battery. In some jurisdictions, the charge of criminal battery also requires evidence of a mental state (mens rea). The terminology used to refer to a particular offense can also vary by jurisdiction. Some jurisdictions, such asNew York, refer to what, under the common-law, would-be battery as assault, and then use another term for the crime that would have been assault, such asmenacing.
A typicalovert behavior of an assault is Person A chasing Person B and swinging a fist toward their head. That for battery is A striking B.
Battery requires:
Assault, where rooted onEnglish law, the act of intentionally causing a person to apprehend physical contact with their person. Elsewhere it is often similarly worded as the threat of violence to a person while aggravated assault is the threat with the clear and present ability and willingness to carry it out. Aggravated battery is, typically, offensive touching without a tool or weapon with attempt to harm or restrain.
The dictionary definition ofbeat up at WiktionaryTypes ofcrime | ||
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Note: Crimes vary byjurisdiction. Not all types are listed here. | ||
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