Pequannock Simple Assault Charges Dropped Thanks to Travis Tormey
Arrested for a Disorderly Persons Charge? Call Us
disorderly persons offense
Do you need an attorney for a simple assault disorderly person charge in Pequannock? We can help. Here is a case we handled there with a great result.
Our criminal defense lawyers recently represented a client who had been charged with simple assault in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1(a). This was the client’s first arrest and, because he is not an American citizen, he was facing potential deportation if convicted of this charge.
The NJ Criminal Code classifies simple assault as a disorderly persons offense or a petty disorderly persons offense. The exact classification, and the potential penalties, is determined by the circumstances of the offense. As set forth by N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1(a), simple assault occurs when an individual:
- Purposely, knowingly, or recklessly causes bodily injury to someone else
- Negligently causes bodily injury while using a deadly weapon
- Uses physical menace to put another person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury
When the altercation stems from a fight entered into by mutual consent, the charge is classified as a petty disorderly persons offense; otherwise, it is a disorderly persons offense.
Simple Assault Lawyers in Pequannock, NJ
Once we are retained to fight a simple assault charge, we request all of the evidence from the Pequannock police department which the State possesses and intends to rely upon to prove the charges against the defendant in court beyond a reasonable doubt. This evidence usually includes police reports, bodycam footage, medical records, videos from the police vehicles, etc. Once we receive the evidence, the case is scheduled for a conference in the Pequannock Municipal Court with the Pequannock Municipal Prosecutor to see if the case can be resolved in some fashion with a plea agreement or the case needs to be scheduled for trial before the Municipal Judge.
In this case, when we appeared in court for the initial conference, the alleged victim did not want to proceed with the charges. Since the alleged victim was the State’s only witness and our client took it upon himself to enroll in anger management counseling, we were able to convince the prosecutor to dismiss the charges altogether. This was a tremendous result for our client and for the law firm.
