Aggravated Assault, Simple Assault and
Terrorist Threats

Common Situations That Lead to Assault Charges

These cases frequently arise out of domestic violence, but not always.

Occasionally, they result from bar fights, fights among neighbors or co-workers, or arguments over child custody. They often overlap with PFA court, which are civil proceedings held before family court judges.

Simple assault is a misdemeanor charge in Pennsylvania and carries up to 2 years in prison. Aggravated assault can take several forms, including the use of a deadly weapon, or causing severe injury, and all aggravated assaults are felonies in Pennsylvania. Some forms of aggravated assault carry a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and the higher forms of aggravated assault carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. 

Terroristic threats is a misdemeanor offense in Pennsylvania (and has nothing to do with terrorism) and carries up to 5 years in prison. In domestic assault cases, it is very common for police to file charges without conducting much investigation, especially if the police observe visible injuries on

someone. The sequence and order of events is what matters. It is not ordinarily illegal to engage in an argument with someone and it’s only when the argument becomes violent that the police become involved. Therefore, the person who inflicted violence first—in theory—should be the person accused and charged by police. However, that’s not always what happens. 

How Domestic Assault Arrests and PFAs Affect You

Take a common example: A husband and wife are arguing and she becomes irate and goes up to the husband and scratches at his face and slaps him. If he responds and happens to be larger

and stronger, he may overcome her and push her away, whereupon she falls down and hits her forehead on a corner of the furniture. When police come, they may see the wife with the injury on her forehead, she’s visibly upset and crying and is physically smaller than her husband. Even if the husband protests that the wife became violent first, the police instinct will be to charge him only.

This scenario plays out all the time in domestic cases and can be very frustrating. The accused

person under arrest then has to suffer the embarrassment of being arrested, sometimes having to post bail, and often being ordered out of the home as a condition of bail. Police will frequently urge the wife in that scenario to also obtain a PFA (Protection from Abuse Order), which further prevents the husband from living in the home or contacting her at all. The husband ends up feeling like the system is rigged and he hasn’t had a chance to even tell his side in a court yet. Criminal defense lawyers are very familiar with this type of scenario and how to fight it effectively. One thing to remember is that even if the police showed up to the scene and took statements from people (which are likely preserved on their body cameras), if the police did not witness the actual fight, then they do not know the order of who did what first. And that is what matters.

Self-defense is a common defense raised in such cases. Self-defense has a long, very specific definition under Pennsylvania law. That requires a lot of discussion so if you are charged with any type of assault and you want to explore a self- defense claim, you should obtain a criminal defense lawyer and review it extensively.

Self-Defense and Fighting Assault Charges

In many assault cases, agreements can be worked out by an experienced criminal defense lawyer early in the case to prevent full prosecution through the criminal court system. Early resolution keeps charges lower, sentences lower, and court costs lower. In domestic assaults, prosecutors are very concerned about maintaining safety in the home and in preventing any further violent eruptions. But they are equally interested to know if the couple intends to break up or plans to reunite. The direction of the case court will partially depend on this because if a couple appears to want to reunite, then there is more focus on intervention and counseling and education (such as requiring couples counseling or a batterer’s course) as a prevention effort. 

However, if it appears the couple is broken up for good, then the focus is more on fully prosecuting and punishing, with less leniency. With domestic assault cases, it is important to obtain a local criminal defense attorney, because your attorney will be familiar with the prosecutors and police, as well as the judges and will be able to more accurate predict the approach of those people while your case is in the court system.

Some common questions that come up when a person is charged in an assault case are:

1. The judge said I can’t live in my house and I can’t talk to my wife while I’m released on bail. My kids are with her and I want to see them. How can I at least see my kids?
2. It’s my house and her name isn’t on the deed or lease so why do I have to live somewhere else while I’m on bail and she gets to stay there?
3. Is there a way I can go back the house to get my things even though the judge ordered me not to have contact?
4. If I’m found guilty of these charges, do I have give up my guns and my license to carry forever?
5. Is there a way to get this case resolved early—like at the preliminary hearing coming up?
6. How does my prior record affect this case now? 
7. What happens if my ex doesn’t want the case to go forward and tried to drop it but the police refused?

These are just some examples of the many, many questions that come up after an arrest on an assault case. You should get a criminal defense attorney and it should be someone local, who can help you navigate and give you real information while answering all your questions.