Assault inflicting serious injury is a Class A1 misdemeanor in North Carolina. This crime is governed by N.C.G.S. 14- 33. This crime is not to be confused with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious bodily injury, which is discussed here. This should also not be confused with assault inflicting serious bodily injury, which is a Class F felony.
Like all of our blogs, this blog is intended for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice and counsel of a criminal defense attorney.
A person guilty of assault inflicting serious injury:
- Commits an assault
- On another and
- Inflicts serious injury
What is considered a serious injury?
This crime is distinguished from simple assault in that this form of assault requires serious injury (but not serious bodily injury). Proving serious injury requires less evidence than proving serious bodily injury. The following have been found to be serious injuries:
- Gunshot wounds
- to the wrist
- through the knee (received hospital treatment, took prescribed pain medication for two weeks, required one month to heal)
- where bullet went through leg (and victim was unable to drive to hospital, was treated at hospital, and suffered pain for 2-3 weeks)
- Head injuries
- Swelling on the skull
- Traumatic head injuries (with extreme facial bruising and swelling, bleeding from the ear and nose, eye swollen shut for over a month, damage to the inside of ear and mouth, and loss of consciousness)
- Cuts, punctures, and stab wounds
- Multiple lacerations to the forearm, small stab wounds to leg, deep laceration to the thumb, bruising to the back, puncture wound to the right orbital rim with bone fracture, wounds that required treatment by specialists
- Eight or nine stabs/cuts, multiple wounds, loss of “a lot” of blood, ventilator, chest tube, stitches, and scarring
- A nostril that has caved in and knocked-out teeth
- Shards of glass in the arm and shoulder cause by a drive-by shooting, coupled with officer’s observation that victim was shaken
- Badly bruised shoulder, inability to move the arm properly for three days, and pain and suffering
- Mental injury
- Victim sexually assaulted for several days with devices used to degrade and dehumanize resulting in: hospital admission, severe depression, suicidal tendencies, anorexia, insomnia, and feelings of hopelessness and helplessness
Punishment
Assault inflicting serious injury is a Class A1 misdemeanor, which carries a maximum possible penalty of 150 days in jail.
If you have been charged with assault crime or another crime in North Carolina or South Carolina and are in need of a criminal defense attorney, contact us to discuss your options.
