Recently in South Florida a teacher was charged with the crime of battery after allegedly having her student clean a school urinal, the teacher accused the student at Broward Community Charter School of sticking paper towels in the urinal to clog it, police said. She allegedly made him remove the urine-soaked paper with his bre hands as a form of punishment.
More on this can be read at: Sun Sentinel Article
In response the our Law Firm’s Battery Lawyers in Fort Lauderdale were asked about the basics of this criminal charge.
What is Battery?
Battery can be defined as the offensive or harmful touching of another. Typically it is used in conjunction with assault as in assault and battery. The main difference between the two terms is that assault is a threat while battery is the actual harmful touching. Another element of battery is that of intent. The person accused of battery must have had the intent to harm the other person. This intent to harm is usually assumed and lack of intent can be used as a defense when it was a genuine accident or done inadvertently.
Within Reason
One defense against a charge of battery is that of consent. This is so especially if the offense is charged under civil law. Many states consider mutual combat to encompass consent while others do not. In order to be used as a defense the consent for battery must be given voluntarily without fraud or duress. Additionally, a person can be charged with battery if the force exceeds the consented limit. For instance, when taking part in a contact game some amount of forceful contact is expected, but it cannot exceed reasonable limits.
Protection
Another defense against a charge of battery is self-defense or defense of another person. In both these cases, normally, the aggressor cannot claim to be defending themselves. However, the other party can claim self-defense or defense of another especially if they can show that they feared bodily harm to justify the use of force.
Lethal Force
Typically, a jury is selected to decide if the circumstances warranted the use of force to defend yourself or another person. Additionally, a person can claim that they were defending their property when accused of battery. However, when defending your property you cannot use deadly force, which can use when defending your person or another person.
The facts of this crime transcend typical or general battery laws, for more specific information about this type of offense contact the Broward Criminal Defense Lawyers of William Moore Criminal Defense.