LAS VEGAS ASSAULT LAWYER

Can I Sue My Attacker Even If They Are Not Charged with a Crime?

You have probably heard the phrase “assault and battery” before. These are legal terms with distinct meanings. “Assault” occurs when someone attempts to use force against another person, or places another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm. A “battery,” in contrast, means that someone has actually made some form of unwanted physical contact with another person. In Nevada, a battery that results in substantial bodily harm to the victim is considered a felony.

Now the important thing to understand here is that civil and criminal proceedings are completely independent of one another. In other words, if someone physically attacks you and you sustain an injury, you can file a civil personal injury lawsuit against them even if the police never arrest the defendant or charge them with a crime. Indeed, even if the defendant were tried and acquitted in a criminal trial, that would not prevent you from seeking and recovering civil damages.

The reason for this is that a civil plaintiff’s burden of proof is much lower than that of a criminal prosecutor. In a personal injury case, you only need to show by a “preponderance of the evidence” that the defendant caused your injuries. Furthermore, even if you were partly to blame for what happened–so you were seriously injured in a bar fight–you can still recover some damages under Nevada law so long as you were no more than 50 percent at-fault.