BATTERY
At common law, an intentional unpermitted act
causing harmful or offensive contact with the
“person” of another.
Battery is concerned with the right to have
one’s body left alone by others.
Battery is both a tort and a crime. Its essen-
tial element, harmful or offensive contact, is the
same in both areas of the law. The main distinc-
tion between the two categories lies in the
penalty imposed. A defendant sued for a tort is
civilly liable to the plaintiff for damages. The
punishment for criminal battery is a fine,
imprisonment, or both. Usually battery is prose-
cuted as a crime only in cases involving serious
harm to the victim.
Elements
The following elements must be proven to
establish a case for battery: (1) an act by a defen-
dant; (2) an intent to cause harmful or offensive
contact on the part of the defendant; and (3)
harmful or offensive contact to the plaintiff.
The Act The act must result in one of two
forms of contact. Causing any physical harm or
injury to the victim—such as a cut, a burn, or a
bullet wound—could constitute battery, but
actual injury is not required. Even though there is no apparent bruise following harmful contact, the defendant can still be guilty of battery;
occurrence of a physical illness subsequent to
the contact may also be actionable. The second
type of contact that may constitute battery
causes no actual physical harm but is, instead,
offensive or insulting to the victim. Examples
include spitting in someone’s face or offensively
touching someone against his or her will.
Touching the person of someone is defined
as including not only contacts with the body, but
also with anything closely connected with the
body, such as clothing or an item carried in the
person’s hand. For example, a battery may be
committed by intentionally knocking a hat off
someone’s head or knocking a glass out of someone’s
hand.
Intent Although the contact must be
intended, there is no requirement that the
defendant intend to harm or injure the victim.
In TORT LAW, the intent must be either specific
intent—the contact was specifically intended—
or general intent—the defendant was substantially
certain that the act would cause the
contact. The intent element is satisfied in CRIMINAL
LAW when the act is done with an intent to
injure or with criminal negligence—failure to
use care to avoid criminal consequences. The
intent for criminal law is also present when the
defendant’s conduct is unlawful even though it
does not amount to criminal negligence.
Intent is not negated if the aim of the contact
was a joke. As with all torts, however, consent
is a defense. Under certain circumstances
consent to a battery is assumed. A person who
walks in a crowded area impliedly consents to a
degree of contact that is inevitable and reasonable.
Consent may also be assumed if the parties
had a prior relationship unless the victim gave
the defendant a previous warning.
There is no requirement that the plaintiff be
aware of a battery at the time it is committed.
The gist of the action is the lack of consent to
contact. It is no defense that the victim was
sleeping or unconscious at the time.
Harmful or Offensive Conduct It is not
necessary for the defendant’s wrongful act to
result in direct contact with the victim. It is sufficient
if the act sets in motion a force that
results in the contact. A defendant who whipped
a horse on which a plaintiff was riding, causing
the plaintiff to fall and be injured, was found
guilty of battery. Provided all other elements of
the offense are present, the offense may also be
committed by causing the victim to harm himself.
A defendant who fails to act when he or she
has a duty to do so is guilty—as where a nurse
fails to warn a blind patient that he is headed
toward an open window, causing him to fall and
injure himself.
Aggravated Battery
When a battery is committed with intent to
do serious harm or murder, or when it is done
with a dangerous weapon, it is described as
aggravated. A weapon is considered dangerous
whenever the purpose for using it is to cause
death or serious harm. State statutes define
aggravated battery in various ways—such as
assault with intent to kill. Under such statutes,
assault means both battery and assault. It is punishable
as a felony in all states.
Punishment
In a civil action for tortious battery, the
penalty is damages. A jury determines the
amount to be awarded, which in most cases is
based on the harm done to the plaintiff. Even
though a plaintiff suffers no actual injury, nominal
damages (a small sum) may still be awarded
on the theory that there has been an invasion of
a right. Also, a court may award PUNITIVE DAMAGES
aimed at punishing the defendant for the
wrongful act.
Criminal battery is punishable by a fine,
imprisonment, or both. If it is considered aggravated
the penalties are greater.
