The Pelican State has been going through a population boom recently. Cities like New Orleans and Baton Rouge are happily welcoming in waves of new residents. However this uptick in population can come with a pretty dark downside. Crimes like assault and battery are on the upswing.
In Baton Rouge alone the crime rate was 196% higher than the U.S. average in 2022. This doesn’t mean rethinking your upcoming move to Louisiana. However, it does mean you should always pay attention to your surroundings. This can help you stay a little safer but it’s not an absolute fix. If you’re injured in an assault can you recover compensation for your damages? The answer is yes, but you’re going to need to follow a few essential steps.
Is It an Assault, or Simply an Accident?
Have you ever been bumped or jostled on a crowded sidewalk? Maybe you’ve ever gotten an elbow to the ribs. Yep, it can be painful, and you may even be pushed off the sidewalk. But is this an assault? Chances are, this is an accident, even if you end up being pushed and shoved to the ground. There’s a chance you may be able to file a civil lawsuit but it’s probably not going very far. You need to prove negligence and it’s tough in these types of situations.
Louisiana law is fairly clear about what’s considered an assault. The state defines an assault as a deliberate threat or act that makes someone reasonably fear for their safety. If another person hits you with their hand or another object, this is legally considered assault and battery.
So, if you’re strolling past the Capitol Park Museum and someone walks up to you threatening to hit or kick you, this can be considered an assault. If the threat escalates to violence, it becomes assault and battery. In either scenario, you may be able to recover compensation for things like your medical expenses, property damage costs, and even mental anguish. Being the victim of an assault can be a traumatic experience and you can often include your mental suffering in your personal injury claim.
Negligence Must Be Presented
Simply suffering injuries and/or mental trauma isn’t enough for you to move forward with an assault claim. You must prove negligence. This is the cornerstone of pretty much every type of personal injury claim. Yep, your assault falls under this humongous legal umbrella. Personal injury law covers all accident claims whether it’s a car collision, medical malpractice, or an assault.
Proving negligence means meeting four essential elements but don’t get too worried. Each of the elements builds off of each other. Once you can show one element, the next one sort of falls into place.
Negligence is defined as failing to behave with the same level of care you expect from a reasonable person. Since your idea of reasonable behavior may differ from your neighbor’s, the law tends to look at averages. For example, a reasonable person will stop at a red light. If you decide a red light is only a suggestion, you’re probably guilty of negligent behavior. In an assault injury claim, the threat or act of violence is considered unreasonable behavior. From there, you start addressing each of the four following elements:
- Duty of care. You must show the at-fault party owes you a duty of care. This simply means acting in a way that doesn’t place others at risk of harm.
- Breach of duty. A breach of duty occurs when someone acts in a way others consider unreasonable. Walking up to someone on the sidewalk and punching them in the face is a clear breach of duty.
- Causation. This means proving your damages like facial injuries can only be caused by the defendant’s actions. Try using the ‘but for’ scenario. For example, You wouldn’t have suffered a broken nose but for the defendant punching you in the face.
- Damages. This is usually the easiest element of negligence to prove. All you’re showing is your damages are directly related to the assault.
If you can meet all of these elements, you can usually move forward with your assault injury claim.
Where Do You File a Louisiana Assault Charge?
You’ve gone through the other steps like seeking medical attention, gathering evidence, and calculating the value of your damages. Your injury claim is all ready to go but where should you file the paperwork?
Where you file an assault claim depends on a few things. Typically, you start with the defendant’s insurance provider. If the at-fault party isn’t covered by insurance or their provider denies your claim, you’re probably headed to civil court. Yep, this means filing a lawsuit and probably sitting through a relatively lengthy trial. You may get lucky and find out the insurance company is willing to settle before trial. If this happens, you’re almost ready to receive your settlement check.
Small Claims Court Is an Option
This isn’t the best option for all assault injury claims. While there can be some upsides, you’re also going to run into some disadvantages. Cases in small claims courts tend to move pretty fast. Instead of spending weeks or months in civil court, your case may only take a day or two in small claims court. So far everything sounds great but we haven’t gotten to the potential downsides.
You must be willing to accept a settlement amount of no more than $5,000 in small claims court. There aren’t any exceptions to this law. Before deciding that the faster legal route is the way to go, check your claim’s overall value. If it’s significantly higher than $5,000 you’re probably better off going through a trial in civil court.
Your Assault Injuries May Be Eligible for Compensation
Regardless of whether it’s an assault or battery, you’re often left with physical and emotional injuries after the fact. Thankfully Louisiana allows accident victims to recover compensation after an assault.
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