From the category archives:

Assault

Spoof on “Bubbles Cop”

July 17, 2010 Assault

A couple of days ago, I posted a YouTube of a Toronto police officer arresting a demonstrator for blowing bubbles in his general direction.  “If a bubble touches me,” the officer warns the demonstrator, “you are going to be arrested for assault.”
The video has apparently received a lot of attention on the Internet, and the [...]

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Toronto Woman Arrested for Assaulting Police Officer With Bubbles

July 13, 2010 Assault

With thanks to Jonathan Turley of the Res Ipsa Loquitur Blog, here is a video of a Toronto woman apparently being arrested for assaulting a police officer with bubbles. If this had happened in Philadelphia (at least under the old regime), the woman would also have been charged with disorderly conduct, failure to disperse, and [...]

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On Simple Assault in Washington, D.C.

July 5, 2010 Assault

[While on vacation, I am reposting some of my favorite entries from the past year.]

Your client works downtown.  He and his wife commute together every morning into town on the metro.  The two of them are boarding the train one morning when he feels someone pushing him from behind.  Your client initially ignores it, but [...]

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Congressman Etheridge and Simple Assault in D.C.

June 16, 2010 Assault

While the YouTube video is now posted all over the Internet, I first found out about Congressman Etheridge’s altercation with two students when checking out my website stats through Google Analytics.  I found that visits to the Simple Assault page on my website had gone through the roof.  My summary of the offense was also [...]

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Self-Defense in a D.C. Assault Case

June 9, 2010 Assault

Self-defense is the use of force to protect oneself, one’s family or one’s property from a real or threatened attack.  It is an affirmative defense, meaning that the defendant has the initial burden of raising it. In D.C., once the defendant has been able to introduce sufficient evidence of self-defense, it then becomes the government’s [...]

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When Police Officers Commit Assault

May 26, 2010 Assault

It’s a little blurb on page two of today’s Washington Post sports page, so you know it’s not real news. It begins with a quote by the defendant’s public defender:  “It’s probable he consumed too much alcohol.”  Then the facts:  Some guy vomited on a police officer and the officer’s daughter at a Phillies-National game [...]

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Simple Assault and Deferred Sentencing Agreements (DSAs) in Washington, DC

March 11, 2010 Assault

Your client works downtown.  He and his wife commute together every morning into town on the metro.  The two of them are boarding the train one morning when he feels someone pushing him from behind.  Your client initially ignores it, but the pushing continues.  Finally, your client turns around and sees another man standing behind [...]

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The Difference Between Robbery and Burglary in D.C.

November 11, 2009 Assault

How many times have you heard someone complain that he or she has been robbed?  A person returns home from vacation and finds a backdoor broken and a computer missing.  Oh my goodness, dear, we’ve been robbed!  A wallet is taken from a gym locker.  Someone robbed my wallet!

Technically, the people have not been robbed.  [...]

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