Affirmative defenses are special pleadings that you, as the defendant, had a legally justifiable reason for doing the crime you’ve been charged with. When you make an affirmative defense, you are effectively admitting that you broke the law, but you argue that you had a legal reason that allowed you to do it.
Is this form of defense applicable to my case?
There are a handful of different affirmative defenses that may be applicable to an assault and battery case. Here are some common forms of those affirmative defenses:
- Self-defense: This may be the most common form of an affirmative defense for assault and battery cases. You may have to prove there was a real threat of unlawful force against you without any harm or provocation on your part.
- Defense of others: This is similar to the self-defense claim, but it extends to the threat that harm would be done to another person.
- Defense of property: A person charged with assault and battery on their property may claim that they acted to keep their property from being invaded or illegally withheld. Ohio adopted its ‘castle doctrine’ in 2008 to provide legal justifications for a person acting with force to defend a home or occupied vehicles.
Maintaining your rights to self-defense
Each case has its own specific needs and defenses available to it. If you or a loved one have been charged with assault and battery, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney to make sure that you can pursue all the options available to you.