Richmond Malicious Wounding Lawyer
Malicious wounding is essentially the act of shooting, stabbing, cutting or wounding somebody with the intent to maim, disable, disfigure or kill them. It is a felony offense and can result in the loss of certain civil liberties. It could also hinder someone’s ability to find housing and maintain gainful employment. If someone has been charged with malicious wounding, they should consult a skilled assault attorney that could help. A Richmond malicious wounding lawyer could build a solid defense for you.
Aggravated Malicious Wounding
Aggravated malicious wounding refers to the shooting, stabbing, cutting or wounding of a person with the intent to kill, permanently maim, disfigure or disable. The thing that makes it aggravated is if the person who is ultimately wounded suffers severe injuries resulting in permanent and significant impairment. Then, an offense is elevated from just a standard malicious wounding to an aggravated malicious wounding offense, which escalates the penalty from a Class 3 felony to a Class 2 felony, carrying a minimum of 20 and maximum of life.
Situations That Can Result in Malicious Wounding
A lot of times, a malicious wounding is a spur-of-the-moment thing where somebody has a very brief lapse in judgment and that ultimately turns into what becomes a malicious wounding. A common example would be the example of the bar fight – nobody goes to – or, generally speaking, most people do not go to a bar looking to essentially maliciously wound somebody. Even if an individual is in a fight with someone, the intent normally is not to maliciously wound them but maybe just knock them out or – (they do not even want to fight). When these situations occur, it is best to get in contact with a Richmond malicious wounding lawyer.
Elements a Prosecutor Needs to Prove in a Malicious Wounding Case
In a malicious wounding case, the prosecutor must prove the defendant’s identity and that the defendant or the accused shot, stabbed, cut or wounded another individual. Wound is defined by the Virginia case law as a breach or disruption of the skin or of the skin and flesh produced by external violence, including a disruption of the internal skin like the mouth, which means a wound can also include cuts inside the mouth. Bruising is considered a wound. Black eyes can be considered a wound. A bleeding nose can be considered a wound although an actual abrasion on the skin might not be visible.
The wounding is done with the intent to kill, permanently maim, disfigure or disable and, lastly, that the wounding is done with something the court refers to as malice. Malice is the state of mind which results in the intentional doing of a wrongful act to another without any legal justification at the time when the mind of the actor is under control of reason. What that means is at the time that wounding has occurred, the individual who was committing the act has the self-awareness and the control to understand what they are doing and decide against it and choose not to.
Where These Assault Cases Are Heard
Generally speaking, malicious wounding cases occur in two courts. The first is general district court. While the general district court does not have the power to find guilt or innocence in a malicious wounding felony offense, most of the time when some – or a lot of the time when somebody’s charged with a malicious wounding that involves some kind of a fight or a malicious stabbing or something along those lines, the individual is arrested relatively quickly and their case is going to originate in the general district court where they will get a preliminary hearing as they prepare for trial in the circuit court. At the same token, a lot of times, when the courts see malicious wounding, it is based off a shooting or a failed murder attempt or a failed murder, then the Commonwealth normally will not bring those charges in the general district court but certify the case to the circuit court through the grand jury and then the case will originate in the circuit court and be disposed of in the circuit court.
Value of a Richmond Malicious Wounding Attorney
Malicious wounding is a serious offense with serious consequences. The penalty for malicious wounding is a Class 3 felonies. That means it carries anywhere from 5 to 20 years in prison. Probation is guaranteed. Whenever someone is convicted of a malicious wounding felony offense, then if after they serve their jail sentence, they are going to have to be on supervised probation for an indeterminate amount of time. A Richmond malicious wounding lawyer could attempt to mitigate those penalties and construct a solid case for those who have been charged.
