While Utah is fairly safe in terms of homicide, that doesn’t mean people don’t get hurt. In 2024, authorities dealt with over 18,000 assault cases, according to the state’s Bureau of Criminal Identification.
If you’re accused of this crime, the type of punishment you can expect depends on the type of assault charge you’re facing.
At its most basic level, assault in Utah is when you use violence or unlawful force to inflict some kind of injury on another person. However, even if you attempted to do so, you can still get charged with assault.
For example, if you punch someone in the face — even if that person ducks to avoid your blow and runs away — you can be charged with assault.
Assault is a class B misdemeanor, which can mean jail time of up to six months and a fine of up to $1,000.
It can also be a class A misdemeanor if you caused “substantial bodily injury” on the other person. You may also expect this charge if you committed the crime against a pregnant person, and you knew they were expecting.
In Utah, there is a more severe type of assault, called “aggravated assault.” This is where you commit an assault, but there is an added element to it:
For example, if you hit a person with a gun, you intentionally hit them with a car, or you try choking them, you may get charged with aggravated assault.
The lowest type of charge you can get for aggravated assault is a third-degree felony. This means up to five years in prison and up to $5,000 in fines.
However, this can be bumped up to a second-degree felony if your actions led to serious bodily injury. You may also face this kind of charge if you were trying to obstruct airways and the victim lost consciousness.
If you commit aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer, and it results in serious bodily injury, that is a first-degree felony. This can mean five years to life in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
In Utah, you can get more severe charges depending on who you committed the crime against or — in some cases — your own life situation. Here are a few examples:
If you commit any kind of assault against someone who is on duty as either a military service member or a peace officer, that alone is a class A misdemeanor. This means you can face up to 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. As discussed above, it’s a class B misdemeanor for civilians.
This charge can bump up to a third-degree felony if you were previously convicted for the same crime or if you cause substantial bodily injury.
If you use a dangerous weapon or anything else likely to seriously injure or kill the person, that is a second-degree felony. That’s a higher crime than the third-degree felony you would face for committing aggravated assault on a civilian.
These charges only apply if the officer or military servicemember in uniform are actually on duty. So if it happens on the person’s day off, you would likely only be charged with whatever type of assault would apply to civilians.
In certain instances, this crime comes with mandatory sentencing requirements. If you are convicted twice, you have to spend at least 90 days in jail. That requirement is 180 days for any conviction after that.
When you see the word “peace officer,” you might automatically assume that means a police officer. However, this language makes the definition broad. It can be a law enforcement officer, correctional officer, or a federal officer.
It can also be a “special function officer,” which includes a variety of things described in this section of Utah law. For example, it can be a member of the state military police, a fire arson investigator, a criminal tax investigator, and more.
The two other types of professionals that can lead you to higher assault charges are people who work at a school — whether it be public or private — and people who work in healthcare.
If you commit assault against any one of these people while they are doing their job, you can face a class A misdemeanor. That can raise to a third-degree felony if you committed assault against a healthcare professional, and your actions caused substantial bodily injury. However, for some reason, that same language isn’t included for school employees.
In Utah, assaulting a child is called “child abuse.” This is when you either inflict injury against a child or you let someone else do so when you’re the parent or guardian.
If you’re a prisoner, and you commit assault against anyone at all, that is an automatic third-degree felony. It doesn’t matter if the other person is a prisoner or some kind of civilian. The charge is the same.
For aggravated assault, you’d likely face a second-degree felony. That could be bumped up to a first-degree if you intentionally caused serious bodily injury.
If police arrest you for assault, it’s important that you use your right to remain silent. Don’t answer any questions other than basic identifying information until you can discuss your case with a lawyer, even if you really didn’t commit the crime. The police aren’t interested in helping you. They want to solve the case. If you’re innocent, they can twist seemingly innocent information to make it look worse than it is.
An attorney is someone who has your best interests at heart. They’ll help you understand what you should say, what you should not say, and how you should proceed with your case.
If you did commit the crime, and you want to plead guilty, you’re still going to want to talk to your lawyer first. They can help you make a deal with the state so you can avoid time behind bars, even if you committed a felony.
The best attorneys are the ones who have years of experience with the type of case that you need help with. You’ll find that with Kristin Wilson, Michael Holje, Ann Taliaferro, and Mark Moffat. All of these attorneys have been handling assault cases for years, and they’d love to help you out.
Click here to schedule a free consultation.
