Assault and Battery Defense in Texas

If police arrested you for assault in San Antonio, the next few days and weeks will be stressful. You may be worried about jail time, your job, and what this charge could mean for your future. The good news is that an assault charge — even a felony — does not automatically mean a conviction. With the right defense, many people reduce or dismiss their charges entirely.

This page explains how Texas assault and battery law works, the difference between simple and aggravated assault, and what defenses may apply to your case. If your case involves a family member or dating partner, this is important: Texas law treats those cases differently. We have a separate guide just for family violence cases — more on that below.

What Is the Difference Between Assault and Battery?

Assault and battery differ on one key fact: physical contact.

• Battery requires harmful or offensive contact between the person and the victim.
• Assault does not require any contact at all. A person commits assault when he or she intentionally puts another person in reasonable fear of imminent physical contact.

In other words, threatening someone in a way that makes them believe they are about to be struck — without ever touching them — can still result in an assault charge in Texas.

Today, Section 22.01 of the Texas Penal Code combines assault and battery into a single statute. Courts refer to this as simple assault. Section 22.01 also serves as the building block for more serious charges, including aggravated assault.

Simple Assault Under Texas Law (§ 22.01)

Texas Penal Code § 22.01 lists three ways a person can commit simple assault:

• Intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causing bodily injury to another person
• Intentionally or knowingly threatening another person with imminent bodily injury
• Intentionally or knowingly causing physical contact with another person that the person knows or should know the victim will find offensive or provocative

Simple assault covers a wide range of conduct — pushing, shoving, punching, or threatening someone in a bar fight, a road rage incident, or a dispute with a neighbor or stranger.

Note: Section 22.01 applies to both stranger-on-stranger assaults and family violence assaults. However, if the victim is a family member or dating partner, Texas law adds serious additional consequences. See our family violence page for details on those cases.

Aggravated Assault (§ 22.02)

Aggravated assault is simple assault plus one of two additional facts:

• The person causes serious bodily injury to the victim, or
• The person uses or exhibits a deadly weapon during the assault

Aggravated assault is a felony in Texas and carries significant prison time. Below is a breakdown of the most common assault charges and their punishment ranges.

Penalties for Assault and Battery in Texas

Punishment ranges can also increase if the victim is elderly or disabled, or if the person has prior convictions.

Defenses to Assault Charges

The State must prove two things to convict a person of assault: criminal intent and an act. If the government cannot prove either element, the person is not guilty. Common defenses in assault cases include:

• Self-defense — Texas law allows a person to use force to protect themselves if they reasonably believed force was necessary
• Defense of others — Protecting a third party from imminent harm
• Lack of intent — The contact was accidental, not knowing or intentional
• Consent — In limited circumstances, such as contact sports

Self-defense is the most common defense in assault cases. However, it is highly fact-specific. An experienced attorney can review the evidence — including video, witness statements, and police reports — and advise you on whether this defense applies to your situation.

Charged with Assault in San Antonio? Talk to Attorney Genaro Cortez.

An assault charge — whether a misdemeanor or felony — can follow you for the rest of your life. It can affect your job, your housing, your gun rights, and your future. But a charge is not a conviction. You have options.

Genaro R. Cortez is a San Antonio assault defense attorney with over 20 years of experience handling simple assault, aggravated assault, and bar fight cases in Bexar County. He knows the Cadena Reeves Justice Center, he knows the local prosecutors, and he knows how to fight these cases.

When you hire Genaro, you work directly with him — not a paralegal or a junior associate. He will review the facts of your case, explain your options clearly, and fight to get the best outcome possible.

You can also contact us online at cortezdefense.com. Don’t wait — the sooner you have an attorney, the better your chances of protecting your record.

FAQs Assault and Aggravated Assault Cases in Texas.