Intentional Torts & Assault & Battery | Manhattan Personal Injury Attorney

INTENTIONAL    TORTS | ASSAULT  and  BATTERY

Let us recall that we are dealing here with CIVIL, as opposed to CRIMINAL, concepts, though it is possible, and even likely, that both civil and criminal penalties may flow from the same actions.

“ASSAULT” occurs when one person intends for another individual to believe he/she will be subjected to imminent “harmful or offensive” contact.

The perceived threatened contact cannot be some future act.  The” intentional tort” of “assault” also requires more than mere words—it requires an “overt act”.  “Assault” requires apprehension, or even fear, that “harmful or offensive” contact is about to occur.  No physical contact, however, occurs !

On the other hand, the “tort” of BATTERY does involve physical contact.  It occurs when one person intends to cause “offensive or harmful” contact to another and such contact actually does take place !

If D throws a bat at the opposing little league’s coach because D’s team just struck out in the final out of the game, and D hits an opposing player instead of the coach, a “battery” has nevertheless occurred.

The INTENTIONAL TORTS of assault and battery occur with some frequency in cases involving false arrest by police officers and cases involving private security guards.

The issue will also often arise in cases involving “bouncers” in nightclubs and after hours spots where liquor flows freely.  From the point of view of the Personal Injury Attorney these cases do present viable opportunities to recover adequate compensation for injured clients because, in addition to the perpetrator of the “intentional tort” being the subject of the lawsuit, the employer will almost invariably be included as a defendant in the lawsuit as well.  It is the employer, after all, that will be the one with the resources to provide the compensation sought.

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Disgraced Chicago Police officer stands Trial

Official proceedings to remove Anthony Abbate from the Chicago Police Department began this week.

On Monday, Novermber 16, city attorneys aired lengthy recordings to highlight how the events unfolded at Jesse’s Short Stop Inn on the afternoon and evening of Feb. 19, 2007. During two visits to the Northwest Side bar, Abbate consumed large quantities of alcohol and continuously harassed and physically abused the bartender, Karolina Obrycka, and patrons according to the attorneys and the charges filed against him by Police Superintendent Jody Weis. Tuesdays proceedings started with the airing of a 30 minutes video showing the officer showboating and harassing patrons of a Northwest Side bar before he turns on the bartender, beating and kicking her Abbate was already convicted in criminal court for the felony aggravated battery of Obrycka and now faces dismissal from the department before the Chicago Police Board.

He continuiously invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination at least 75 times during questioning by city attorney Anna L. D’Ascenzo,

who repeatedly asked Abbate to identify himself on the recording. Obrycka took the stand and watched the video that shows her being punched, beaten, pushed and yanked by the hair by the 13-year officer. “I heard him say, ‘Nobody will tell me what to do,’ ” Obrycka said. “I believe the only thing I said…I said, ‘Stop.’ “Michael Malatesta, Abbate’s attorney, called the hearing a formality, considering that Abbate cannot serve as a police officer with a felony conviction. “There is no getting around it,” he said.

As one of a handful of law firms in New York City representing victims of police misconduct, The Orlow Firm has extensive experience helping victims of:

* Police Brutality and Prison Guard Abuse

* False Arrest

* All other types of police misconduct.

Many complaints of police misconduct are ignored.

They are frequently brushed off as if the person must be lying or somehow deserves his or her fate by having been involved with the police in the first place. If you are a victim of police misconduct, it’s important to contact a lawyer immediately. You may only have ninety days to file an action against the police department.

Source: chicagotribune.com

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