By: Larry Kohn, experienced Atlanta criminal defense lawyer
What Is Battery under Georgia Law?
In Georgia, there are three types of Battery charges: Simple Battery, Battery, and Aggravated Battery. For purposes of this article, we will focus on the second ‘type’: Battery.
Battery, as defined under OCGA 16-5-23.1, means that you intentionally caused substantial physical harm or visible body harm to another person. The ‘visible bodily harm’ language within the statute emphasizes injuries that can be seen by anyone other than the victim, so swollen lips, black eyes, and a host of other bruises and injuries, as long as others can see them, qualify for a Battery charge.
Is Battery a felony or misdemeanor? Generally, Battery charges are misdemeanor-level charges but they can be felony offenses when aggravating circumstances exist. These are the ‘class’ of the victim, if there are any repeat Battery offenses on your record, and the extent of the harm and injury caused to another person.
In this article, Atlanta criminal defense attorney Larry Kohn outlines the differences between the three types of Battery charges in GA, what makes Battery a felony, and the penalties for a felony battery conviction in GA.
Battery vs. Simple Battery Georgia
The difference between a Simple Battery charge vs. Battery charge in Georgia comes down to the degree of harm caused to the victim. In this case, ‘degree’ refers to the injury incurred by the person. without causing a significant visible injury. So, if you intentionally pushed someone and they fell, without sustaining injury, you could be charged with simple battery, not Battery. However, if you pushed that same individual and they scraped their knee or even broke their leg, then that may escalate the Simple Battery charge to a Battery charge.
What Makes Battery a Felony in Georgia?
In Georgia, felony battery charges can be triggered under three main circumstances: when the battery causes substantial visible bodily harm combined with aggravating factors, when the victim belongs to a specially protected group, or when the accused has prior convictions for battery against the same victim or within a family violence context.
Felony Battery Caused by Substantial Visible Bodily Harm.
The Georgia Battery statute (O.C.G.A. § 16-5-23.1) emphasizes the concept of “substantial and visible bodily harm” when distinguishing misdemeanor from potential felony battery charges. Injuries like black eyes, busted lips, or severe bruises, injuries that are plainly visible to others, may lead to felony-level penalties, especially when combined with aggravating circumstances.
For example, if you get into a fight outside a bar and the alleged victim shows only minor redness or no visible injury, the charge may stay a misdemeanor. But if that same confrontation results in a broken nose, fractured wrist, or large bruises visible to others, prosecutors can seek felony charges.
Battery Against a Member of a Protected Class.
Battery against certain protected individuals, such as public school teachers performing official duties or residents of long-term care facilities, can also elevate the crime to a felony under Georgia law, even if the injury would normally qualify as a misdemeanor. To qualify under this protection, the individual typically must be engaged in their official role at the time of the incident. For instance, shoving a teacher during a parent-teacher conference could trigger felony-level battery charges.
Felony Battery from Repeat Offenses in a Family Violence Context.
Felony battery charges can also arise from repeat offenses. Under Georgia’s Family Violence Act, if you have two or more prior convictions for family violence battery, regardless of the severity of the injuries, a third conviction will be treated as a felony. Similarly, if you commit battery against the same victim repeatedly, a third offense will escalate to felony prosecution even if there was no substantial visible injury.
What Are the Penalties for Felony Battery in GA?
In Georgia, the consequences for a felony battery are long-lasting and comprise fines and prison time. The amount of prison time you face depends on the type of battery and who the victim is.
For a third battery conviction against the same person, you can be sentenced to between one and five years in state prison. Even if no severe injury occurred, the fact that it’s a repeated offense triggers felony-level punishment under Georgia law.
If the battery is classified as family violence, for example, against a spouse, romantic partner, or co-parent, and it’s your second conviction involving family violence, a conviction carries one to five years in prison.
When the victim falls into a protected category such as a public school teacher, a long-term care resident, or a utility worker carries a felony punishment of one to five years of imprisonment, along with the possibility of a fine up to $10,000.
Finally, if the battery results in serious bodily harm, like broken bones, disfigurement, or permanent injury, prosecutors may pursue an aggravated battery charge instead. Aggravated battery is always a felony under Georgia law and carries a potential sentence of one to twenty years in prison.
How Aggravated Battery Differs From Felony Battery in Georgia
The differences between a standard battery charge and an aggravated battery charge in Georgia is the permanence of the injury caused to the victim.
Felony battery involves causing visible bodily harm, such as bruises, black eyes, or swelling.
Aggravated battery, on the other hand, is defined under O.C.G.A. § 16-5-24 and involves maliciously causing substantial injury to another person. To be charged with this type of battery, you must deprive someone of a body part, render a body part useless, or seriously disfigure a body part or the body overall. If you sever someone’s finger, break someone’s arm to the point that it loses its function, or cause someone to lose their eyesight or cause permanent facial scars, that can be considered agg battery. Aggravated Battery is always a felony in Georgia.
Aggravated battery carries a minimum of 1 year and a maximum of 20 years in prison under Georgia law.
However, if you maliciously cause permanent harm to a member of one of the protected classes listed above, the mandatory minimum prison sentence can shift to between three and five years, instead of just one.
Criminal Lawyers Near Me for Georgia Battery Charges
If you’re facing any type of Battery charges in Georgia: Simple, standard, or Aggravated, let a criminal lawyer Atlanta GA speak with you at a FREE consultation.
William C. Head, Cory Yager and Larry Kohn have over 90 collective years of experience defending Georgians accused of crimes, including Battery. If you think the battery charge you’re facing may be elevated to a felony battery, you really don’t have time to waste. The call is free, the consultation is free, so what are you waiting for? 404-567-5515
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