Assault and violence charges are among the most common matters before Victorian courts, and among the most serious for the people facing them. A conviction can mean imprisonment, a permanent criminal record and consequences for employment, travel and family law proceedings. Our Melbourne assault lawyers have defended offences against the person for more than 30 years, from a scuffle outside a pub to the most serious injury charges.
Charges we defend
“Offences against the person” covers a wide spectrum of charges under the Crimes Act 1958 (Vic) and the Summary Offences Act 1966 (Vic), including:
- Unlawful assault and common assault.
- Intentionally or recklessly causing injury.
- Intentionally or recklessly causing serious injury, including in circumstances of gross violence.
- Affray and violent disorder arising from group incidents.
- Threats to kill or to inflict serious injury.
- Stalking and offences connected with family violence intervention orders.
- Assaulting police or emergency workers, which attract particular sentencing rules.
Penalties
Penalties depend heavily on the charge and the injury alleged. Summary assault charges can be dealt with by fine, adjourned undertaking or community correction order, while causing serious injury offences are indictable and can carry lengthy terms of imprisonment. Some categories, such as gross violence offences and assaults on emergency workers, carry statutory minimum sentences in certain circumstances. Getting the charge right at the outset, and negotiating it down where the evidence supports it, is often the most important work in the case.
Defences to assault charges
Violence cases are rarely as simple as the charge sheet suggests. Depending on the evidence, available defences may include:
- Self-defence, defence of another person or defence of property;
- Lack of intent or accident;
- Identification, particularly in group or night-time incidents;
- Consent in limited contexts; and
- Duress or other circumstance-based defences.
CCTV, body-worn camera footage, medical records and independent witnesses can all cut both ways. We obtain and analyse the complete brief of evidence before advising you whether to contest the charge or negotiate.
The court process
Less serious assault charges are heard in the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria. Serious injury matters proceed on indictment to the County Court, beginning with a committal process in the Magistrates’ Court. If you have been remanded in custody, our bail lawyers can make an urgent application. If an intervention order has been sought against you alongside criminal charges, the two matters need to be managed together, and we routinely act in both.
Why choose McNally & Gleeson Lawyers
Assault briefs reward preparation: frame-by-frame review of footage, careful cross-examination of complainants and witnesses, and realistic, early advice about your options. Our principal is a Law Institute of Victoria Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law and our team defends offences against the person in courts across Melbourne and Victoria every week.
What to do now
- Do not contact the complainant or any witness. It can lead to further charges and bail problems.
- Write down your account of the incident while it is fresh, including who was present.
- Do not take part in a police interview before getting legal advice.
- Contact us on (03) 9670 3633, 24 hours a day.
Learn more about our Melbourne criminal defence lawyers or the courts we appear in.
Common questions about assault charges
The other person started it. Is that a defence?
It can be. Self-defence is a complete defence if you believed your actions were necessary and they were a reasonable response to the circumstances as you perceived them. Who started the incident, what you knew at the time and what the footage shows all matter. Do not assume it will be obvious; it has to be properly raised on the evidence.
The complainant wants to withdraw the complaint. Will the charge go away?
Not automatically. In Victoria the decision to prosecute belongs to police and prosecutors, not the complainant, particularly in family violence matters. A complainant’s attitude is relevant, but charges regularly proceed without complainant support. The case still has to be answered properly.
Will I go to jail for a first assault charge?
For lower-level assaults a first offender is rarely imprisoned, and outcomes like adjourned undertakings, fines and community correction orders are common. For serious injury matters the starting point is much harsher. Honest, early advice about the realistic range is part of our job.
There is also an intervention order against me. How do the two interact?
Criminal charges and intervention orders run on separate tracks but share the same facts. What is said in one can affect the other, so they must be managed together. We act in both jurisdictions for exactly this reason.
Should I agree to a police interview about an assault?
Get advice first. In violence matters the interview is often the only account police have from your side, and an unprepared answer can close off a self-defence argument that the footage and witnesses would otherwise support. We advise before, and where appropriate attend, every interview.
