What this charge means
Assault in Connecticut means causing physical injury to another person. Threatening to hurt someone without touching them is a different charge, called threatening. The degree of assault depends on how badly the person was hurt, whether a weapon was involved, whether the injury was intended or reckless, and who the other person was.
Most arrests are for assault in the third degree. That is the charge for a punch, a shove that causes a fall, or a fight where someone is bruised or cut. It is a misdemeanor, but it is still a criminal charge with a court case, and a conviction stays on your record.
If the police report describes a weapon, a broken bone, stitches, or a loss of consciousness, the charge is likely second or first degree, both felonies. If the other person is a spouse, partner, former partner, relative, or someone you live with, the arrest is a family violence arrest, and you will be in court the next business day. Read the domestic violence page for what that adds.
The statute
Assault in the third degree is Connecticut General Statutes section 53a-61. It covers intentionally causing physical injury, recklessly causing serious physical injury, or causing physical injury with a weapon through criminal negligence. It is a Class A misdemeanor. A related section, 53a-61a, covers third degree assault on a victim who is elderly, blind, disabled, pregnant, or intellectually disabled, and carries a mandatory term.
Assault in the second degree is section 53a-60. It includes intentionally causing serious physical injury, causing injury with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, recklessly causing serious injury with a weapon, and drugging someone without consent. It is a Class D felony. Section 53a-60a, assault in the second degree with a firearm, adds a mandatory term.
Assault in the first degree is section 53a-59. It includes intentionally causing serious physical injury with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, intending to disfigure or disable someone permanently, showing extreme indifference to human life, and several other forms. It is a Class B felony, and some forms carry a mandatory minimum sentence that cannot be suspended.
Three related charges often appear on the same paperwork. Threatening in the second degree, section 53a-62, is a Class A misdemeanor for threats of physical harm. Strangulation or suffocation, sections 53a-64aa, 53a-64bb, and 53a-64cc, covers restricting someone's breathing or blood flow, in three degrees from Class A misdemeanor to Class C felony. Breach of peace and disorderly conduct are covered on the domestic violence page.
How penalties are set
The penalty follows the class of the offense. Connecticut sets a sentencing range for each class of felony and misdemeanor, and the assault statute fixes which class each degree belongs to. A third degree assault is sentenced as a Class A misdemeanor, a second degree assault as a Class D felony, and a first degree assault as a Class B felony, each with its own maximum jail term and fine.
Within those ranges, a judge can usually suspend all or part of a sentence and impose probation instead, except where the statute sets a mandatory minimum. The first degree assault statute, the firearm subsections, and the assault on a protected victim all carry mandatory time that a judge cannot suspend.
A felony conviction has consequences beyond the sentence: loss of the right to possess firearms, immigration consequences for non-citizens, and a record that cannot be erased for years. Those consequences are often the real stakes in a second degree case.
How diversion works
Accelerated Rehabilitation, under section 54-56e, is the general diversion program for first-time defendants. You apply to the court, the judge decides whether to grant it, and if you complete a period of probation-like supervision with whatever conditions the judge sets, the charge is dismissed. It is available once, it is not available for a Class A or Class B felony, and the victim has a right to be heard on the application. That means it is available for assault in the third degree and usually for assault in the second degree, but not for assault in the first degree.
If the case is a family violence case, the Family Violence Education Program under section 46b-38c is the program written for that situation. It is a set of classes rather than supervision, and the charge is dismissed on completion. Your attorney will know which program fits your case and your record.
What happens at arraignment
If the assault is not a family violence case, you were probably released from the station with a court date two to four weeks out. Check in with the State's Attorney's office when you arrive. The judge will confirm the charge and your release conditions and set a new date. Your attorney can raise a diversion application at this appearance or the next one.
If the assault is a family violence case, you will be in court the next business day, often the morning after the arrest. A Family Relations officer will meet with you before the judge takes the bench, and the judge will issue a protective order at this first appearance. That order may bar you from your home and from contact with the other person. Do not go home or contact them until you know what the order says.
Bring your arrest paperwork and a photo ID. Do not discuss the incident with anyone in the hallway, including the other person involved.