Assult

Assault                                                          
                                             
                                             
                                         
                                            CJ105 Criminal Law
                                                April 11, 2010

    I will be covering Tennessee’s statue on making assault a crime. First, I will cover the current state statute for assault. Second, I will cover the crime under historical common law. Third, I will compare how the elements of the crime have changed from the historical common law to the current state statute. Forth, I will discuss the possible changes in the law and the reasons why they have changed. Last, I will be giving some of my suggestions that I think would make the law better.
    First, I will cover the current state statute on assault and what guide lines make it up. According to Tennessee criminal law, a person commits assault when they:
• Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causes bodily injury to another;
• Intentionally or knowingly causes another to reasonably fear imminent bodily injury; or
• Intentionally or knowingly causes physical contact with another and a reasonable person would regard the contact as extremely offensive or provocative. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-101 (2007).
  Assault can fall under several different classes of misdemeanors but in some cases assault can become aggravated. A person commits aggravated assault when they:
• Intentionally or knowingly commit an assault as defined above and that assault:
(A) Causes serious bodily injury to another; or
(B) Uses or displays a deadly weapon; or
• Recklessly commits an assault by causing bodily injury to another, and:
(A) Causes serious bodily injury to another; or
(B) Uses or displays a deadly weapon. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-102 (2007).
Aggravated assault is labeled as a felony. Felonies in Tennessee are more severe than...