Legal Question in Criminal Law in Washington

assault with deadly weapon vs attempted murder

I have a question on fire arm related offenses. I heard that if an attacker shoots his victim below the knee cap it is considered assault with a deadly weapon, rather than above the knee cap where it is considered attempted murder. Is this accurate?


Asked on 3/20/08, 5:05 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Harry Steinmetz Law Office of Harry S. Steinmetz

Re: assault with deadly weapon vs attempted murder

This is a complete myth. The charge will be filed based on what the prosecutor thinks your intent was when you pulled the trigger. I recently "won" an attempted murder case where my client shot the alleged victim in the midsection. My argument was that this was a scared 17 year old kid who was defending himself from a 34 year old gang banger. My client just pulled the gun and started shooting without taking time to form the intent to murder. The jury agreed my client was just shooting with no intent to kill, but didn't buy the self defense claim. They convicted my client of Assault 1. For my client it was a distinction with very little difference.

Read more
Answered on 3/24/08, 1:41 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Criminal Law questions and answers in Washington