Bradenton Assault Lawyer
Passionate Injury Attorney Helping Bradenton Assault Victims Get Justice and Accountability
Assault victims suffer a range of injuries – physical, emotional, psychological, financial. Finding justice for assault victims might include criminal prosecution of the attacker, but it might also involve civil prosecution as well. While law enforcement and the government determine how to proceed with criminal charges, Bradenton personal injury attorney Don Cahall pursues civil actions on behalf of victims. With experience in both negligence and intentional torts, Mr. Cahall is well-positioned to help his clients hold all responsible parties accountable and ensure they are properly compensated for the harm inflicted on them.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of an assault on public or private property in Bradenton, call The Cahall Law Firm for a free consultation to discuss possible claims you may have against the assailant and/or the property owner. You should never have to bear the costs of harm and injustice inflicted on you by another.
Negligent Security Law Holds Property Owners Liable for Assaults
When people hear about an assault, they might instinctively think that the attacker is solely to blame, and indeed property owners will be quick to deny any responsibility for the intentional criminal actions of others that occur on their property. But this is not always the case. Through the legal concept of “negligent security,” Florida law recognizes that property owners have a duty to take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of their guests, and they can be held liable for injuries on their property that were facilitated by their negligence or unreasonable failures to provide a safe environment. In these situations, property owners can be held responsible for physical assaults, sexual assaults, and robberies that occur on their premises.
Providing adequate security does not necessarily mean that a property owner must hire roving security patrols and install electric gates. Sometimes, measures as simple as ensuring adequate lighting or working locks are sufficient to deter criminal activity. Whether stricter measures are needed, including alarms, restricted access, and security guards, depends on the nature of the property and where it is located. If the property is located in a high-crime area or if there has been a recent spate of criminal activity in the neighborhood or on the premises itself, then it is reasonable to assume the property owner should step up security on its premises.
Lawsuits based on negligent security might be appropriate for an assault victim who was attacked in a shopping mall parking garage, an office building stairwell, or even their own apartment complex when the property manager failed to maintain working locks on outer doors, windows or patios.
Property Owners Liable for Assaults by Their Employees or Contractors
Negligent security claims might also be appropriate in cases of assault by security guards themselves. Bars and nightclubs, retail stores, and concert and sporting event venues often hire security guards or bouncers to keep the peace or prevent theft. These people must be properly hired, trained and supervised to make sure they do their job diligently but not overzealously. Security guards should act as a deterrent and be trained to defuse situations with unruly patrons, not beat them up. If you were assaulted because security personnel failed to act or by overreactions from the security personnel themselves, you might have a valid claim against the property owner or company that employs the security personnel.
Suing the Assailant
Assault is a crime, but it is also what is known as an intentional tort. Victims of unintentional torts (negligence) or intentional torts, such as assault, can sue the person responsible (the “tortfeasor”) for the harm or damages they caused. Florida law recognizes two different intentional torts in the context of a physical assault; these are “assault” and “battery.”
Assault
In the context of an intentional tort, an assault means putting someone in reasonable apprehension of imminent harm. The person must have intended to cause the apprehension, and it must appear they had the ability to cause the harm. Simply yelling at somebody might not rise to the level of assault, but threatening physical harm (“I’m going to kill you,” I’m going to kick your a**!”) might. Threats like this could be an assault if the tortfeasor were standing only a few feet away, but they might not be an assault if the person were on the other side of a counter separated by plexiglass or a hundred yards away, where it would have been possible to get away from the person.
Note that a civil assault does not require that the person actually be touched. The victim of an assault can still recover for emotional pain and suffering and mental distress without an actual physical injury.
Battery
The intentional tort of battery occurs when one person touches another in an offensive manner. A battery can be inflicted by hitting or punching or sexually attacking, but it could also include any kind of non-consensual physical touching, even if it did not cause a physical injury. The person must have intended the contact, and the contact must have caused some harm that can be compensated. Getting brushed up against on a crowded bus or city sidewalk is probably not a battery, but being grabbed in an offensive manner might be.
A civil lawsuit can be used to hold attackers liable and collect money damages from them for the harm caused, including medical bills, property damage, emotional distress, and pain and suffering. These assailants might not have deep pockets to pay for all the damage caused, but it can still be satisfying to secure a judgment against them, especially if they were not held criminally responsible. A criminal conviction can be helpful in making your case, but it is not necessary. The civil and criminal justice systems have different standards of proof, so regardless of whether your attacker was arrested, prosecuted or convicted for a criminal act, you might still have a strong civil case against them.
Justice and Compensation for Bradenton Assault Victims
If you’ve been the victim of an assault in Bradenton, The Cahall Law Firm can help you determine whether you have valid civil claims against the assailant, their employer, the owner of the premises where the attack occurred, or other parties. We’ll help you find justice, peace and compensation for your injuries and the harm done to you. Call our Bradenton assault lawyer for a free consultation.
