What Happens if You Are Assaulted?

Dealing with assault is no simple matter. If you are assaulted, it’s important that you understand exactly what steps you need to take to move forward.

Each year, there are more than 800,000 aggravated assaults reported. Dealing with an assault can be a very difficult experience, both emotionally and physically. If you are assaulted by another person, you may go into shock and feel scared for your life. You may not know exactly what you need to do next. Because of this, it’s important to understand ahead of time what steps you need to take if you find yourself in this type of situation. Assault is a serious crime that may result in both emotional and physical injuries. An experienced attorney can help you during this time. Your lawyer will talk with you about your experience and will assist you in creating a case that ensures you’re able to move forward after assault.

Document the assault

After an assault occurs, make sure you contact the police immediately. You’ll want to file a police report in order to document the time, place, and location the assault took place. This also gives the police officers a chance to gather evidence that can further help your case after an assault. If you do not have a phone at the location, you can visit your police department directly or a local emergency room for help. They will ask you to give a statement about what happened and will collect any evidence they can. If you were physically injured during the assault, make sure you follow your medical practitioner’s guidelines for care and recovery, as this is an essential part of properly healing after the assault.

Avoid posting online

When you’re dealing with a legal situation, you may be tempted to post about the experience online. Avoid doing this while your case is still open. Understand that anything you post online can be viewed and used in court. Even if you post something casually on your friend’s timeline or you share pictures of yourself with captions about the attack, these may be viewed by the opposing counsel and can be used against you in court. It’s important that you use discretion when you post online and avoid speaking about the assault at all.

Meet with your attorney

The sooner you can meet with your attorney, the better off you’ll be. If you plan to pursue legal action against your attacker, your attorney will talk with you about building a case. When you go to court, your attorney will need to prove that the person who assaulted you intended to hurt you and that they had the ability to do so. You’ll need to make a statement and explain what happened. When you meet with your lawyer, they will explain the process of building a case and how they can gather evidence to support you during this time.

When you’re ready to move forward, remember that you aren’t alone. Call an attorney today.