Wisconsin does not use the term “assault” as a standalone criminal charge. What most states call assault, Wisconsin calls battery. The statute is graduated, with three tiers that scale on the injury caused and the intent of the person accused. The difference between the tiers is the difference between a misdemeanor and a serious felony, and it is often the most important question in the case.
What the State Must Prove
Under Wis. Stat. § 940.19, the prosecution must prove that the accused intentionally caused bodily harm to another person without that person’s consent.
The tier of the charge depends on the harm and the intent:
- Simple battery, Wis. Stat. § 940.19(1). Intentionally causing bodily harm. Class A misdemeanor (up to 9 months jail, $10,000).
- Substantial battery, Wis. Stat. § 940.19(2). Intentionally causing substantial bodily harm. Class I felony (up to 3.5 years prison, $10,000).
- Aggravated battery, Wis. Stat. § 940.19(4). Intentionally causing great bodily harm. Class H felony (up to 6 years prison, $10,000).
- Aggravated battery with intent to cause great bodily harm, Wis. Stat. § 940.19(5). Class E felony (up to 15 years prison, $50,000).
- Aggravated battery against certain persons, Wis. Stat. § 940.19(6). Additional exposure when the victim is an elder, a child, a pregnant person, or certain protected-status individuals.
Wisconsin also charges battery in specialized contexts: battery to a law-enforcement officer, battery by a prisoner, battery to an unborn child, and others, each with its own statute and its own penalty tier.
Defenses We Regularly Raise
- Self-defense. A codified defense in Wisconsin under Wis. Stat. § 939.48. If the State cannot disprove self-defense beyond a reasonable doubt, the defendant walks, or the case resolves before it reaches a jury.
- Defense of others. The same doctrine extends to defending third parties from imminent harm.
- Lack of intent. Accidental contact, even when it causes injury, is not battery. The State must prove intentional conduct.
- Consent. Mutually consensual physical contact, whether in a bar fight between combatants, in a contact sport, or in certain medical contexts, can be a complete defense depending on the facts.
- Disputed injury tier. The line between simple, substantial, and aggravated battery turns on the injury actually caused. Medical records, triage notes, and expert testimony often push a case down one or two tiers, converting a felony to a misdemeanor.
- Witness credibility. Many battery cases turn on contradictory witness accounts: bar fights, domestic disputes, road-rage incidents. A trial-tested defense team knows how to break those accounts down on cross-examination.
Why the Charging Decision Matters So Much
Because the statute is graduated, the prosecutor has significant discretion at charging. The difference between a Class A misdemeanor and a Class E felony is not a sentencing-range question; it is a different conviction entirely, with different consequences for employment, licensure, firearms rights, and immigration. Negotiating with the District Attorney’s office before the charging decision is final is often the single most valuable thing a defense attorney can do.
Contact Cafferty & Scheidegger as early in the case as possible. Free consultation; call or text 24/7 at (262) 632-5000.
