Morgantown Assault and Battery Defense Lawyers
By J. Brandon Shumaker and J. Tyler Slavey · Slavey & Shumaker PLLC · Morgantown, WV · Last updated November 12, 2026
Table of Contents
Assault and battery charges often grow out of fast-moving situations: an argument outside a bar, a dispute with a neighbor, or a confrontation in a parking lot. What witnesses remember and what a police report says do not always match what happened, and the details matter.
Slavey & Shumaker PLLC defends people charged with assault and battery in Monongalia, Preston, Marion and Harrison Counties. This page covers charges outside the domestic context. For charges involving a family or household member, see our domestic offenses page.
1. Assault and Battery Charges
| Charge | Statute | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Assault | § 61-2-9(b) | Misdemeanor: up to six months in jail, a fine of up to $100, or both |
| Battery | § 61-2-9(c) | Misdemeanor: up to 12 months in jail, a fine of up to $500, or both |
| Unlawful wounding | § 61-2-9(a) | Felony: one to five years in prison, or up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $500 |
| Malicious wounding | § 61-2-9(a) | Felony: two to 10 years in a state correctional facility |
2. Simple Assault
A person commits assault by unlawfully attempting to commit a violent injury to another person, or by unlawfully committing an act that places another person in reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury (W. Va. Code § 61-2-9(b)). Physical contact is not required. Assault is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail, a fine of up to $100, or both.
3. Battery
A person commits battery by unlawfully and intentionally making physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature with another person, or by unlawfully and intentionally causing physical harm to another person (§ 61-2-9(c)). Battery is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail, a fine of up to $500, or both. Misdemeanor assault and battery charges are generally heard in magistrate court; see our magistrate court guide.
4. Malicious and Unlawful Wounding
If a person maliciously shoots, stabs, cuts or wounds another person, or by any means causes bodily injury with intent to maim, disfigure, disable or kill, the offense is a felony punishable by two to 10 years in a state correctional facility. If the act is done unlawfully, but not maliciously, with the same intent, the offense is a felony punishable by one to five years in prison, or by up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $500 (§ 61-2-9(a)). Intent is often the central question in these cases.
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5. When a Prior Domestic Case Raises the Penalty
A prior case can change the penalty. A person convicted of assault or battery who, in the 10 years before the conviction, was convicted of assault or battery against a current or former spouse or intimate partner, a person with whom the defendant has a child, a person with whom the defendant lives or has lived, a parent, guardian, child or ward, or was convicted of domestic battery or assault, or served pretrial diversion for such a charge, is subject to the penalties for a second or later domestic violence offense (§ 61-2-9(d)).
6. Defending an Assault or Battery Charge
Video, witness accounts, injuries and the sequence of events often tell a different story than the first report.
Whether a person acted to protect himself or herself or someone else depends on the facts and is often the central issue.
Battery requires intentional conduct, and the more serious wounding offenses require a specific intent. Accidents and mutual confusion are not the same as intent.
In crowded or chaotic situations, witnesses can identify the wrong person.
Depending on the facts and your record, it may be possible to resolve a case without a conviction for the original charge.
7. Why Choose Slavey & Shumaker PLLC
Our attorneys, J. Tyler Slavey, J. Brandon Shumaker, Scott B. Harris and Kasey Libby, appear regularly in the magistrate, circuit and municipal courts of Monongalia, Preston, Marion and Harrison Counties. Our office is at 174 Chancery Row in Morgantown, beside the Monongalia County Courthouse. The initial consultation is free. Criminal defense is generally billed on an hourly fee basis. No lawyer can guarantee a result. You can read what past clients say in our more than 100 Google reviews.
8. Frequently Asked Questions About Assault and Battery Charges
Talk With a Morgantown Criminal Defense Lawyer
Slavey & Shumaker PLLC, 174 Chancery Row, Morgantown. Defending criminal cases in Monongalia, Preston, Marion and Harrison Counties. The initial consultation is free.
This page is provided for general informational purposes about West Virginia law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case depends on its own facts, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.