Best and Worst Outcomes for Assault and Breach of Peace Charges

Attorney Answer

Best realistic outcome: dismissal through accelerated rehabilitation. Worst: a year in jail and a $2,000 fine on the assault, plus six months and $1,000 on the breach of peace. Which end of that range is even available to you turns on one detail — the subsection of the assault statute you are charged under.

The charges and the numbers. Assault in the third degree under General Statutes § 53a-61 is a class A misdemeanor, punishable by a term of imprisonment not to exceed one year (§ 53a-36(1)) and a fine not to exceed $2,000 (§ 53a-42(1)). Breach of the peace in the second degree under General Statutes § 53a-181 is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by a term not to exceed six months (§ 53a-36(2)) and a fine not to exceed $1,000 (§ 53a-42(2)).

The detail that changes everything. A conviction under § 53a-61(a)(3) — criminal negligence causing physical injury by means of a deadly weapon, dangerous instrument, or electronic defense weapon — carries a mandatory, nonsuspendable one-year sentence. If that is your subsection, the "best outcome" framing above is wrong, because the court's discretion to suspend is gone on conviction. Find out which subdivision is charged before you make any decision about how to plead. It should be printed on the information and on your arrest paperwork.

The path to dismissal. General Statutes § 54-56e makes accelerated rehabilitation available, in the court's discretion, to a defendant charged with crimes "not of a serious nature" who has no disqualifying record and has not previously used the program, and it results in dismissal of the charges upon successful completion of a period of supervision. Both assault in the third degree and breach of the peace in the second degree are misdemeanors falling outside the § 54-56e(c) exclusion list, which covers class A and most class B felonies. Two limits you should expect: admission is discretionary, not automatic, and any victim must be notified and given an opportunity to be heard. In a case with an identified complainant, that hearing is real, and it can go badly if the complainant is opposed.

On prior offenses: § 54-56e allows the program where ten or more years have passed since the dismissal of a prior misdemeanor-level accelerated rehabilitation, and no defendant may use it more than twice. If you have used it before, the timing of that earlier case is not background detail — it is an eligibility fact, and you will be stating it under oath.

What you can do

1. Get the exact charging language. Write down the subdivision of § 53a-61 — (a)(1), (a)(2) or (a)(3) — and the subsection of § 53a-181. Everything else follows from those two lines. 2. Get counsel at or before your first appearance, and apply for a public defender if you cannot afford a private lawyer. 3. Ask counsel about accelerated rehabilitation under § 54-56e: whether you are eligible, whether the state will object, whether the complainant will be heard, and what conditions the court typically imposes. 4. Before the application, pin down your own record — specifically whether any earlier accelerated rehabilitation was dismissed more or less than ten years ago. The application is made under oath. 5. Comply exactly with your conditions of release. A violation converts a manageable misdemeanor case into a much worse one, faster than anything else you can do. 6. Have no contact with the complaining witness, directly or through friends or family, unless your lawyer tells you the order permits it. 7. Start any counseling, anger management or substance-use program now rather than after a plea discussion. Voluntary completion before the negotiation is worth far more than court-ordered completion after it.