Also known as: beats · police beat · patrol area
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Repeated striking with force against another person's body.
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Brendan Burns confronts Bernard Bass after an unprovoked attack. Burns responds by striking Bass repeatedly with a heavy object. The court examines whether the intended force created a substantial risk of fatal consequences or permanent loss of organ function, determining that the means used exceeded the privilege because a reasonable person would realize the likely grave harm.
Benito Benitez faces an imminent threat from Byron Bishop. Benitez applies force through repeated strikes but selects a method that a reasonable person would recognize as likely to cause only minor injury. The court holds the force privileged because it was neither intended nor likely to produce serious bodily harm differing in kind from ordinary contact.
The amount of force, the means used, the method of application, and the circumstances are all considered together. A slight blow may constitute serious harm if the actor knows the victim's condition makes it likely to be fatal.
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No. The inquiry focuses on the harm the actor intended or that a reasonable person would realize was likely, not on the harm that unexpectedly resulted.
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Yes. The same weapon may be employed in a manner that threatens only lesser harm, depending on how and under what circumstances it is applied.
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