Also known as: reasonable fears · reasonable apprehension
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A mental state in which a person anticipates imminent harmful or offensive contact. The apprehension must arise from conduct that would cause an ordinary person in the same position to believe harmful touching is about to occur.
Silas retrieved a sharpened hay hook and positioned it inches from Francis's abdomen before executing a rapid thrusting motion that halted just short of contact. Francis leaped backward believing he was about to be stabbed. The combination of proximity, weapon, and sudden motion placed Francis in reasonable fear of immediate harmful contact.
Greg grabbed a heavy metal wrench and lunged toward Maria's raised hand while shouting that he would break her fingers right then. Maria remained frozen in place expecting the blow. The immediate physical advance with a heavy tool created reasonable fear of imminent serious injury.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
The defendant shot her sleeping husband three times in the back of the head. Evidence showed a long history of abuse but no immediate threat at the moment of the shooting. The absence of any present danger prevented a finding of reasonable fear of imminent death or great bodily harm.
A woman who had suffered repeated physical abuse from her husband sought an abortion without notifying him. She feared that disclosure would trigger further violence or psychological harm. The record established a reasonable fear that notification would provoke additional abuse.
A witness refused to answer questions about past conduct fearing that truthful answers would lead to criminal charges in another country. No reasonable fear of domestic prosecution existed because the feared harm lay outside the jurisdiction. The privilege claim therefore failed.
An officer observed two men repeatedly pacing in front of a store and peering inside before conferring. The officer approached and patted down the men after concluding their conduct suggested they were casing the premises for a robbery. The observed behavior supplied reasonable fear that the men were armed and dangerous.
Words alone do not create reasonable fear for assault. Liability requires that words together with other acts or circumstances place the victim in reasonable apprehension of imminent harmful or offensive contact.
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Reasonable fear in self-defense requires apprehension of serious bodily harm. Serious bodily harm differs in kind from lesser injury and includes harm creating substantial risk of death or permanent loss of an important bodily function.
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A conditional threat can still support reasonable fear when accompanied by an overt act that signals immediate danger. The condition does not eliminate imminence if the overall conduct would cause an ordinary person to anticipate harmful contact at once.
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Subjective fear alone is insufficient. The victim must be placed in reasonable apprehension measured by what an ordinary person in the same position would experience under the circumstances.
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…but may be no less fearful of the consequences of reporting prior abuse to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Many may have a reasonable fear that notifying their husbands will provoke further instances of child abuse; these women are not exempt from § 3209's notification requirement. Many may fear devastating forms of…