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What are the factsabout assault?■ In 1999, there were an estimated 916,383 incidents of

aggravated assault, accountingfor 64 percent of the violent crimein the United States. (Crime in the United States

1999.

Washington, DC: Federal Bureau of

Investigation, 2000)

■ In 1999, there were an estimated 4.7 million 

simple assaults in the United States. (Criminal

Victimization in the United States 1999.

Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000)

■ Dangerous weapons (excluding knives and

firearms), such as clubs or other blunt objects,were used during 35 percent of all aggravatedassaults in 1999. (Crime in the United States 1999.Washington, DC: Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2000)

■ In 1999, fewer than 5 out of 10 aggravated assault

victims knew their offenders as an acquaintance,friend, relative, or intimate partner. (Criminal

Victimization in the United States 1999.

Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000)

■ Juveniles constitute 19 percent of all aggravated

assault victims and 19 percent of all simpleassault victims. Simple assault is the most common crime committed against juveniles, constituting 41 percent of all offenses against juvenilesknown to police. (Characteristics of Crimes AgainstJuveniles.

Washington, DC: Office of Juvenile

Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2000)

■ The 1996 National Crime Victimization Survey

found that 14 percent of all assaults occur in thehome; 7 percent occur at a friend’s, relative’s, orneighbor’s home; and 3 percent occur on thestreet near the victim’s home. (Criminal Victimization in the United States 1999.

Washington, DC:

Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000)

Resources for Information

and Assistance

National Center for Victims of Crime

1–800–FYI–CALL or 1–800–394–2255

www.ncvc.org

National Organization for Victim Assistance

1–800–TRY–NOVA or 1–800–879–6682

www.try-nova.org

Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center

1–800–627–6872

TTY 1–877–712–9279

www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/ovcres/welcome.html

This brochure was developed by the National Center for 

Victims of Crime under a project supported by Grant No.

97–VF–GX–K007 awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime,

Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.

Points of view in this document are those of the author

and do not necessarily represent the official position

or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.
What is assault?

There are two types of assault: aggravated and simple.Aggravated assault is an unlawful attack on anotherperson for the purpose of causing severe physical injury.It is usually called aggravated when it includes use of aweapon or some other means that could cause death orserious physical harm to the victim. A person can beconvicted of aggravated assault even if the victim wasnot physically harmed. Simple assault is the attempt or threat to inflict less serious physical injury without a weapon.Assault is the most common violent crime in the UnitedStates.

—from Criminal Victimization in the United States 2000.

Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2001

The number of assaults is much higher than the number of homicides in the United States. According tothe Federal Bureau of Investigation, one aggravatedassault occurred every 29 seconds in 1995. Unlikeother violent crimes, assaults are committed almostequally by strangers and nonstrangers, which meansthat many victims know their attackers. Almost oneout of every four assaults occurs in the victim’s home;at a relative’s, friend’s, or neighbor’s home; or on thestreet near the victim’s home.Assaults on juveniles have nearly doubled during thepast few years. Teenage victims of violent assaults aremore likely than adult victims to report that the offender is someone they know. Many juvenile assaultvictims say the first assault they remember was in theirhomes. The attackers generally havebeen family members, friends, or acquaintances.In aggravated assault, thethreat of serious physicalinjury and possible death is substantial. Even whenassault victims do not sustain extensive injury orloss, they are forced to sufferthreats of violence and physical harm at the hands of their assailants.

If You Are an AssaultSurvivorAn assault is a violent, life-threatening situation.When you were assaulted, you faced death. Even if youwere not seriously or permanently injured during theassault, you had to deal with the possibility of deathand fears of leaving loved ones behind. These andother aspects of the assault can have a great emotionalimpact on you, immediately and in the long term.You may have many feelings about, thoughts about,and reactions to what has happened—from shock that this could happen to guilt about not being able to prevent it. You may feel that others believethe crime was somehow your fault. You also may feel humiliated or rejected by family members or acquaintances.No one has the right to assault another person, regardless of how angry the attacker is or whether the attacker feels the victim has somehow wrongedhim or her. Even if you knew your attacker, the assaultwas not your fault.You may feel angry at the attacker or the police andcourt system for not doing enough about the assault.You may be fearful that you could be assaulted again.You may have nightmares or flashbacks about theassault. You may find that you startle more easily at little noises or abrupt movements. You also may be disturbed by new feelings of vulnerability and loss ofcontrol similar to what you felt during the assault.How victims react to assault varies from person toperson. Your reaction may be immediate or delayed.Although you may feel as if you are the only oneexperiencing these feelings—and that no one elseunderstands what you are going through—your reactions are normal. Some feelings may subside within afew days, while others may continue for some time orresurface after being triggered by another event. It isimportant for you to deal with your emotions at yourown pace and in your own way. Just as everyone reactsto a crisis differently, not everyone copes with the consequences of crisis in the same way or within thesame timeframe.

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