Opinion ID: 897660
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Attempted Simple Assault

Text: [¶30] The jury found Barth guilty of attempted simple assault, in violation of N.D.C.C. §§ 12.1-06-01 and 12.1-17-01. Section 12.1-06-01, N.D.C.C., provides: 1. A person is guilty of criminal attempt if, acting with the kind of culpability otherwise required for commission of a crime, he intentionally engages in conduct which, in fact, constitutes a substantial step toward commission of the crime. A substantial step is any conduct which is strongly corroborative of the firmness of the actor's intent to complete the commission of the crime. Factual or legal impossibility of committing the crime is not a defense, if the crime could have been committed had the attendant circumstances been as the actor believed them to be. Section 12.1-17-01, N.D.C.C., provides, in relevant part: 1. A person is guilty of an offense if that person: a. Willfully causes bodily injury to another human being; or . . . . 2. The offense is: a. A class C felony when the victim is a peace officer or correctional institution employee acting in an official capacity, which the actor knows to be a fact, a person engaged in a judicial proceeding, or a member of a municipal or volunteer fire department or emergency medical services personnel unit or emergency department worker in the performance of the member's duties. [¶31] Barth argues there was not sufficient evidence to convict him of attempted simple assault because the State failed to prove Barth had any intent to cause physical harm to Sheriff Hilliard, and because he was entitled to use reasonable force to defend himself when Sheriff Hilliard initiated the contact. [¶32] Criminal attempt requires an actor to intentionally engage in conduct constituting a substantial step toward commission of the crime. N.D.C.C. § 12.1-06-01. A substantial step is any conduct which is strongly corroborative of the firmness of the actor's intent to complete the commission of the crime. N.D.C.C. § 12.1-06-01. The essential elements of simple assault on a peace officer include willfully causing bodily injury. N.D.C.C. § 12.1-17-01. An individual acts willfully if the individual engages in conduct intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly. N.D.C.C. § 12.1-02-02(1)(e). An individual engages in conduct intentionally if it is the individual's purpose to engage in the conduct, N.D.C.C. § 12.1-02-02(1)(a); knowingly if he knows or has a firm belief, unaccompanied by substantial doubt, that he is doing so, whether or not it is his purpose to do so, N.D.C.C. § 12.1-02-02(1)(b); recklessly if he engages in the conduct in conscious and clearly unjustifiable disregard of a substantial likelihood of the existence of the relevant facts or risks, such disregard involving a gross deviation from acceptable standards of conduct, N.D.C.C. § 12.1-02-02(1)(c). Section 12.1-01-04(4), N.D.C.C., further provides bodily injury is the impairment of physical condition, including physical pain. [¶33] To prove Barth committed attempted simple assault on a peace officer, the State must demonstrate Barth willfully engaged in activity constituting a substantial step toward causing physical pain to one or more of the officers present. Sheriff Hilliard testified Barth swung, and he grazed the side of my face, leaving a mark on my face and also a mark on my knee where he had kicked me. Barth's conduct evidences he intentionally attempted to hit Sheriff Hilliard and did hit and kick Sheriff Hilliard, leaving visible marks on his body. Viewing the evidence in a light most favorable to the verdict, we conclude sufficient evidence exists to support the jury's verdict convicting Barth of attempted simple assault.