NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1969 SESSION

CHAPTER 618

HOUSE BILL 682

AN ACT TO REVISE AND CLARIFY THE LAW RELATING TO MISDEMEANOR ASSAULTS.

The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact:

Section 1.  G.S. 14-33 is rewritten to read as follows: "G.S. 14-33. Misdemeanor assaults, batteries, and affrays; simple and aggravated; punishments, (a) Any person who commits a simple assault or a simple assault and battery or participates in a simple affray is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed fifty dollars ($50.00) or imprisonment for not more than thirty (30) days.

"(b)      Unless his conduct is covered under some other provision of law providing greater punishment, any person who commits any aggravated assault, assault and battery, or affray is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable as provided in Subsection (c) below. A person commits an aggravated assault or assault and battery if in the course of such assault or assault and battery he:

(1)        Uses a deadly weapon or other means or force likely to inflict serious injury or serious damage to another person; or

(2)        Inflicts serious injury or serious damage to another person; or

(3)        Intends to kill another person; or

(4)        Assaults a female person, he being a male person; or

(5)        Assaults a child under the age of twelve years; or

(6)        Assaults a public officer while such officer is discharging or attempting to discharge a duty of his office.

A person commits an aggravated affray if in the course of it he commits an aggravated assault or assault and battery.

"(c)       Any aggravated assault, assault and battery, or affray is punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment not to exceed six (6) months, or both such fine and imprisonment if the offense is aggravated because of one of the following factors:

(1)        Inflicting serious damage to another person;

(2)        Assaulting a female, by a male person; or

(3)        Assaulting a child under the age of twelve (12) years.

Any other aggravated assault, assault and battery, or affray is punishable by a fine in the discretion of the court, imprisonment not to exceed two (2) years, or both such fine and imprisonment."

Sec. 2.  Article 8 of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes of North Carolina is amended to add a new section as follows: "G.S. 14-33.1. Evidence of former threats upon plea of self‑defense. In any case of assault, assault and battery, or affray in which the plea of the defendant is self-defense, evidence of former threats against the defendant by the person alleged to have been assaulted by him, if such threats shall have been communicated to the defendant before the altercation, shall be competent as bearing upon the reasonableness of the claim of apprehension by the defendant of bodily harm, and also as bearing upon the amount of force which reasonably appeared necessary to the defendant, under the circumstances, to repel his assailant."

Sec. 2 1/2.  G.S. 14-34 as it appears in the 1953 Replacement Volume 1B is amended by deleting the last line and by inserting in lieu thereof the following: "Same shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), imprisonment not to exceed six (6) months, or both such fine and imprisonment."

Sec. 3.  All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed.

Sec. 4.  This Act shall become effective upon its ratification.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 28th day of May, 1969.