Assault vs Battery in Georgia: Simple, Aggravated and Penalties

Georgia treats assault and battery as separate crimes. Under O.C.G.A. 16-5-20, simple assault is an attempt to commit a violent injury, or an act that places someone in reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving one, while Georgia has two contact offenses: simple battery (16-5-23), for insulting or provoking contact or physical harm, and battery (16-5-23.1), for substantial or visible bodily harm. Those three are misdemeanors in their basic form; aggravated assault (16-5-21) and aggravated battery (16-5-24) are felonies punishable by 1 to 20 years. For other states, see our guide to assault and battery laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-13. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers the assault and battery offenses in Title 16, Chapter 5, Article 2 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (O.C.G.A. 16-5-19 through 16-5-24), the Title 16 definitions in 16-1-3, the misdemeanor punishment sections 17-10-3 and 17-10-4, the repeat-misdemeanor felony rule in 17-10-3.2, the civil filing period in 9-3-33, and the 2023, 2024 and 2026 acts that amended the assault and battery sections. It does not cover self-defense and justification (see Georgia self-defense laws), family violence protective orders (see Georgia restraining order laws), sexual offenses, federal assault crimes (see the assault and battery hub) or city and county ordinances. Georgia's official code is published online through a free LexisNexis portal; check the current text of a section before relying on a specific detail.

Assault vs. battery in Georgia

Georgia separates threats and attempts (assault) from contact and harm (battery), and it splits battery into two grades. Under O.C.G.A. 16-5-20, a person commits simple assault when he or she either:

"(1) Attempts to commit a violent injury to the person of another; or (2) Commits an act which places another in reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury."

No contact is needed for simple assault. The two contact offenses differ by how much harm results.

Simple battery (16-5-23) is committed when a person either "(1) Intentionally makes physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature with the person of another; or (2) Intentionally causes physical harm to another."

Battery (16-5-23.1) is committed when a person "intentionally causes substantial physical harm or visible bodily harm to another." The statute defines visible bodily harm as:

"bodily harm capable of being perceived by a person other than the victim and may include, but is not limited to, substantially blackened eyes, substantially swollen lips or other facial or body parts, or substantial bruises to body parts."

In short, contact that is insulting or provoking, or that causes physical harm, is simple battery; harm that is substantial, or visible to someone other than the person harmed, is battery.

Article 2 also makes assault of an unborn child (16-5-28) and battery of an unborn child (16-5-29) separate offenses; each is a misdemeanor.

Georgia assault and battery charges and penalties

The misdemeanor ranges come from O.C.G.A. 17-10-3, which punishes a misdemeanor by "a fine not to exceed $1,000.00" or confinement "for a total term not to exceed 12 months, or both," and 17-10-4, which punishes a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature by "a fine not to exceed $5,000.00" or confinement "for a term not to exceed 12 months, or both." The felony ranges are written into the assault and battery sections themselves. All of these are statutory ranges; the sentence in a given case is set by the court within them.

Georgia's general definitions in 16-1-3 explain the classes. A "felony" is "a crime punishable by death, by imprisonment for life, or by imprisonment for more than 12 months," and "misdemeanor" and "misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature" mean "any crime other than a felony." A misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature is therefore still a misdemeanor, with a higher maximum fine. The teacher-battery provision does not use the word felony, but its maximum of five years is more than 12 months, the line 16-1-3 uses to define a felony.

Is assault a felony in Georgia?

Simple assault is a misdemeanor. The enhancements in 16-5-20 raise it to a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature, not to a felony.

Separately, O.C.G.A. 17-10-3.2, effective July 1, 2026, provides that on "conviction of a fourth or subsequent qualifying misdemeanor within a ten-year period of time," the defendant "shall be deemed to have committed a felony and shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than one year nor more than ten years." It adds: "The first year of such sentence shall not be suspended, probated, deferred, or withheld." A qualifying misdemeanor is "any misdemeanor conviction under Chapter 5 or 6 of Title 16," or a misdemeanor conviction in another state or federal court for a crime that would be one in Georgia. Chapter 5 covers crimes against the person, including simple assault, simple battery and battery; Chapter 6 covers sexual offenses.

The ten years are measured from the arrest dates of the earlier convictions to the arrest for the current one, and multiple qualifying misdemeanors occurring on a single date count as one. The earlier misdemeanors must be alleged in a separate count of the indictment listing the offenses, their conviction dates and the jurisdictions.

Assault also becomes a felony when it is aggravated assault under 16-5-21. A person commits aggravated assault when he or she assaults:

"(1) With intent to murder, to rape, or to rob; (2) With a deadly weapon or with any object, device, or instrument which, when used offensively against a person, is likely to or actually does result in serious bodily injury; (3) With any object, device, or instrument which, when used offensively against a person, is likely to or actually does result in strangulation"

The fourth ground, revised by a 2024 act (SB 421), covers a person who, without legal justification, discharges a firearm from within a motor vehicle, or after immediately exiting a vehicle, toward a person, an occupied motor vehicle or an occupied building. The drive-by firearm ground carries 5 to 20 years. The same 2024 act created a separate offense of drive-by shooting, O.C.G.A. 16-15-4.1, punishable by 5 to 20 years.

Because aggravated assault is an assault committed in one of the listed ways, it can be committed without physical contact. The base penalty is imprisonment for not less than one nor more than 20 years.

When battery becomes a felony in Georgia

A first battery under 16-5-23.1 is a misdemeanor. The section raises the penalty in steps:

• Second conviction against the same victim. Imprisonment for "not less than ten days nor more than 12 months," a fine of up to $1,000, or both. The 10-day minimum cannot be suspended, probated, deferred, stayed or withheld, except that the judge may allow weekend or nonworking-hours confinement, or may suspend the minimum where clear and convincing evidence shows it would create an undue hardship or result in a failure of justice.
• Third or later conviction against the same victim. A felony, punishable by "not less than one nor more than five years."
• Family violence battery. A battery between household members is "family violence battery." A first conviction is a misdemeanor, unless the defendant has a prior conviction for a forcible felony committed between household members, which makes it a felony punishable by 1 to 5 years. A second or subsequent conviction "against the same or another victim" is a felony punishable by 1 to 5 years.
• Fourth qualifying misdemeanor in ten years. Since July 1, 2026, a fourth or later conviction within ten years (misdemeanors from the same date count once, and the ten years run between arrest dates) for a misdemeanor under Chapter 5 or 6 of Title 16, which includes simple battery and battery, is a felony punishable by 1 to 10 years under 17-10-3.2, with the first year not subject to suspension, probation, deferral or withholding.
• Teachers and school personnel. Battery against a teacher or other school personnel engaged in official duties or on school property is punishable by 1 to 5 years, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

Note the difference between the same-victim rule and the family violence rule. Ordinary battery escalates only with repeat convictions involving the same victim, while family violence battery escalates on a second conviction even when the victim is different.

Aggravated battery in Georgia

Under 16-5-24, a person commits aggravated battery "when he or she maliciously causes bodily harm to another by depriving him or her of a member of his or her body, by rendering a member of his or her body useless, or by seriously disfiguring his or her body or a member thereof." The base penalty is imprisonment for not less than one nor more than 20 years.

Aggravated battery is defined by the kind of injury, not by the use of a weapon.

Terms that decide the grade

Georgia's general definitions section, 16-1-3, does not define "serious bodily injury," "bodily injury" or "deadly weapon." The aggravated assault statute instead describes the weapon by its function: "a deadly weapon or ... any object, device, or instrument which, when used offensively against a person, is likely to or actually does result in serious bodily injury." Under that wording, the test turns on how an object is used, not only on what it is.

The assault article's definitions section, 16-5-19, defines "strangulation" as "impeding the normal breathing or circulation of blood of another person by applying pressure to the throat or neck of such person or by obstructing the nose and mouth of such person."

Assaulting a police officer, nurse, teacher or other protected person in Georgia

Georgia raises the penalties when the victim belongs to a listed group or the offense happens in a listed place. It does this section by section, so the effect depends on which offense is charged.

For the public safety officer mandatory minimums, the statutes let the court go below the mandatory minimum when the prosecuting attorney and the defendant agree to a sentence below it.

Section 16-5-21 also sets two special ranges: aggravated assault in the course of a theft of a vehicle engaged in commercial transportation of cargo, or its cargo, carries 5 to 20 years, a fine of $50,000 to $200,000, or both; and aggravated assault with intent to rape against a child under 14 carries 25 to 50 years.

Who counts as a public safety officer

Section 16-5-19 defines "public safety officer" as a "peace officer, correctional officer, emergency health worker, firefighter, highway emergency response operator, jail officer, juvenile correctional officer, or probation officer." "Emergency health worker" means "hospital emergency department personnel and emergency medical services personnel." That puts emergency room staff and EMS crews inside the public-safety-officer enhancements for aggravated assault and aggravated battery.

Separately, a 2023 act (HB 383) set 3 to 20 years for aggravated assault (16-5-21(l)) and aggravated battery (16-5-24(h)) on "an emergency health worker or health care worker while such worker is on a hospital campus, as such term is defined in Code Section 31-54-1, to perform official duties," for offenses committed on or after July 1, 2023.

Utility workers and code enforcement officials

A 2024 act (HB 1033) made simple assault on a utility worker "while such worker is acting within the course and scope of their employment or is performing official duties" a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature, did the same for simple battery and battery, and set 3 to 20 years for aggravated assault and aggravated battery on a utility worker, for offenses committed on or after July 1, 2024.

A 2026 act (HB 483) added code enforcement officials to those provisions for offenses committed on or after July 1, 2026. It defines a code enforcement official as a person "with a high school diploma or equivalent who has completed Level 1 code enforcement training under a professional program and is employed by or under contract with a municipality, city, county, or consolidated government who performs safety inspections of buildings, structures, businesses, or real property to ensure they are operated in accordance with the law." According to the Legislative Counsel's 2026 summary, the act "provides enhanced penalties when the offenses of simple assault, aggravated assault, simple battery, battery, or aggravated battery are committed against code enforcement officials."

Domestic assault and family violence battery in Georgia

Georgia handles domestic cases inside the regular assault and battery sections. Simple assault, simple battery, aggravated assault and aggravated battery each carry a higher penalty when committed "between past or present spouses, persons who are parents of the same child, parents and children, stepparents and stepchildren, foster parents and foster children, or other persons excluding siblings living or formerly living in the same household" (see the table above). The simple assault and simple battery provisions state that they do not apply to corporal punishment administered by a parent or guardian, or a person acting in loco parentis, to a child.

Battery between household members is its own named offense, family violence battery, under 16-5-23.1. For that offense, "household member" means "past or present spouses, persons who are parents of the same child, parents and children, stepparents and stepchildren, foster parents and foster children, or other persons living or formerly living in the same household." Unlike the assault and simple battery provisions, that definition does not exclude siblings. The family violence battery provision does not apply to reasonable corporal punishment administered by a parent to a child.

Protective orders are a separate civil process. For how they work, see Georgia restraining order laws.

Recent changes to Georgia assault and battery law

• 2026, HB 1075 (Act 717). Enacted O.C.G.A. 17-10-3.2, effective July 1, 2026: a fourth or subsequent conviction within ten years (misdemeanors from the same date count once, and the ten years run between arrest dates) for a misdemeanor under Chapter 5 or 6 of Title 16 is a felony punishable by 1 to 10 years.
• 2026, HB 483. Added code enforcement officials to the enhanced penalties for simple assault, aggravated assault, simple battery, battery and aggravated battery, amending 16-5-19, 16-5-20, 16-5-21, 16-5-23, 16-5-23.1 and 16-5-24. Effective May 5, 2026, and applicable to offenses committed on or after July 1, 2026.
• 2024, HB 1033. Added utility workers to the enhanced penalties for simple assault, aggravated assault, simple battery, battery and aggravated battery, for offenses committed on or after July 1, 2024.
• 2024, SB 421. Revised the drive-by firearm ground of aggravated assault to cover discharging a firearm from within a motor vehicle or after immediately exiting a vehicle toward a person, an occupied motor vehicle or an occupied building.
• 2023, HB 383. Set 3 to 20 years for aggravated assault and aggravated battery on an emergency health worker or health care worker on a hospital campus, for offenses committed on or after July 1, 2023.

Civil lawsuits for assault and battery in Georgia

A criminal case and a civil lawsuit are separate. The state prosecutes the crime, while the person harmed may bring a civil claim for damages.

O.C.G.A. 9-3-33 provides that, except as otherwise provided, "actions for injuries to the person shall be brought within two years after the right of action accrues." The section does not name assault or battery separately; it gives one year for injuries to the reputation. For other filing deadlines, see the Georgia statute of limitations guide.

Related legal issues

• Self-defense. Justification is a separate topic; see Georgia self-defense laws.
• Protective orders. See Georgia restraining order laws.
• Clearing a record. Whether an assault or battery arrest or charge can be restricted or expunged is covered in Georgia expungement laws.

Related pages

• Assault and battery laws by state
• Georgia self-defense laws
• Georgia restraining order laws
• Georgia expungement laws
• Georgia statute of limitations

This article provides general legal information about Georgia assault and battery law, not legal advice. Laws change and their application depends on specific facts. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Georgia.

Last updated: 2026-10-13.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between assault and battery in Georgia?

Simple assault under O.C.G.A. 16-5-20 is an attempt to commit a violent injury, or an act that places another person in reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury. Simple battery (16-5-23) and battery (16-5-23.1) require physical contact or harm.

What is the difference between simple battery and battery in Georgia?

Simple battery covers intentional physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature, or intentionally causing physical harm. Battery under 16-5-23.1 requires intentionally causing substantial physical harm or visible bodily harm, meaning harm another person can see, such as substantially blackened eyes, swollen lips or substantial bruises.

Is simple assault a misdemeanor in Georgia?

Yes. Simple assault is a misdemeanor, punishable under O.C.G.A. 17-10-3 by a fine of up to $1,000, up to 12 months in jail, or both. It is a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature in listed settings, such as against a household member, a pregnant woman or a public school employee on duty. Since July 1, 2026, a fourth or later conviction within ten years (misdemeanors from the same date count once, and the ten years run between arrest dates) for a misdemeanor under Chapter 5 or 6 of Title 16, which includes simple assault, is a felony punishable by 1 to 10 years under O.C.G.A. 17-10-3.2.

Is battery a felony in Georgia?

A first battery is a misdemeanor. It becomes a felony punishable by 1 to 5 years on a third or subsequent conviction against the same victim, or on a second or subsequent family violence battery conviction, and battery against a teacher or other school personnel carries 1 to 5 years or a fine of up to $10,000, or both. Since July 1, 2026, O.C.G.A. 17-10-3.2 also makes a fourth or later conviction within ten years (misdemeanors from the same date count once, and the ten years run between arrest dates) for a misdemeanor under Chapter 5 or 6 of Title 16, including simple battery and battery, a felony punishable by 1 to 10 years.

What is aggravated assault in Georgia?

Under O.C.G.A. 16-5-21, aggravated assault is an assault with intent to murder, rape or rob; with a deadly weapon or an object likely to or actually resulting in serious bodily injury; with an object likely to or actually resulting in strangulation; or by firing a gun from a vehicle without legal justification. The base penalty is 1 to 20 years.

What is aggravated battery in Georgia?

Aggravated battery under O.C.G.A. 16-5-24 means maliciously causing bodily harm by depriving someone of a member of the body, rendering a member useless, or seriously disfiguring the body or a member. The base penalty is 1 to 20 years.

What happens if you assault a police officer in Georgia?

Simple battery against a police officer, correction officer or detention officer carrying out official duties is a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature. Knowingly committing aggravated assault on a public safety officer on duty carries 5 to 20 years (10 to 20 if a firearm is discharged), and aggravated battery carries 10 to 20 years, each with a fine of at least $2,000.

Is it a felony to hit a teacher in Georgia?

Battery against a teacher or other school personnel engaged in official duties or on school property is punishable by 1 to 5 years in prison or a fine of up to $10,000, or both, under O.C.G.A. 16-5-23.1. Simple assault and simple battery against a public school employee on duty or on school property are misdemeanors of a high and aggravated nature.

How long do you have to sue for assault or battery in Georgia?

O.C.G.A. 9-3-33 requires actions for injuries to the person to be brought within two years after the right of action accrues. The section does not name assault or battery separately.