Tennessee Assault Laws: Simple vs Aggravated Assault and Penalties

Tennessee does not have a separate battery crime in its assault statutes. Under T.C.A. 39-13-101, one offense called assault covers causing bodily injury, causing someone to reasonably fear imminent bodily injury, and making physical contact that a reasonable person would regard as extremely offensive or provocative. Simple assault is a misdemeanor; aggravated assault under 39-13-102 is a felony, and assaults on law enforcement officers, first responders and nurses on duty fall under their own section, 39-13-116. 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 Tennessee's assault offenses in Title 39 of the Tennessee Code Annotated (39-13-101, 39-13-102, 39-13-111 and 39-13-116), the definitions in 39-11-106, the sentencing ranges in 40-35-111 and 40-35-112, the civil filing periods in 28-3-104, 28-1-106 and 28-3-116, and the public chapters from 2021 through 2026 that amended these sections. It does not cover self-defense and justification (see Tennessee self-defense laws), orders of protection (see Tennessee restraining order laws), sexual offenses, federal assault crimes (see the assault and battery hub) or city and county ordinances. Tennessee's official code is published online through a free LexisNexis portal; several sections described here were amended by recent public chapters, so check the current codified text before relying on a specific detail.

Assault vs. battery in Tennessee

Many states use "assault" for a threat and "battery" for physical contact. Tennessee folds both into one statute. T.C.A. 39-13-101(a) provides:

"(a) A person commits assault who: (1) Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causes bodily injury to another; (2) Intentionally or knowingly causes another to reasonably fear imminent bodily injury; or (3) Intentionally or knowingly causes physical contact with another and a reasonable person would regard the contact as extremely offensive or provocative."

So a punch that causes injury, a credible threat that puts someone in fear of being hurt right away, and an offensive shove or spit can all be charged as assault. The difference shows up in the grade: the first two forms are Class A misdemeanors and the contact form is a Class B misdemeanor (39-13-101(b)(1)). The same section names three related offenses that build on it: aggravated assault (39-13-102), domestic assault (39-13-111) and assault against a law enforcement officer, first responder or nurse (39-13-116).

Tennessee assault charges and penalties

These are the grades for a single offense; under a 2024 repeat-offender provision (Pub. Ch. 987), a later misdemeanor conviction for simple, domestic or nurse assault can be a Class E felony for some repeat offenders, described below.

The class ranges come from T.C.A. 40-35-111. For felonies, 40-35-111(b) sets the full span of each class: Class B is 8 to 30 years with a jury fine of up to $25,000, Class C is "not less than three (3) years nor more than fifteen (15) years," Class D is 2 to 12 years and Class E is 1 to 6 years, each with a jury fine of up to $10,000, $5,000 and $3,000 respectively "unless otherwise provided by statute." The aggravated assault statute is one such statute: it allows a fine of up to $15,000 in addition to any other authorized punishment (39-13-102(e)(1)(B)).

The same part of the code also contains reckless endangerment (39-13-103), vehicular assault (39-13-106) and aggravated vehicular assault (39-13-115), which are not covered here.

The full class span is not the typical sentence. T.C.A. 40-35-112(a) sets narrower ranges for a standard (Range I) offender: 8 to 12 years for a Class B felony, 3 to 6 years for Class C, 2 to 4 years for Class D and 1 to 2 years for Class E. For misdemeanors, 40-35-111(e) caps a Class A misdemeanor at 11 months 29 days or a fine of $2,500, or both, and a Class B misdemeanor at 6 months or $500, or both, in each case "unless otherwise provided by statute." Section 39-13-101(b)(1)(A) itself states a fine of up to $15,000 for bodily-injury assault.

Definitions that decide the grade

Three definitions in T.C.A. 39-11-106 often decide whether a case is simple or aggravated assault:

• Bodily injury "includes a cut, abrasion, bruise, burn or disfigurement, and physical pain or temporary illness or impairment of the function of a bodily member, organ, or mental faculty."
• Serious bodily injury "means bodily injury that involves: (A) A substantial risk of death; (B) Protracted unconsciousness; (C) Extreme physical pain; (D) Protracted or obvious disfigurement; (E) Protracted loss or substantial impairment of a function of a bodily member, organ or mental faculty; or (F) A broken bone of a child who is twelve (12) years of age or less."
• Deadly weapon means "(A) A firearm or anything manifestly designed, made or adapted for the purpose of inflicting death or serious bodily injury; or (B) Anything that in the manner of its use or intended use is capable of causing death or serious bodily injury."

Strangulation has its own definition for aggravated assault. Under 39-13-102(a)(2), it "means intentionally or knowingly impeding normal breathing or circulation of the blood by applying pressure to the throat or neck or by blocking the nose and mouth of another person, regardless of whether that conduct results in any visible injury or whether the person has any intent to kill or protractedly injure the victim."

Aggravating factors and enhancements

Beyond the base grades in the table, several provisions raise the penalty in specific circumstances:

• Strangulation of a pregnant victim. Since July 1, 2023, an intentional or knowing aggravated assault involving strangulation "is a Class B felony" if the victim is pregnant at the time of the offense (Pub. Ch. 440 of 2023, amending 39-13-102(e)(1)(A)(ii)).
• Strangulation causing loss of consciousness. The same act added 39-13-102(f): a strangulation aggravated assault in which the victim loses consciousness "may be prosecuted as attempted first degree murder, under § 39-13-202, or attempted second degree murder, under § 39-13-210."
• Firearm discharged from a motor vehicle at a minor. Under 39-13-102(e)(5), an aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury or death is punished one classification higher if it was committed by discharging a firearm from within a motor vehicle and the victim was a minor.
• Firearm discharged from a motor vehicle, deadly-weapon form. Since July 1, 2022, a deadly-weapon aggravated assault (intentional or reckless) is punished one classification higher if it was committed by discharging a firearm from within a motor vehicle, with no age condition (Pub. Ch. 1136 of 2022, adding 39-13-102(e)(6)).
• Bail. Since July 1, 2026, Pub. Ch. 933 lists aggravated assault, aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer or first responder, and felony domestic assault in 40-11-115(d), with "a rebuttable presumption that bail must be set at ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or more."

Repeat-offender felony provision (2024)

A 2024 act, Pub. Ch. 987 (section 3), added a new section to Title 40, Chapter 35, Part 1 that turns repeated misdemeanors into a felony. It provides that a defendant "commits a Class E felony upon a third or subsequent conviction of any combination" of listed offenses, a list that includes assault against a first responder or nurse under 39-13-116(a), child abuse, child neglect or endangerment, and domestic assault under 39-13-111. Separately, a defendant convicted of five or more "qualifying misdemeanors" is a recidivist misdemeanant who "commits a Class E felony on the sixth or subsequent qualifying misdemeanor"; the qualifying list includes simple assault under 39-13-101. The act took effect July 1, 2024. Neither rule applies when more than ten years separate the present offense from a preceding qualifying conviction; when one falls within ten years, qualifying convictions within 20 years are counted, only one conviction per date counts, and the prior convictions must be alleged in a separate count of the indictment.

Assaulting a police officer, first responder or nurse in Tennessee

T.C.A. 39-13-116 protects three groups while they are "discharging or attempting to discharge" official duties. The offense is committed by a person who knowingly causes bodily injury to the officer, first responder or nurse, or who knowingly causes physical contact a reasonable person would regard as extremely offensive or provocative, "including, but not limited to, spitting, throwing, or otherwise transferring bodily fluids, bodily pathogens, or human waste" onto that person (wording from Pub. Ch. 458 of 2021).

The grade depends on who was assaulted, and it has changed several times since 2021:

• Law enforcement officers. Since July 1, 2024 (Pub. Ch. 976, the 2024 act that made officers their own protected class), assault on a law enforcement officer has been a Class E felony. The act defines a law enforcement officer to include, "but is not limited to, a POST-certified law enforcement officer, capitol police officer, Tennessee highway patrol officer, Tennessee bureau of investigation agent, Tennessee wildlife resources agency officer, deputy jailer, or park ranger employed by the division of parks and recreation in the department of environment and conservation."
• First responders. Since July 1, 2026, Pub. Ch. 1104 provides that "Assault against a law enforcement officer or first responder under subsection (a) is a Class E felony, and shall be punished by a mandatory fine of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) and a mandatory minimum sentence of sixty (60) days incarceration. The defendant is not eligible for release from confinement until the defendant has served the entire sixty-day mandatory minimum sentence." Before that date, assault on a first responder was a Class A misdemeanor. A first responder is "a firefighter, emergency services personnel, or other person who responds to calls for emergency assistance from a 911 call," and, under a 2026 act (Pub. Ch. 988), an emergency utility worker as that act defines the term; the definition does not include law enforcement officers, who have their own category.
• Nurses. Under the same 2026 act, "Assault against a nurse under subsection (a) is a Class A misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a mandatory fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000) and a mandatory minimum sentence of thirty (30) days incarceration." A nurse is "a person who is licensed, registered, or certificated under title 63, chapter 7."

The aggravated form, a knowing assault under 39-13-116(a) that results in serious bodily injury or death, or involved the use or display of a deadly weapon or strangulation or attempted strangulation, "is a Class C felony, and shall be punished by a mandatory fine of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) and a mandatory minimum sentence of ninety (90) days incarceration" (39-13-116(c)(2)).

In schools, a 2024 act (Pub. Ch. 915, adding 49-6-3401(j)) requires a principal to suspend a student who commits an assault, as defined in 39-13-101, against an employee of the student's school system or public charter school, including from all school-sponsored events "for no less than one (1) calendar year, unless modified by the director of schools or the director of the public charter school." That is a school-discipline rule, not a criminal grade.

Domestic assault in Tennessee

Domestic assault is not a different act; it is a different victim. Under 39-13-111(b), "A person commits domestic assault who commits an assault as defined in § 39-13-101 against a domestic abuse victim." The section defines a domestic abuse victim; the category includes people such as current and former spouses, people who live together, people in a dating or sexual relationship, and relatives by blood or adoption.

Penalties escalate for repeat convictions of the bodily-injury form:

• First conviction (and any conviction for the fear or contact forms): punishable the same as assault under 39-13-101, plus the additional consequences in 39-13-111 (39-13-111(c)(1)).
• Second conviction, bodily-injury form: a fine of $350 to $3,500 and confinement "for not less than thirty (30) consecutive days, nor more than eleven (11) months and twenty-nine (29) days" (39-13-111(c)(2)).
• Third or later conviction, bodily-injury form: since July 1, 2024, "a Class E felony," with "mandatory confinement of not less than ninety (90) consecutive days in the county jail or workhouse" and a fine "of not less than one thousand one hundred dollars ($1,100) nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000)" (Pub. Ch. 987 of 2024, rewriting 39-13-111(c)(3)). The earlier version limited the felony to certain relationships; it no longer does. The second- and third-conviction penalties do not apply if ten or more years have passed between the present violation and the immediately preceding bodily-injury domestic assault that resulted in a conviction (39-13-111(c)(4)).

Other consequences in the section: a conviction involving strangulation or attempted strangulation carries "a mandatory minimum sentence of thirty (30) days incarceration, which includes participation in programming that is evidence-based for domestic violence" (39-13-111(f), added in 2023); a person convicted must "serve at least the minimum sentence day for day" (39-13-111(e)); and the judge must order the defendant to give up physical possession of all firearms "within forty-eight (48) hours of the conviction" (39-13-111(c)(6)). For offenses committed on or after January 1, 2026, the court must order a mental health evaluation before sentencing (Pub. Ch. 511 of 2025, adding 39-13-111(g)).

Tennessee also has a persistent domestic violence offender registry, created by Pub. Ch. 520 of 2025 (effective January 1, 2026). As amended by Pub. Ch. 921 of 2026 (effective July 1, 2026), when a person is convicted of an offense against a domestic abuse victim and has at least one prior such conviction, the court "shall, upon proof of any prior convictions committed against a domestic abuse victim, order the defendant to register as a persistent domestic violence offender," and domestic assault is listed among the qualifying offenses.

Federal law, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9), separately makes it unlawful for a person convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence to possess a firearm or ammunition in or affecting commerce; the assault and battery hub explains that rule. For orders of protection, see Tennessee restraining order laws.

Recent changes to Tennessee assault law

Tennessee's assault sections have been amended repeatedly since 2021:

Civil lawsuits for assault and battery in Tennessee

A criminal case and a civil lawsuit are separate. The State prosecutes the criminal charge; a person who was hurt can also sue for money damages, and the outcome of one case does not decide the other.

Tennessee's limitations statute does not use the words assault or battery. T.C.A. 28-3-104(a)(1)(A) requires "Actions for libel, injuries to the person, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, or breach of marriage promise" to be commenced within one year after the cause of action accrued. Under 28-3-104(a)(2), the period is two years only if all three conditions are met: "(A) Criminal charges are brought against any person alleged to have caused or contributed to the injury; (B) The conduct, transaction, or occurrence that gives rise to the cause of action for civil damages is the subject of a criminal prosecution commenced within one (1) year by: (i) A law enforcement officer; (ii) A district attorney general; or (iii) A grand jury; and (C) The cause of action is brought by the person injured by the criminal conduct against the party prosecuted for such conduct." Subsection (a)(3) adds that this subsection "shall be strictly construed."

Longer periods apply to some claimants. If the injured person was under 18 or adjudicated incompetent when the claim accrued, the action may be brought within the limitation period after legal rights are restored (28-1-106(a)). A similar rule applies to a person who lacked capacity, but a court-appointed fiduciary or other person with the legal right to sue for that person must generally file within the ordinary period (28-1-106(c)). A claim for injury or illness based on child sexual abuse that occurred on or after July 1, 2019 may be brought until the later of 15 years after the person turns 18 or three years after discovery; for abuse before July 1, 2019 that was not discovered at the time, the period is three years from discovery (28-3-116(b)). If such a suit is brought against someone other than the alleged abuser more than one year after the person reaches majority, corroborating evidence of the abuse is required (28-3-116(e)). See Tennessee statute of limitations for the broader rules.

Related legal issues

Whether force was justified is a separate question governed by Tennessee's justification statutes; see Tennessee self-defense laws. Protection from an abuser through the civil courts is covered in Tennessee restraining order laws, and the rules for clearing an assault record are in Tennessee expungement laws.

Related

• Assault and battery laws by state
• Tennessee self-defense laws
• Tennessee restraining order laws
• Tennessee expungement laws
• Tennessee statute of limitations
• Kentucky assault and battery laws
• Arkansas assault and battery laws

This article provides general legal information about Tennessee assault laws, not legal advice. Laws change, and how they apply depends on the facts. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Tennessee.

Last updated: 2026-10-13.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a battery charge in Tennessee?

Not under that name in the assault statutes. T.C.A. 39-13-101 makes causing bodily injury, causing reasonable fear of imminent bodily injury and extremely offensive or provocative contact all forms of one offense called assault.

Is assault a felony in Tennessee?

Simple assault under 39-13-101 is a Class A or Class B misdemeanor for a single offense. Assault can be a felony in several ways, including as aggravated assault under 39-13-102 (Class C or D, and Class B for strangulation of a pregnant victim), as assault on an on-duty law enforcement officer or first responder under 39-13-116 (Class E), as a third or later bodily-injury domestic assault conviction under 39-13-111 (Class E, unless ten or more years separate it from the preceding one), or under a 2024 repeat-offender law (Pub. Ch. 987) as a third or later conviction of listed offenses such as domestic assault or assault on a first responder or nurse, or a sixth or later qualifying misdemeanor such as simple assault (Class E, in each case only where a preceding qualifying conviction is within ten years).

What is the penalty for simple assault in Tennessee?

Bodily-injury assault and fear-of-injury assault are Class A misdemeanors, punishable by up to 11 months 29 days; 39-13-101 states a fine of up to $15,000 for the bodily-injury form, while the general Class A fine cap in 40-35-111 is $2,500. Offensive or provocative contact is a Class B misdemeanor, up to 6 months and a fine of up to $500.

What happens if you assault a police officer in Tennessee?

Knowingly causing bodily injury to, or extremely offensive or provocative contact with, a law enforcement officer who is discharging or attempting to discharge official duties is a Class E felony under 39-13-116, with a mandatory $10,000 fine and a mandatory minimum of 60 days in jail. If the assault causes serious bodily injury or death, or involves a deadly weapon or strangulation, it is a Class C felony with a mandatory $15,000 fine and 90 days.

Is assaulting a nurse a felony in Tennessee?

Not the basic offense. Under 39-13-116 as amended in 2026, assaulting a nurse who is discharging or attempting to discharge official duties is a Class A misdemeanor with a mandatory $5,000 fine and 30 days in jail; the aggravated version (serious bodily injury, death, deadly weapon or strangulation) is a Class C felony. A third or later conviction of nurse assault, domestic assault or certain other listed offenses can also be a Class E felony under a 2024 repeat-offender law (Pub. Ch. 987).

Is choking someone a felony in Tennessee?

An intentional or knowing assault that involves strangulation or attempted strangulation is aggravated assault, a Class C felony under 39-13-102, and a Class B felony if the victim is pregnant. The statute defines strangulation as impeding normal breathing or blood circulation by pressure on the throat or neck or by blocking the nose and mouth, whether or not there is a visible injury.

How long do you have to sue for assault in Tennessee?

T.C.A. 28-3-104 gives one year for actions for injuries to the person. The period is two years only if criminal charges are brought against a person alleged to have caused the injury, a criminal prosecution is commenced within one year by a law enforcement officer, district attorney general or grand jury, and the injured person sues the party prosecuted; the statute says this is strictly construed. A person who was under 18 or adjudicated incompetent when the claim accrued may sue within the period after legal rights are restored (28-1-106), and child sexual abuse claims have until the later of 15 years after age 18 or three years from discovery for abuse on or after July 1, 2019 (28-3-116).