Personal Injury Attorney Queens | Felony Assault Case Defense

During an evening training session at a public athletic complex in Queens, a disagreement developed between the client and another player regarding defensive positioning and in game strategy. 

What initially resembled routine competitive banter escalated into a heated verbal confrontation as emotions intensified and teammates attempted to intervene. 

Rather than disengaging, the opposing player reacted physically, crossing the clear boundary between sports related contact and unlawful violence.

According to multiple eyewitness accounts and contemporaneous medical records, the assailant deliberately hooked the client’s leg from behind, causing him to fall forward onto the turf. 

While the client was defenseless on the ground, the assailant struck him directly in the eye with a closed fist. 

Emergency treatment revealed severe ocular trauma, and subsequent ophthalmological evaluations confirmed that the client’s vision in the affected eye deteriorated to below 0.02, constituting permanent and irreversible impairment. 

Under New York Penal Law §120.05(1), intentionally causing serious physical injury to another person constitutes Assault in the Second Degree, classified as a violent class D felony.

New York Penal Law §10.00(10) defines “serious physical injury” as an injury creating a substantial risk of death or causing protracted disfigurement, protracted impairment of health, or protracted loss or impairment of the function of any bodily organ. 

The permanent loss of functional vision in one eye squarely meets this definition. 

Medical expert opinions established that the injury was irreversible and would permanently restrict the client’s ability to engage in ordinary life activities, including competitive sports and certain forms of employment.

The defense attempted to characterize the injury as an unfortunate accident arising from a chaotic sports environment. 

However, the personal injury attorney in Queens emphasized that the eye is an inherently vulnerable and vital organ, and that intentionally striking another person’s face particularly after the victim has fallen carries an obvious and foreseeable risk of severe injury. 

Testimony established that the blow was directed intentionally at the eye, supporting the inference of intent required under Penal Law §120.05.

The court found that the statutory elements of Assault in the Second Degree were satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt and entered a felony conviction. 

In light of the permanent nature of the victim’s vision loss, the intentional targeting of a vulnerable body part, and the defendant’s lack of remorse, the court imposed a determinate term of imprisonment consistent with New York sentencing guidelines for violent class D felony offenses. 

The outcome reaffirmed that intentional violence resulting in serious physical injury will be met with meaningful criminal sanctions, regardless of the social or recreational context in which it occurs.