What is classed as assault?

• A. A threat of violence that is not imminent
• B. A verbal threat of immediate violence that the suspect is capable of doing in the precise moment
• C. A silent stare
• D. A report of violence after the event

Answer: (B)

Assault hinges on causing someone to fear immediate unlawful violence. The crucial pieces are immediacy and the offender’s ability to carry out the threat right then. A verbal threat of immediate violence that the person is capable of executing at that exact moment fulfills both elements: it creates real-time fear of harm and shows the attacker could inflict it now.

The other scenarios don’t fit because they lack one of these elements. A threat about violence in the future isn’t immediate, so it doesn’t amount to assault. A silent stare doesn’t express a threat or imminent harm. A report after the event describes something that has already happened, not a present threat.