Assault with a deadly weapon in California is prosecuted under Penal Code 245(a). Depending on the weapon and the facts, it can be charged as a misdemeanor carrying up to a year in county jail or as a felony carrying two to four years in state prison, with fines up to $10,000 before penalty assessments push the real number much higher.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245 Firearm assaults carry harsher ranges, and a felony conviction counts as a strike.
Penalties by Subsection
Section 245 is tiered. The weapon involved determines both the sentencing range and whether a misdemeanor is even on the table.
Deadly Weapon or Force Likely to Cause Great Bodily Injury
Penal Code 245(a)(1) covers assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm. Penal Code 245(a)(4) covers assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury, with no weapon involved. Both are wobblers: the prosecutor decides whether to file as a misdemeanor or a felony, weighing the facts and your criminal history.
As a misdemeanor, the maximum is one year in county jail. As a felony, the sentencing range is two, three, or four years in state prison. Either way, the maximum fine is $10,000.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245 The court chooses among the low, middle, and high felony terms based on aggravating and mitigating factors: prior record, the severity of the victim’s injuries, and whether you showed remorse.
Standard Firearm
Assault with a standard firearm under 245(a)(2) is also a wobbler, but the misdemeanor floor is stiffer. Jail cannot be less than six months and can run up to a year. The felony range remains two, three, or four years in state prison, with the same $10,000 fine cap.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245
Semiautomatic Firearm
Assault with a semiautomatic firearm under 245(b) is a straight felony. There is no misdemeanor option. The prison range jumps to three, six, or nine years.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245
Machine Gun, Assault Weapon, or .50 BMG Rifle
The harshest tier, under 245(a)(3), applies to assaults with a machine gun, an assault weapon, or a .50 BMG rifle. These are straight felonies carrying four, eight, or twelve years in state prison.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245 No misdemeanor option and no realistic probation path.
What the Prosecution Has to Prove
A conviction requires four elements. You committed an act that would naturally and probably result in force being applied to another person. You did so willfully, meaning on purpose rather than by accident. You were aware of facts that would make a reasonable person realize the act would likely result in force being applied. And you had the present ability to apply that force when you acted.2Justia. CALCRIM No. 875 – Assault With Deadly Weapon or Force Likely to Produce Great Bodily Injury
Two features of this list surprise people. You do not need to make contact. Swinging a pipe at someone’s head and missing still qualifies. You also do not need to intend to hurt any specific person. The test is whether a reasonable person in your position would have recognized the danger, and whether a physical strike was a natural and probable outcome of what you did.
What Counts as a Deadly Weapon or Great Bodily Injury
A “deadly weapon” under 245(a)(1) includes objects designed to cause death or serious injury, like a hunting knife or brass knuckles. It also covers everyday objects used in a dangerous way. A glass bottle, a car, a baseball bat, or even a pencil can qualify if used in a manner capable of causing death or serious injury. Juries look at how the object was used, not what the object is.
Section 245(a)(4) does not require any weapon. It requires enough physical force that great bodily injury was a likely result. “Great bodily injury” means significant or substantial physical injury beyond minor or moderate harm.3California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 12022.7 Broken bones, wounds needing stitches, concussions, and prolonged loss of consciousness clear the bar.4Justia. CALCRIM No. 3160 – Great Bodily Injury A small bruise does not. Stomping someone on the ground, slamming a head into a wall, or repeatedly punching someone in the face typically does.
Fines, Restitution, and Hidden Costs
The $10,000 fine in the statute is a base amount. California adds penalty assessments and surcharges on top of every criminal fine. Under Penal Code 1464 and several Government Code sections, the combined assessment rate is $27 for every $10 of base fine, plus a 20% state surcharge on the base and additional flat court fees. A $10,000 base fine can reach roughly $40,000 or more in total financial obligations. This catches many defendants off guard at sentencing.
Restitution is separate and mandatory. The court must order full restitution to the victim for economic losses caused by the assault: medical expenses, mental health counseling, lost wages, and damaged property, among other losses. The amount accrues interest at 10% per year from the date of sentencing.5California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1202.4 There is no cap. If the victim’s medical bills run into six figures, you owe that amount.
Probation
For wobblers charged as misdemeanors, the court may grant informal (summary) probation instead of jail time. For felony convictions, formal probation supervised by a probation officer is possible in some cases, particularly if injuries were relatively minor and you have no serious criminal history. Conditions commonly include community service, anger management, stay-away orders protecting the victim, and regular check-ins. Violating any condition can result in probation being revoked and the original jail or prison sentence imposed.
Probation is far less likely for firearm offenses and essentially unavailable for the straight felonies under 245(a)(3) and 245(b). When granted on a felony, it typically runs three to five years.
Strike Consequences
A felony conviction under Penal Code 245 is a “serious felony” under Penal Code 1192.7(c)(31),6California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1192.7 which makes it a strike under California’s Three Strikes law. Strikes compound over time. A later serious or violent felony carries an automatically doubled sentence. A third serious or violent felony triggers a minimum sentence of 25 years to life in state prison.7California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 667 Even where a later conviction is not itself a serious felony, a prior strike can still double the sentence if the current offense involves a firearm, a deadly weapon, or intent to cause great bodily injury.
Gun Rights
A felony conviction triggers a lifetime firearm ban under both state and federal law. Penal Code 29800 prohibits firearm possession by anyone convicted of a felony,8California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29800 and 18 U.S.C. ยง 922(g)(1) imposes a parallel federal ban on anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than a year of imprisonment.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts Violating either ban is itself a felony.
Even a misdemeanor conviction can restrict gun rights if the offense involved domestic violence. Federal law prohibits firearm possession for anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, and California has its own parallel restrictions.
Immigration Exposure for Non-Citizens
The stakes for non-citizens are unusually high. Under federal immigration law, a “crime of violence” carrying a sentence of at least one year qualifies as an aggravated felony.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1101 – Definitions A felony assault with a deadly weapon conviction easily clears that threshold. An aggravated felony makes a non-citizen deportable, bars most forms of relief from removal, and permanently prevents re-entry.
Misdemeanor convictions can still cause immigration problems. Assault offenses are frequently classified as crimes involving moral turpitude, which can trigger deportability if the conviction occurs within five years of admission and carries a potential sentence of at least a year, or if you accumulate two such convictions after admission. Firearm-related convictions under 245(a)(2), (a)(3), or (b) carry additional risk because virtually any offense with a firearm as an element qualifies as a deportable firearms offense on its own.
Common Defenses
Several defenses apply, and the prosecution bears the burden of disproving them beyond a reasonable doubt once raised.
Self-defense or defense of another is the most common. You have the right to use force if you reasonably believed you or someone else faced imminent bodily harm, you reasonably believed force was necessary to stop it, and you used no more force than was reasonably necessary. The threat must be immediate. California does not require you to retreat before defending yourself.11Justia. CALCRIM No. 3470 – Right to Self-Defense or Defense of Another Where this defense often fails is on proportionality. If someone shoves you and you respond with a knife, the force is not proportional and the defense collapses.
Lack of present ability targets the fourth element. If you could not actually have applied force at the time, the offense is not complete. Pointing an unloaded gun at someone from across a room may lack present ability, though juries evaluate this on the facts.
No willful act covers accidents. If you were carrying a heavy object and it slipped, striking someone, that is not a willful act under the statute. The prosecution has to prove you acted on purpose.2Justia. CALCRIM No. 875 – Assault With Deadly Weapon or Force Likely to Produce Great Bodily Injury
The final line of defense attacks the definitions. On a 245(a)(1) charge, the argument is that the object was not capable of causing death or serious injury in the way it was used. On a 245(a)(4) charge, the argument is that the force applied was not severe enough to meet the great bodily injury threshold. A single open-hand slap, for example, does not typically qualify.
Expungement
California allows expungement of some Penal Code 245 convictions under Penal Code 1203.4. If you were granted probation, successfully completed all terms, and are no longer serving a sentence or on probation for any offense, you can petition the court to withdraw the plea and dismiss the case. Expungement releases you from most penalties and disabilities of the conviction, but it does not restore firearm rights for felony convictions and does not erase the conviction for all professional licensing background checks.
Expungement is generally available for wobblers sentenced as misdemeanors, or as felonies with probation. Convictions that resulted in state prison time have a more complicated path and may require a certificate of rehabilitation or a governor’s pardon. If a felony conviction is later reduced to a misdemeanor under Penal Code 17(b), that reduction improves both eligibility and the practical benefits of expungement.