Simple Assault in New Hampshire: Classes, Penalties, and Defenses

Simple assault in New Hampshire is defined by RSA 631:2-a and is usually charged as a Class A misdemeanor, which can mean up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $2,000. The statute reaches well beyond black eyes and broken bones: an unwanted shove during an argument can qualify, and a conviction leaves a criminal record that affects jobs, housing, firearm rights, and, for non-citizens, immigration status.

What Counts as Simple Assault

RSA 631:2-a describes three ways to commit the offense. The most common is purposely or knowingly causing bodily injury, or making physical contact the other person did not consent to. You do not have to leave a mark or cause pain; a shove, grab, or slap meant to be offensive or provocative is enough.¹

The second form is reckless conduct that causes bodily injury. You did not mean to hurt anyone, but you acted with such disregard for others’ safety that someone got hurt. Throwing a heavy object across a crowded room and hitting a bystander fits here.¹

The third applies when a person negligently causes bodily injury with a deadly weapon. The mental-state threshold is lower, but a weapon is in play.¹

This is a lower bar than aggravated assault under RSA 631:1, which requires serious bodily harm or a deadly weapon used with intent to injure. For simple assault, the prosecution does not have to prove the victim sought medical treatment or suffered lasting harm. That is why police and prosecutors can bring the charge in a wide range of situations, from domestic disputes to stranger confrontations.

Class A, Class B, or a Violation

The statute calls simple assault a “misdemeanor” without picking a class. RSA 625:9 fills the gap: an unclassified misdemeanor defaults to Class B unless the conduct involved an act or threat of violence, the prosecution files notice before arraignment seeking Class A penalties, or the case is filed directly in superior court.²

Because most simple assault cases involve physical force, which qualifies as an act of violence, the charge is usually treated as a Class A misdemeanor. Cases involving only minor unwanted contact, with no injury and no threat of further harm, have a stronger argument for Class B. The prosecutor makes the call. The distinction matters because Class A carries jail time and Class B does not.

There is one carve-out. If the assault happened during a fight that both parties willingly entered, the offense drops from a misdemeanor to a violation, which caps out at a $1,000 fine and carries no possibility of jail.¹ Prosecutors and judges look closely at whether both people genuinely agreed to fight; it is not something you can claim after the fact and expect to stick.

Penalties

Class A Misdemeanor

A Class A conviction carries up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $2,000.³ Judges have real discretion at sentencing. First-time offenders with no prior record often receive probation rather than jail, with conditions such as anger management, community service, and staying out of further trouble.

Class B Misdemeanor

A Class B conviction carries no jail time and a maximum fine of $1,200.³ The immediate consequences are lighter, but the conviction still goes on your record.

When the Victim Is a Protected Worker

If the alleged victim was a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or licensed emergency medical provider acting in the line of duty, RSA 651:6 allows an extended sentence of up to five years for a misdemeanor rather than the usual one-year ceiling.⁴

Domestic Violence Is a Separate Charge

When the alleged victim is a family member, household member, or intimate partner, the conduct is charged under RSA 631:2-b, the domestic violence statute, rather than straight simple assault. Domestic violence is a Class A misdemeanor and carries a mandatory $50 fine on top of any other penalty. That fine cannot be reduced or suspended.⁵

If a deadly weapon was used or threatened, the charge escalates to a Class B felony.⁵ Courts can also issue protective orders under RSA 173-B that restrict contact and can bar you from a shared home; abuse under that statute covers physical assault, criminal threatening, harassment, and destruction of property.⁶ Violating a protective order is itself a crime.

A domestic violence misdemeanor conviction also triggers the federal firearms prohibition in 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9). You cannot legally possess, buy, or receive any firearm or ammunition after such a conviction.⁷ The prohibition generally lasts for life, though a narrower exception exists for convictions based on a “dating relationship” where the period may be limited.⁸ For anyone who owns firearms or needs them for work, this is often the heaviest consequence of a domestic violence conviction.

Common Defenses

Self-Defense

New Hampshire law lets you use reasonable, non-deadly force to protect yourself from what you genuinely believe is an imminent threat of unlawful force. The force you use has to match what a reasonable person would consider necessary to stop the threat.⁹

Self-defense fails if you provoked the confrontation or were the initial aggressor. There is one exception: if you started the conflict but then clearly withdrew and communicated that you were backing off, and the other person kept attacking, you can reassert the claim. You do not have to retreat before using non-deadly force. For deadly force, you must retreat if you can do so with complete safety, unless you are in your home, on your property, or anywhere else you have a legal right to be and you were not the aggressor.⁹

Defense of Others

The same rules apply when you use force to protect a third person. You must reasonably believe that person faced an imminent threat of unlawful force, and the force you used must be proportional.⁹

What Mutual Consent Does and Doesn’t Do

A mutual fight downgrades the offense to a violation, but it is not a complete defense. RSA 627:4 specifically says force used in “combat by agreement not authorized by law” is not justified.⁹ Both fighters can still face charges; the charges are just less severe.

What Happens in Court

The case starts with arraignment, where the formal charges are read and you enter a plea. For a Class B misdemeanor, the court generally releases you on personal recognizance unless the judge believes release would endanger someone. In a Class A case the court has more latitude to set bail conditions, which can include cash bail, no-contact orders, and travel restrictions.¹⁰

If you are charged with a Class A misdemeanor and cannot afford a lawyer, you have the right to court-appointed counsel through the public defender’s office, with a contract attorney assigned if the public defender is unavailable.¹¹ Class B charges carry no jail time, so there is no automatic right to a public defender for those.

Misdemeanor cases are first heard in the circuit court’s district division, where a judge decides the case without a jury. A defendant convicted there can appeal to superior court for a full jury trial. The prosecution has to prove every element of simple assault beyond a reasonable doubt in either forum.

The Record Problem

Any simple assault conviction, Class A or Class B, shows up on background checks. New Hampshire calls record-clearing “annulment” rather than expungement, and the waiting period depends on the offense:

Class A misdemeanor: three years after completing all terms of the sentence.¹²
Class B misdemeanor: two years after completing all terms of the sentence.¹²
Domestic violence misdemeanor under RSA 631:2-b: ten years. A second domestic violence conviction blocks annulment of the earlier one until the newer one becomes eligible.¹²

You must have no new criminal convictions during the waiting period, minor traffic violations aside. RSA 651:5 also bars annulment entirely for “violent crimes,” and with multiple convictions, none can be annulled until every offense’s waiting period has passed.¹² Whether a particular simple assault counts as a “violent crime” under that bar can be contested and is worth asking a lawyer about.

Immigration Risk for Non-Citizens

Non-citizens should be especially careful. Under federal immigration law, a conviction for a “crime involving moral turpitude” committed within five years of admission to the United States is grounds for deportation if the offense carries a possible sentence of one year or more.¹³ A Class A misdemeanor in New Hampshire carries up to one year, which meets that threshold.

Whether simple assault qualifies as a crime of moral turpitude depends on the specific facts and how the offense is charged. Not every simple assault triggers deportation. But two misdemeanor convictions for crimes of moral turpitude at any time after admission can make a non-citizen deportable, regardless of when they occurred.¹³ Anyone with status at stake should talk to an immigration attorney before accepting any plea.

1
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 631:2-a – Simple Assault
2
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 625:9 – Classification of Crimes
3
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 651:2 – Sentences and Limitations
4
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 651:6 – Extended Term of Imprisonment
5
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 631:2-b – Domestic Violence
6
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 173-B:1 – Definitions
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
8
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Misdemeanor Crimes of Domestic Violence Prohibitions
9
Justia. New Hampshire Code 627:4 – Physical Force in Defense of a Person
10
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 597:2 – Release of a Person Charged With a Crime
11
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 604-A:2 – Appointment of Counsel
12
New Hampshire General Court. New Hampshire Code 651:5 – Annulment of Criminal Records
13
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1227 – Deportable Aliens