Assault is a threatened or attempted physical attack against another by a person who appears to have the ability to cause bodily harm. The threat must cause apprehension or fear of immediate harm in the victim. For example, if someone is holding a knife and says, "I'm going to cut you," that's an assault. But, if the person says, "I'm going to get a knife, find you, and cut you," that threat isn't an assault because the threat is not immediate. Such a threat might be part of another crime, such as extortion.

(Reviewed 11.4.08)