California Penal Code 245 makes it a crime to assault another person with a deadly weapon, a firearm, or a level of force likely to cause great bodily injury. Most versions of the offense are “wobblers” that prosecutors can file as either a misdemeanor or a felony, and sentences range from up to a year in county jail to as much as 12 years in state prison depending on the weapon involved and who the victim was. A felony conviction counts as a strike under California’s Three Strikes law and carries a lifetime firearm ban.
What the Prosecution Has to Prove
California defines assault as an unlawful attempt, coupled with the present ability, to commit a violent injury on another person.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 240 Under PC 245, prosecutors must establish four elements:2Justia. CALCRIM No. 875 – Assault With Deadly Weapon or Force Likely to Produce Great Bodily Injury
- You did something with a deadly weapon, firearm, or level of force that would naturally and probably result in physical contact with another person.
- You acted willfully, meaning on purpose rather than by accident. The prosecution does not have to show you intended to hurt anyone or to break the law.
- You knew facts that would lead a reasonable person to realize the act would likely result in force being applied to someone.
- At the moment you acted, you had the present ability to actually carry out the harmful contact.
That last element matters more than people expect. Swing a bat at someone from across a warehouse with no way of reaching them and you lack present ability. The threat has to be real and immediate, not theoretical. Actual contact, on the other hand, is never required. Assault is complete the moment you take the action with the ability to follow through, whether or not you connect.
This is the line between assault and battery. Battery under Penal Code 242 requires that physical contact actually happen. PC 245 punishes the dangerous attempt itself, so a conviction can stand even if the alleged victim was never touched.
What Counts as a Deadly Weapon
Deadly weapons fall into two groups. The first is objects designed to cause death or serious injury: firearms, switchblades, brass knuckles, and the like. These are treated as deadly by their nature no matter how they were used in a given incident.
The second group is where most of the litigation happens. Any object can become a deadly weapon if it’s used in a way capable of causing death or serious injury. Courts have found glass bottles, screwdrivers, heavy tools, and even pillows (used to smother someone) to qualify. The question isn’t what the object was made for. It’s how you actually wielded it.
Cars as Deadly Weapons
Motor vehicles are among the most commonly charged improvised weapons under PC 245.3California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245 – Assault With a Deadly Weapon or Instrument Prosecutors look at how fast you were going, whether you steered toward someone, and whether the surrounding context (road rage, a parking-lot confrontation, fleeing police) shows awareness that the vehicle could injure a person. Reckless driving while intoxicated can also supply the willful conduct and the knowledge of danger the statute requires.
Force Likely to Produce Great Bodily Injury
Penal Code 245(a)(4) covers assaults with no weapon at all when the force used is capable of causing serious harm.3California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245 – Assault With a Deadly Weapon or Instrument “Great bodily injury” means a significant or substantial physical injury, a higher bar than a bruise or a scratch. Broken bones, fractures, gunshot wounds, and serious concussions all qualify.
The charge typically applies to stomping on someone who is on the ground, strangling or choking, or delivering heavy blows with closed fists. Choking comes up often because it carries an obvious risk of death or brain damage even when it leaves no visible marks. Courts evaluate the mechanics of the attack and the vulnerability of the victim, not just the injuries that actually resulted. A conviction under 245(a)(4) can stand even if the alleged victim walked away without a scratch, because the statute punishes the level of force, not the outcome.
Penalties by Weapon Type
PC 245 sets distinct penalty tiers based on the weapon. The more dangerous the weapon, the harsher the sentence and the less discretion prosecutors have to reduce the charge.3California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 245 – Assault With a Deadly Weapon or Instrument
Deadly Weapon (Not a Firearm) or Force Likely to Cause Great Bodily Injury
Charges under 245(a)(1) and 245(a)(4) are wobblers. As a misdemeanor, the ceiling is one year in county jail and a fine up to $10,000. As a felony, the sentence is two, three, or four years in state prison, with the same $10,000 maximum fine. Prosecutors decide based on the severity of the conduct, your record, and your age.
Firearm
Assault with a standard firearm under 245(a)(2) is also a wobbler, but the misdemeanor version carries a mandatory minimum of six months in county jail, up to one year. The felony version is two, three, or four years in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
Semiautomatic Firearm
Assault with a semiautomatic firearm under 245(b) is a straight felony with no misdemeanor option. The sentence is three, six, or nine years in state prison.
Machine Gun, Assault Weapon, or .50 BMG Rifle
For non-officer victims, the most severe tier is 245(a)(3). Assault with a machine gun, assault weapon, or .50 BMG rifle is a straight felony carrying four, eight, or twelve years in state prison.
Higher Penalties for Assaults on Peace Officers and Firefighters
Penal Code 245(c) and 245(d) impose steeper sentences when the victim is a peace officer or firefighter performing official duties. Every charge in this category is a straight felony. The prosecution must prove you knew, or reasonably should have known, that the victim was a protected official.
- Deadly weapon or dangerous force with no firearm: three, four, or five years under 245(c).
- Firearm: four, six, or eight years under 245(d)(1).
- Semiautomatic firearm: five, seven, or nine years under 245(d)(2).
- Machine gun, assault weapon, or .50 BMG rifle: six, nine, or twelve years under 245(d)(3).
The knowledge requirement can matter as a defense point. If you genuinely had no way to know the person was an officer (plainclothes, no badge, no announcement), the enhancement may not apply. But courts set a low bar for “reasonably should have known,” so the defense rarely succeeds when the officer was in uniform or had identified themselves.
Strike Under Three Strikes
Any felony conviction under PC 245 qualifies as a “serious felony” under Penal Code 1192.7(c)(31).4California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Definition of Serious Felony Offenses That classification makes it a strike.
A second strike doubles the prison sentence for any future felony. A third can result in 25 years to life, though California’s 2012 reform generally requires the third offense to also be a serious or violent felony for the full 25-to-life term to apply, with exceptions when the current offense involves a firearm or causes great bodily injury.5California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 667 Even a short sentence today leaves the strike on your record, and it stays there.
Firearm Ban
A felony PC 245 conviction triggers a lifetime prohibition on owning or possessing any firearm under California law. Penal Code 29800 makes it a separate felony for anyone convicted of a felony to own, purchase, receive, or possess a firearm.6California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29800 Federal law imposes a parallel ban under 18 U.S.C. ยง 922(g) on anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts Every felony version of PC 245 exceeds that threshold, so the federal ban attaches automatically.
A misdemeanor conviction under PC 245 can still result in a 10-year firearm restriction under California law, and if the assault involved a domestic relationship, federal domestic violence prohibitions may apply as well. Violating either firearm ban is itself a separate felony.
Immigration Consequences for Non-Citizens
Federal immigration law classifies a “crime of violence” with a sentence of at least one year as an aggravated felony.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1101 – Definitions A felony PC 245 conviction with a multi-year sentence will typically meet that definition. An aggravated felony makes a non-citizen deportable, bars eligibility for asylum and most forms of relief from removal, and can result in mandatory detention during removal proceedings with no bond option.
Because PC 245 involves the use or threatened use of a deadly weapon or dangerous force, it often qualifies. Non-citizens should talk to an immigration attorney before accepting any plea, because the immigration fallout can outweigh the criminal sentence itself.
Defenses That Come Up
Which defenses fit depends entirely on the facts, but these are the ones that surface most often.
Self-Defense or Defense of Others
California permits reasonable force to protect yourself or someone else from imminent harm. You need to show you reasonably believed you or another person faced an immediate threat of bodily injury, you reasonably believed force was necessary to stop that threat, and you used no more force than a reasonable person would have considered necessary. The belief doesn’t have to be correct, only reasonable given what you knew at the time. Future threats don’t count, no matter how serious.
California’s Castle Doctrine creates a presumption of reasonableness when you use force against someone who unlawfully and forcibly enters your home. Under Penal Code 198.5, you’re presumed to have had a reasonable fear of death or great bodily injury in that situation.9California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 198.5 The presumption applies only to home intrusions by non-household members.
No Present Ability
If you couldn’t actually carry out the threatened harm at the moment of the alleged assault, an element of the crime is missing. A verbal threat over the phone clearly lacks present ability. An unloaded gun pointed at someone who doesn’t know it’s unloaded may still qualify, and courts are split. The defense works best when a physical barrier or distance made contact impossible.
No Willful Act
Accidents aren’t assault. A heavy object you dropped that narrowly missed someone, or a car that slid on ice toward a pedestrian, doesn’t satisfy the willfulness element. The act has to be intentional, even though you don’t need to have specifically intended to hurt anyone.
Restitution to the Victim
On top of fines and prison time, courts must order full restitution to victims for economic losses. Under Penal Code 1202.4, restitution covers medical bills, mental health counseling, lost wages including commission income, property damage, relocation costs, and security improvements like new locks or alarm systems.10California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1202.4 It accrues interest at 10 percent per year from the date of sentencing.
Restitution goes directly to the victim rather than the state, and there’s no statutory cap. In cases with hospitalization or long-term treatment, the number can easily reach tens of thousands of dollars beyond any jail or prison sentence.
Cleaning Up the Record With PC 1203.4
Defendants who successfully complete probation can petition for relief under Penal Code 1203.4. If granted, the court lets you withdraw your guilty or no-contest plea, enters a not-guilty plea, and dismisses the case.11California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.4 Relief is available for both misdemeanor and felony PC 245 convictions if you’ve finished probation and aren’t currently serving a sentence or facing new charges. Unpaid restitution cannot be used as a reason to deny the petition, and the prosecution must receive at least 15 days’ notice before the court rules.
The relief has limits. It does not restore firearm rights, does not remove a strike from your record for Three Strikes purposes, and may not eliminate immigration consequences. Many professional licensing boards still require disclosure of the original conviction. It helps most with private-sector employment, where California law restricts employers from asking about dismissed convictions on job applications.