Penal Law § 120.00

Assault in the third degree · as in force on May 31, 2026

§ 120.00 Assault in the third degree.

A person is guilty of assault in the third degree when:

1. With intent to cause physical injury to another person, he causes such injury to such person or to a third person; or

2. He recklessly causes physical injury to another person; or

3. With criminal negligence, he causes physical injury to another person by means of a deadly weapon or a dangerous instrument.

Assault in the third degree is a class A misdemeanor.

Official sourcehttps://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PEN/120.00

In plain English

A person commits third-degree assault by:

(1) intending physical injury and causing it to that person or someone else;
(2) recklessly causing physical injury; or
(3) with criminal negligence, causing physical injury with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument. ★

It is a class A misdemeanor.

Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.

In print

This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.