ATTEMPTING TO ELUDE A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER
(N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1b(6))
(READ APPROPRIATE COUNT OF INDICTMENT)
The
statute upon which this charge is based provides:
A
person is guilty of aggravated assault if he causes bodily injury to another
person while fleeing or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer in
violation of [another statute defining the offense of eluding]...
In
order for you to find the defendant guilty of this crime the State must prove
the following elements beyond a reasonable doubt:
1. That defendant caused bodily injury to
another person;
and
2. That defendant did so while fleeing or
attempting to elude a law enforcement
officer in violation of the statute defining the eluding offense.
Bodily
injury is defined as physical pain, illness or any impairment of physical
condition.[1] In order to find that
the defendant caused bodily injury to (victim), you must find beyond a
reasonable doubt, first, that (victim) would not have been injured but for
defendant's conduct, and, second, that the bodily injury was a probable
consequence of the defendant’s conduct.[2] A probable consequence is one which is not too remote,
accidental in its occurrence or too dependent on the conduct of another to have
a just bearing on defendant's liability or the gravity of his offense.[3]
I have already instructed you on the crime of eluding,
and you should apply those instructions here to determine whether the State has
proven beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant was fleeing or attempting to
elude a law enforcement officer.[4]
In conclusion, the two elements the State must prove
beyond a reasonable doubt are:
1. That defendant caused bodily injury to
another person;
and
2. That defendant did so while fleeing or attempting to elude a
law enforcement
officer in violation of the statute defining the eluding offense.
If you are satisfied that the State has proven both of
these elements beyond a reasonable doubt, then you must find the defendant
guilty of aggravated assault. However, if you are not convinced that each of
the elements has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, then you must find the
defendant not guilty.
[4] This charge is drafted for the typical
situation in which the predicate offense of eluding a law enforcement officer
in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2b will also have been charged in the
indictment. In other situations, the
charge will have to be modified to incorporate the eluding charge in full.
