Aggravated assault is when a person attempts to seriously injure another person, or in legalese, “cause bodily harm”. If the assault is done on purpose, with knowledge of what you mean to do beforehand, or with such reckless abandon that your very actions prove that you have very little regard for human life, this is definitely not a simple assault, but an aggravated one. The assault must take place with what is termed a “deadly weapon”. This includes a gun of any type, a knife, an ax, or any sort of blunt instrument like a baseball bat. In most all of the states in the USA, aggravated assaults is always punished as an assault with the attempt to murder, or rape, or rob. By comparison, a simple assault is not dealt with as a felony, but aggravated assault most definitely is. In the United States, aggravated assault can be just the threat of violence, while in New Zealand and Australia, aggravated assault is the act of violence.