11-18-08 State of New Jersey v. Steven Stull

A-5097-06T4
Defendant was convicted of simple assault. He contends
that the evidence did not permit the trial court to find that he
caused "physical pain." N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1a; N.J.S.A. 2c:12-2a.
Defendant placed and held the victim in a headlock for twenty to
thirty seconds, squeezed his neck and yanked and swung him
around. There was no testimony about the victim's pain and he
did not sustain bruises or seek or receive treatment. We
conclude that the State met its obligation to prove guilt beyond
a reasonable doubt through proof of defendant's conduct and
inferences reasonable on the evidence as a whole.

Editor: Eric Waage