Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer, Articles

Transferred Intent

Transferred intent is a concept used both in criminal law and in tort law. It is used when the intent to harm one individual actually harms another person. Under the law, the harm will be seen as having been "intended" by the person who caused the harm. The intent to cause harm will be transferred from the intended target to the actual victim.

In tort law, there are five areas where transferred intent can be applied. These areas are:

• Battery
• Assault
• False imprisonment
• Trespass to land
• Trespass to chattels

Generally speaking, any intent to cause one of these five torts which results in the completion of any of the five acts will be considered intentional, even if the actual target of the act is not the originally intended target of the tort.

In criminal law, transferred intent is sometimes explained as "intent follows the bullet." This means that if the intent is to harm Person A with a bullet and hits Person B, intent will apply even if the victim is unintended.

If the second "crime" is of the same basic nature as the first, intent will transfer. If the bullet strikes the intended victim and anunintended victim, both offenses involve personal battery. On the other hand, if a bullet's intended target is a person but actually hits and breaks a priceless vase or painting, the intent does not transfer because the property is a different class than the person.

Contact a Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer

If you have been injured by some act, contact the Chicago personal injury lawyers of Friedman & Bonebrake at 312-466-8200 to learn more about intent of all types and to determine if you have a case.