Punched by friend, broken jaw; Legal course of action?

[brokenjaw]

I was at a friends house walking a girl i was with to her car. She stopped to say goodbye to two people when one of them said something very rude to her. She got upset and i was angered by his comment. I told him i thought he was a bad person and several other nonviolent but angry words. I told him i didn't want to fight, which we both repeated several times in the argument (witnesses say this) yet we also were daring each other to do something (aka throw a punch). He stood up and got in my face, we continued to argue. I dont remember the last half of the argument but witnesses have told me i pushed him twice and eventually he punched me. He has told me he doesn't remember any of it (i have his text). I have a broken jaw and have hospital costs as a result. I didn't throw any punches. We were both drunk (so were the witnesses). He has communicated to me that he is sorry multiple times but is also saying offensive things such as "well now you know one persons face who you shouldn't get into". This is also the 2nd time he has punched me in a drunk argument (the first time was in mexico). He doesn't have a history of assult (nor do i) however other people may be willing to testify about the fact that he has gotten in several nearly violent confrontations. I filed a police report while in the hospital.

Based on this set of information, do i have a strong legal case?
Could i be held responsible for anything?
What should be my first step?

 

[mightymoose]

Strong? Not really.
Did the police arrest him?
Have you asked him to help with the bills?
Froma criminal perspective it sounds like mutual combat with the participants and all witnesses intoxicated. You were both drunk in public and challenging each other to fight... both in the wrong.
From a civil perspective you could probably sue to get him to pay up for the hospital bills. If he was arrested then things should go more smoothly.

 

[brokenjaw]

Thanks for the quick response.

The police were not on the scene initially and the report was not filed until hours after when i was in the hospital. I also told the officer i did not want to initially press charges but i wanted to reserve the right to (so no he was not arrested). No, i have not talked to him about paying for the bills. I wanted to wait to get some sort of legal advice or consider my options before talking to him again. I also have not talked to witnesses in person to try and get the full story, i have simply gathered some basic information from a few people and presented what I remember and what i have been told happened so i may not have all the facts totally right yet. It may have been misinformation to say that i was challenging him to fight.

To clarify we were on a private residence however I do not want to get the homeowner involved.

On a scale of 1-10 (1 being no case, 10 being strong case) where do you think my criminal case stands?
What is the most damaging aspect to my case? That i pushed him, challenge to fight, etc?
Would my civil case be weaker if I did not press criminal charges yet still sued for hospital charges?

 

[army judge]

On a scale of 1-10 (1 being no case, 10 being strong case) where do you think my criminal case stands?

No one can honestly give you that information.
Yes, anyone can sue anyone else.
The question to ask is, can I recover?
The outlook is doubtful, for the reasons you recite below.

What is the most damaging aspect to my case? That i pushed him, challenge to fight, etc?

Yes, asked and answered.

Would my civil case be weaker if I did not press criminal charges yet still sued for hospital charges?

One usually has no bearing on the other.

 

[brokenjaw]

I'm likely going to personally consult a lawyer for specific details but i wanted to ask a few more quick questions about course of action in a civil suit.

The assaulter is a 21 male college student without considerable assets. However, he is living under his parents wing, (he lives in a house they own, car they bought, and they pay the majority of his expenses). Would he likely be considered a dependent in a civil lawsuit?

If i were to sue for damages, and he is independent of his parents assets. How would the judgment be assessed? Specifically I'm talking about probably $10,000 in out of pocket medical costs and i know he doesn't have $10,000.

 

[mightymoose]

He is not a dependent.
You can sue for actual damages. You will have to show that you are actually out $10,000.
If you get the judgment then you may get lucky and have his parents pay up.... but they are not obligated to, and you won't be able to place a lien on the parent's property if that is what you were thinking.