Being arrested after you protected yourself is one of the most disorienting things a person can go through. You did what felt necessary in the moment, and now you’re looking at criminal charges. That gap between what happened and what you’re being accused of can feel enormous, and honestly, it is. But it doesn’t mean your situation is hopeless.
At Bolinske Law, we’ve worked with people across Bismarck and Burleigh County who found themselves on the wrong side of an assault charge after a confrontation they didn’t start. The path forward starts with understanding how North Dakota law actually treats self-defense claims, and then building a strategy around the specific facts of your case. If you want to understand the full scope of what you may be facing, our criminal defense practice covers the range of charges that can follow these situations.
Why You Can Be Charged Even When You Were Defending Yourself
This surprises people. A lot.
When officers respond to a scene where someone is injured, they often don’t have the full picture. They see a person who is hurt, they hear conflicting accounts, and they make a judgment call. North Dakota law gives them the authority to make an arrest and let the courts sort out the details later. That’s not a flaw in the system exactly, but it does mean that acting in self-defense doesn’t automatically shield you from being charged.
North Dakota law does recognize your right to protect yourself. Broadly speaking, a person may use force against another when they reasonably believe it’s necessary to defend against imminent unlawful bodily injury. The force used, though, has to be proportional to the threat. That proportionality question is where things get complicated, and where the prosecution will focus its attention.
What Does North Dakota Law Require for a Valid Self-Defense Claim?
North Dakota law recognizes your right to defend yourself, but that right is not unlimited. To successfully assert self-defense, the facts have to fit within the legal framework, and prosecutors often scrutinize each of these requirements closely.
First, the threat had to be imminent. Not something you anticipated might happen later. Not retaliation for something that occurred earlier in the day. An immediate, real danger at the moment you acted.
Second, your response had to be proportional. Using a level of force far beyond what the situation called for weakens a self-defense claim considerably. The law doesn’t ask whether you were scared. It asks whether a reasonable person in your position would have believed the level of force used was necessary under the circumstances.
You also generally cannot claim self-defense if you were the one who initiated or intentionally provoked the confrontation. Questions about who started the encounter, whether the situation escalated, and whether your response matched the threat are often central to these cases.
North Dakota limited the duty to retreat in 2021. If you are somewhere you may legally be, did not provoke the encounter, and were not engaged in unlawful activity giving rise to the need for deadly force, you generally are not required to retreat. That can be an important protection, but it does not remove the other requirements for claiming self-defense.
Cases tend to be stronger when there is evidence the other person was the initial aggressor, witnesses or video support your account, or the physical circumstances explain why the level of force was necessary. They become more difficult when the force used significantly exceeded the threat or when your own actions contributed to creating the confrontation.
It is also worth knowing that even if your use of force was legally justified, civil liability can still arise in some situations. North Dakota law provides certain civil immunity protections, but whether they apply depends on the specific facts of the case.
What to Do Right Now If You’ve Been Charged
The timing here matters. A lot. Evidence disappears, witnesses’ memories fade, and surveillance footage gets overwritten. The sooner you take action, the better your position.
Stop talking about what happened. This is not about hiding anything. It’s about the reality that statements made without legal guidance, even well-intentioned ones, can be used against you in ways you wouldn’t anticipate. That applies to conversations with law enforcement, with friends, and especially on social media. Anything you say can and likely will come up later.
Document everything you can remember. Write it down while it’s fresh. Where were you? What was said? Who was there? What did the other person do first? What did you do and why? This kind of detailed account, prepared before memories blur, can be genuinely valuable when building a defense.
Preserve any evidence. Photos of your injuries, text messages or communications with the other person before the incident, names of anyone who witnessed what happened, security camera locations nearby. All of this can make or break how your case develops. In downtown Bismarck, along stretches of Main Avenue, or at businesses near the Capitol grounds, there’s often more surveillance coverage than people realize.
Contact a criminal defense attorney before your next court appearance. This one isn’t optional. Self-defense in North Dakota is a defense that must have evidentiary support to warrant consideration at trial. That takes preparation. It takes legal knowledge of how Burleigh County courts handle these cases. And it takes someone who understands the difference between what happened and what can be proven.
Reach Out Before Your Court Date
If you’ve been charged with assault after defending yourself in the Bismarck area or anywhere in Burleigh County, we encourage you to contact Bolinske Law Firm as soon as possible. Every case is different, and the facts of yours deserve a careful, honest evaluation. We’re here when you need us, and early consultation prevents problems that become much harder to address later.