Hall v. McBryde
Colorado Court of Appeals
919 P.2d 910 (1996)
The minor McBryde (defendant), staying at his parents' home only to retrieve clothes, saw a carload of youths approaching and, after one of them began shooting toward the house, retrieved a loaded handgun and fired four shots at the vehicle in what he framed as defense of the home. A neighbor, Hall (plaintiff), was struck by one of the bullets and sued McBryde and his parents for battery. The trial court found no evidence McBryde specifically intended to shoot Hall and ruled for the defendants.
Whether a defendant's intent to cause a harmful or offensive contact, or to create an apprehension of imminent such contact, toward an intended target can be transferred to an unintended person who is instead struck, supporting battery liability.