If a person is acquitted of a criminal assault charge, he can still be sued for a civil assault arising out of the same set of facts. This is true because the parties are different in both cases. In the criminal case the parties are the State of Minnesota verses the defendant. In the civil case the parties are the victim of the assault verses the defendant. Since the victim of the assault did not have an opportunity to participate as a litigant in the criminal trial, the victim is not bound by the outcome in the criminal trial.