Assault and battery question

I live in the state of Va, and was arrested on an assault and battery charge. On new years eve I went out partying with a friend, a co-worker, and her sister. After bars closed we came back to my apt and continued drinking until the wee hours of the morning. At some point during the night i "blacked out". Meaning I continued functioning physically, but have no memories of the events that happened.

During this time, my co-worker and i got into an arguement and from what little facts i can gather, I was being loud and obnoxious, and appearently grabbed her by the arm and pulled her hair. My friend who was here with us told me thats all he seen personally, and that to him it didnt seem like i had any malicious intent, i was just EXTREMELY drunk, confused, and unruley.

The next day i knew something was wrong when my boss sent me a voicemail telling me not to come back to work till further notice. As soon as that happened i tried appoligizing to the co-worker with at least a dozen txts and 3 emails but i recieved no response. At this point I had accepted the fact that i had probably lost my job and some good friends due to my stupidity but i still didnt realize the severity of the situation until the cops came to my door.

I have no criminal history, and havnt even had a speeding ticket before so being cuffed and taken to jail has sent my world upside down. I havnt talked to an attorney yet, i was hopeful that my co-worker would realize my level of regret and reconsider the charges.

However im starting to believe that i should talk to one right away.

I also plan on going to some AA meetings because i realize now my drinking is clearly a problem. Im hopeing this will grant me a little compassion from the judge as well.

What im curious as to is: without a prior criminal past, if i am found guilty what punishment am i likely to get (the maximum is 1 year in jail for an assault and battery charge.)

Also i know this is a long shot but is there any way i could argue temporary insanity due to my excessively drunken state? Because i clearly did not know what i was doing and have never acted this way before.

Any advice will be greatly welcomed

That will be tough as you are responsible for the condition you put yourself in.

But make sure you get counsel; they will help negotiate this down for if your record is clean. And it may be able to stay off your record.