How do you know you have a winning domestic violence defense strategy? Read below:
Self-Defense
This is the most widely used domestic violence defense strategy. If you are charged with domestic violence, but you were merely attacking in order to defense yourself, then you are not guilty of domestic violence. Self-defense means that you reasonably believed that you were in imminent danger of suffering bodily injury, you reasonably believed that immediate use of force was necessary to defend yourself, and you used no more force than reasonably necessary. This means that if you were being attacked first and then you inflicted harm upon the other person, then you are not guilty of domestic violence, as long as the force was reasonably necessary.
Not a spouse cohabitant or parent
If you were not the spouse, former spouse, cohabitant, former cohabitant, or parent of the other person’s children, then you are not guilty of domestic violence. However, you may be guilty of a host of other crimes such as Criminal Battery or Assault with a Deadly Weapon.
No traumatic condition
If there were no injuries that were reported at the time of the arrest, then you have a strong defense to the charges.. It completely avoids the domestic abuse definition outlined by section 273.5.
If there are minor injuries reported, then you still have a good chance to win at trial because most juries will not sympathize with a victim who only sustained minor injuries. You can use this as leverage to get a reduction in your charges.
Witnesses
The importance of witnesses cannot be stressed enough in a domestic violence case. In particular, witnesses who give information to the police on the day of the arrest will produce witness statements. These statements fall into three categories: (1) defendant statements, (2) victim statements, and (3) independent witness statements. It is important that the defendant’s statements not include admissions to any wrongdoing. In addition, if the victim admits that the defendant engaged in a physical assault, that may harm your case as well. However, the most important statements come from the independent witness (if there was one). While the defendant and victim can get into a he said/she said, the presence or lack thereof of third party witnesses is the most important part of your domestic violence defense strategy.
If there were no independent witnesses then your defense strengthens because it does may not meet meet the burden of proof of beyond a reasonable doubt in a criminal trial. If there were independent witnesses, however, it doesn’t automatically mean cannot develop a good defense. Oftentimes witnesses give statements that are inconsistent or the witnesses have criminal convictions of their own that can undermine their credibility during trial.
What is the best domestic violence defense strategy?
A strong defense to a domestic violence charge must be holistic. There isn’t always one thing that a defense attorney can use in fighting these charges. The above are good starting points for defense domestic violence crimes. Contact an attorney for more information.
How can I help?
If you have any more question about spousal support, divorce, or child custody please contact me for a consultation at levon@kevorkianlawoffices.com or call 626-227-1176 and ask to speak with me. Connect with me on Google+.
For more information on how to lower child support payments, click here. Click here to learn more about child custody basics in California. For more information on how to get joint custody, click here. Click here to go to my website’s section on child custody.
Disclaimer: This blog post, and other blog posts by me, are not meant to be legal advice. No attorney-client relationship will be formed by these blog posts.
