If you or a loved one has been accused of domestic violence it is imperative that you get counsel as soon as possible. In some of my other blog post I have given the reasons why securing counsel immidiately can help your case. When accused of domestic violence many people ask what are some of the defenses they may have to the charge.
I will discuss some of the most common defenses to domestic violence.
You can disprove the charge at trial or to the Deputy District Attorney handling the case.
Factual Contradiction The accusers facts contradict each other
Self Defense you were defending yourself from attack
Defense of Others you were defending someoen else from attack and were not the initial aggressor.
Accidental injury the injuries sustained by the victim were an accident.
False Accusation the accusation is not based in truth and the alleged victim made up either all or part of the story
Mistaken identification
If you are accused of Domestic Violence you could be in for a long tough road. There are many false claims, false restraining orders, and the scales of justice are tipped in the favor of accuser. I have seen even the most ludicrous claims get past the point of preliminary hearing. Even to the point of the victim actually admittting that she made the story up. The prosecution will sometimes attempt to get an expert say that many cases involve recanting and still go forward.
HOWEVER, you must defend yourself in this system and fight back and you need experienced representation for the fight. You need someone that has tried cases and did prelimary hearings in the domestic violence system. As stated above the domestic violence system is vastly different than the non domestic violence system. In fact, if you as a citzen were to complain of a battery using the facts that are present in most domestic violence cases, the case would not be filed by the court.
There could be several reasons whey the accuser is making a false accusation.
the accuser likes playing the victim role
revenge
a divorce settlement
the accuser wants custody of the kids.
I have seen all of these play out in court and they can all be very scary processes. If you have been acccused of domestic violence you need to uncover these possible motives and have the case properly investigated for possible defenses. Just hoping the accuser will calm down is not legal advice and will not improve your situation in most instances.
If you are in this situation please give us a call and we can help you. 559441-1418.
