Domestic violence is a charge that is taken very seriously in courts across the United States. Depending on where you live and what happened, you may face a felony conviction. Due to the sensitive and complex nature of domestic violence cases, it is always in the best interest of the accused to hire an attorney for assistance from the start. As soon as you have been arrested for supposedly harming your partner, your first phone call should be a reputable domestic violence or criminal defense attorney, like a criminal defense attorney in Fairfax, VA.
What is Considered Domestic Violence
Domestic violence entails sexual or physical violence that is inflicted by a romantic partner, roommate, or other person who lives under the same roof together. Domestic violence that occurs between two people in a former relationship can still be categorized as such an offense. You do not have to be currently romantically involved with someone to be accused of domestic violence.
Domestic violence can include behavior such as pushing, throwing objects, hitting someone with an object, choking, raping, sexually assaulting, or punching the other person. Domestic violence offenses are usually catagorized under sex crimes, assault, or battery.
It isn’t uncommon for former spouses, boyfriends, or girlfriends to be the ones who file a domestic violence claim. Unfortunately, some ex partners falsely accuse someone of harm when it never really happened, just to seek revenge for the separation.
When False Allegations Happen
If you have recently been falsely accused of domestic violence, it is imperative that you do not wait in getting legal representation. Being accused of such an offense can have negative impacts on a person’s reputation within their family unit, a group of friends, and coworkers. A false allegation is typically filed in response to a resentful breakup or because one spouse wants to have leverage against the other during a divorce case.
Sometimes, an incident did occur but the nature or motivations behind it were misinterpreted. For example, perhaps you were in a heated argument with your spouse as you were fixing the roof. A tool may have accidentally fallen and hit them, and then they assumed you had done it on purpose when it was only an accident. Your domestic violence criminal defense attorney can consult with you about what supposedly happened and then build a strategic defense to help protect you from facing serious consequences.
Little Proof is Needed For an Arrest
As you may have noticed from hearing news stories, it’s very easy for someone to report a domestic violence incident and then lead to an arrest. Sadly, there is often very little initial proof that is needed before an arrest is made. All someone has to do is call 911 for help and claim they were harmed by a partner or a person they live with, and officers will arrive to place the supposed offender in handcuffs. Only later on in court is evidence brought forward.
The best thing you can do if you were arrested for domestic violence is remain calm and not answer any questions by law enforcement during your booking process. Call your attorney as soon as you can for immediate protection.
Thanks to May Law, LLP for their insight into what to do if you are falsely accused of domestic violence.
