Domestic Battery: PC 243(e)(1)
Domestic battery also concerns a willful or intentional act on an intimate partner except that the injury can be trivial, though harmful or offensive, and need not have caused any pain to the victim. For a battery to occur, it can be any unwanted contact such as pushing or slapping the individual and doing so with the purpose or intent of committing harm. A battery also occurs regardless if the contact was not directly on the victim. For example, smashing the victim’s car window while the person was inside, snatching a necklace off the intimate partner or kicking the victim’s cat in the person’s presence could be charged as domestic battery.
Domestic battery is a misdemeanor though you can face aggravated battery charges, which can be charged as a felony if the intimate partner suffered serious bodily injury, and face state prison time. In many cases, the court will require the offender to attend a batterer’s treatment program for at least one year as a condition of probation. A subsequent domestic battery conviction results in a mandatory minimum jail time of 48 hours.
Possible Defenses to a Domestic Violence Charge
There are numerous defenses available to anyone charged with any of the above charges, some of which are dependent on the crime for which you are being prosecuted.
- Self-defense. You can asset self-defense if you reasonably believed you or someone near you was in imminent danger of being harmed or unlawfully or offensively touched and that you needed to apply force to protect yourself or that other person. The force used must be only that required or necessary to defend yourself.
- Lack of injury. If no injury occurred, then certainly you cannot be prosecuted under PC 243.5, corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant. You need not have produced a visible injury, though, to be charged with a battery offense or elder abuse.
- Lack of a sustained or reasonable fear for one’s safety or well-being. To be prosecuted for criminal threats, the victim must have had a reasonable fear of the threat and it must have lasted for more than a moment. Merely being startled or being told by the defendant that he or she may get you some day may not be enough to constitute a crime.
- False accusations. Many times, a jealous spouse or ex-dating partner or vengeful family member will fabricate a charge of assault or abuse. Often, a comprehensive medical examination will not contradict the accuser’s account of how an alleged injury occurred.
- Mistaken assumptions. In some cases, someone who is required to report suspected abuse or domestic violence will report it to authorities. A criminal defense attorney may have to launch a separate investigation to exonerate the defendant by showing that either someone else was responsible or that some other plausible explanation explains the injury.
- Violation of constitutional rights. Police must follow certain protocol that adheres to rights found in the federal and state constitutions regarding reasonable searches and seizures, extracting confessions and lawfully arresting someone.
Contact the Domestic Violence Attorney Group
A domestic violence accusation may be result of a mistake or a fabricated allegation from someone seeking retribution or vengeance against you. There are numerous cases where mitigating circumstances, unknown facts, misunderstandings or overzealous prosecutions result in unsubstantiated or excessive charges that our attorneys can examine and appropriately advise you. Promptly retaining an experienced domestic violence lawyer from the Domestic Violence Attorney Group can often mean the difference between getting your case dismissed, charges reduced, or having you plea to a different offense with lesser penalties. Union City Domestic Violence Attorney – Experienced & Aggressive Lawyer and Lawyers Fighting for You in Union City, California
About Union City
Union City is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It was incorporated in 1959, combining the communities of Alvarado and Decoto. Alvarado was the original county seat of Alameda County, and the site of the first county courthouse is a California Historical Landmark (#503). The city celebrated its 50th Anniversary in 2009.
Union City is located in the southern part of the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area approximately 30 miles from San Francisco and 20 miles north of San Jose. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 19.5 square miles (51 km2), all land with no bay frontage. The Niles Cone aquifer, managed by the Alameda County Water District, supplies much of the water consumed by Union City. It is bordered by Hayward to the north and Fremont to the south. The three cities of Union City, Fremont, and Newark make up the "Tri-City" area.
The first community in what is now Union City was founded in 1850 by John and William Horner, also called "Union City." In 1854, it merged with the nearby community of New Haven to form the town of Alvarado, named after the former Mexican governor, Juan Bautista Alvarado. Alvarado was the first county seat of Alameda County, which it soon lost to San Leandro. Further east, the town of Decoto was founded in 1870. It became a railroad hub, with the transcontinental railroad running through it.
In the 1950s, Alvarado and Decoto were annexation targets of the nearby communities of Newark, Hayward, and what became Fremont. In 1959, they decided to incorporate themselves into a single city, and named it after the Horners' original settlement, Union City. The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) rail system came to Union City when the system opened in 1972.
In 2007, ground broke at the Union City Intermodal Transit Station. The new station, equipped with solar electric panels, will be integrated into a pedestrian-friendly development including office space, retail space, a public plaza, and 1,784 new housing units including high-rise.
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