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. Hopland Domestic Violence Attorney – Experienced & Aggressive Lawyer and Lawyers Fighting for You in Hopland, California
About Hopland
Hopland (formerly Sanel) is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California. It is located on the west bank of the Russian River 13 miles (21 km) south-southeast of Ukiah, at an elevation of 502 feet (153 m). The population was 756 at the 2010 census.
Hopland is a small town of less than 800 people located at the start of the Redwoods of Northern California. It is about two hours drive along U.S. Route 101 north of San Francisco, and a 30-minute drive along State Route 175 to California's largest natural lake Clear Lake. It is a rustic farming community situated amongst oak covered coastal foothills. Summer temperatures can exceed 100 °F (38 °C).
Notable establishments in Hopland include the Mendocino Brewing Company, which started in 1983 as the Hopland Brewing Company, and Fetzer Vineyards, a major producer of both red and white wines in North America, including Zinfandel, Chardonnay and Merlot.
The settlement that became Hopland was originally called Sanel. Over the years it was centered on either side of the Russian River. Sanel began on the west bank of the river in 1859. In 1874, the town moved to the east bank to be connected to the toll road built to there. When the railroad arrived on the west side of the river, the town moved back to its original site.
The Sanel post office opened in 1860, closed for a time in 1869, moved and changed its name to Hopland in 1879, reverted to its original site and name in 1890, and changed its name finally to Hopland in 1891. The town gets its name from the fact that from the 1870s to the mid-1950s, much of the region’s economy was based on the growing and drying of bitter hops, a key flavoring and preservative in beer. Downy mildew pushed hops out of the area completely by the late 1950s.
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