The felony crime of domestic violence in California is a domestic crime committed with aggravating factors. Violence or threats of violence involving the use of a deadly weapon. The prosecutor can file bodily injury charges against a spouse under California Penal Code, PC, Section 273.5, either as a felony or a misdemeanor. Alternatively, the prosecutor may charge the defendant with domestic battery in violation of Section 243 (e) of the California Criminal Code PC.
Domestic battery is a misdemeanor and usually involves physical contact that does not involve any injury, such as when there is pushing and shoving between husband and wife. Domestic abuse is a serious crime in California, as it is in many other jurisdictions. Law enforcement is more likely than ever to be involved in domestic conflicts, which were once considered a private matter between a couple or that were handled within a family. Domestic violence charges are often prosecuted as misdemeanors.
However, they can be prosecuted as a felony in some circumstances. Domestic violence is a problem in California, which means you can be charged as a felony or a misdemeanor depending on the facts of the case and the defendant's criminal history. In general, domestic violence crimes are acts that could be considered assault, battery, or sexual offenses. As a criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles County, CA can explain, domestic violence can only be charged when there is a particular relationship between the defendant and the victim.
Domestic violence under PC 273.5 is a wobble offense, allowing the discretionary prosecutor to charge you with a misdemeanor or felony. However, when a crime is domestic violence, there are often other consequences of a conviction. This also allows the court to reduce a felony under this section to a misdemeanor or for your lawyer to negotiate it if you are charged with a felony domestic violence offense. It's important to have a clear understanding between a misdemeanor domestic violence crime and what exactly the differences mean for someone facing criminal charges.
When a person is arrested for a domestic violence crime, they can ultimately be charged with a felony or a misdemeanor, depending on several different factors. In cases where the prosecutor has little or no evidence that any injury or contact has been made, or where the victim states that there was no violence, a Disturbance of the Peace charge under PC 415 may be the last resort. We know what to do if you are facing any level of domestic violence-related charges, including child abuse, child endangerment, criminal threats, first domestic violence, intimidation, spousal abuse, stalking, or other crimes. Michael Kraut is a former Deputy District Attorney with more than 14 years of tax experience who fights hard on behalf of his clients who are charged with felonies and misdemeanors of domestic violence.
Alleged victims may falsely accuse defendants of domestic violence out of revenge or in their own personal interests. In addition, some of the repercussions of a domestic violence case are felt outside the criminal justice system. Second, a prosecutor may choose to prosecute domestic violence as a felony if the perpetrator has a history of certain previous convictions for assault in the past seven years.
