HELPING CLIENTS WITH

Personal Injury, Criminal Law, Traffic Violations, and Family Law & Divorce

Domestic violence charges can’t be dropped by the victim

On Behalf of | Jul 19, 2019 | Domestic Violence

Things can sometimes get out of hand when you and your spouse argue. One thing that shouldn’t ever happen is that the argument turns physical because this could mean that someone is going to jail. If you do find yourself in this situation, there are a few things that you need to remember.

Unfortunately, these charges likely mean that you will have a restraining order placed against you. This means that you will be unable to contact your spouse in any way until the order expires or is lifted. There is a chance that your children might also be included in the order, which could mean that you only get to have supervised visits with them.

Some people believe that if they reconcile with the victim in their case that they can have the charges dropped. This likely isn’t going to be the case because the victim can’t dictate what happens with the case. Once the prosecutor picks up the case, they have the discretion to decide how it will be handled.

It is possible that a case might hinge on the victim’s testimony. In this instance, the prosecutor might choose to subpoena the victim. This is where things can get complicated. If the victim doesn’t want to cooperate, they will still have to show up for the court date. This doesn’t mean that they have to participate, but they need to learn whether there will be any repercussions from that decision.

Just remember that if you are found to be in violation of a restraining order, there is a chance that you will face additional legal action. For this reason, and since you can’t count on a victim recanting the charges, you should get to work on a defense right away.