Posts Tagged Drop Charges

The Victim Has No Control Alex De Marco, Domestic Assault Defense Attorney Domestic assault is probably the second most common crime in Minnesota that carries with it actual consequences, next to DWI.  That is because, just like DWI, a person can be arrested for DWI at the scene on virtually no real evidence whatsoever.  It is not an exaggeration to say if your significant other or family member says you struck them, or even placed them in fear of being injured, that is absolutely all it takes to be arrested.  There are numerous organizations and “battered women shelters” which receive a combination of public and private money, and they have combined with various activist organizations to “crack down” on domestic assault.  This has resulted in unintended consequences. One of those consequences is that, even if the alleged victim does not want to “press charges”, even if she changes her story or admits she lied, the charges do not get dismissed on that statement.  Too often our law firm is told “she doesn’t want to press charges so this is an easy win.”  Not as easy as you think.  The phrase “press charges” is largely the result of television shows, and a different time in law when people actually had some control over what their police force did in their name.  It is very true that some victims of domestic abuse do not not report every incident of assault, and face a great deal of psychological pain and distortion if they are in such a relationship.  It is fashionable to talk about this as “battered women syndrome” or some similar description.  The politics of domestic assault have brought this disorder to light with the best of intentions.  For centuries women lived in shadows of submission and abuse with no redress for their pain, and no just punishment for their abuser.    Contrary to what is often reported, however, such a “syndrome” is an abrogation from the norm, and is not widespread or common to every or even most victims of domestic abuse.  Domestic abuse often causes divorces or separation in a short period of time, and after all it is the natural instinct of any person assaulted to fight back and/or contact authorities after the event.  However, the focus on this unique phenomenon, syndromes and disorders that cause victims to languish in silence for years and years, has led to a an erroneous assumption that every person who calls the police and tells one story, and then changes it, is lying because they are terrified of their abuser, or suffer from some “syndrome.”  This presumption has resulted in a process that prevents the central function of investigation and prosecution:  to seek the truth. We like to think that once an accusation has been made, someone who has lied or misunderstood a perceived incident can come forth and tell THE TRUTH, and spare the accused the very real consequences of criminal prosecution.  Unfortunately, the tactics of many prosecuting authorities, officers, and even… Read more {+}