Florida Domestic Violence Law - What You should and should not do

DO NOT CONTACT THE OTHER PARTY IF YOU HAVE A NO CONTACT ORDER!

Although a brief synopsis of Domestic Violence law will follow, it is important to clarify that a 'No Contact' bond provision means that contact through a third party, e-mail, text message, voice mail will all violate a 'No Contact' bond condition.

To Get a No Contact Provision lifted it is necessary to get a court order lifting the 'No Contact' condition of bail bond. Usually, this is done by asking the court to replace the 'No Contact' provision with a 'No Violent Contact' Provision. This may be done by a motion or by agreement with the State for what is called a 'Stipulated Order' changing bond conditions. Sometimes, "victims" are told to go down to the State Attorney's Office to request to drop charges or change conditions of bond - THIS IS A PATH TO FAILURE! The pressure placed on people in this situation is enormous and cannot be over emphasized. Often, "victims" are placed into politically motivated "domestic violence victim counseling" classes without any form of mental health diagnosis. This is like getting a treatment plan for a broken bone without an X-ray: You may not be a medical doctor, but common sense tells you that it is wrong. Worse, the pressure placed on "victims" may cause them to hide the truth from the lawyers for fear of legal reprisal.

What are the Penalties? Domestic Violence is a specialized form of assault or battery, and may be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony. The penalties are enhanced, and the consequences are far more serious. Incarceration may be for up to one (1) year in a misdemeanor case and up to life in a felony case for certain types of Domestic Violence, such as Lewd or Lascivious Molestation of a minor family member.

Besides Jail or Prison Time, What are the Consequences? For example, under federal law, when a person is sentenced to any sentence - even without being convicted - that person is unable to own or possess a firearm or work in certain occupations. This is damaging to many specialized career fields, especially to those such as military service members.

If My Partner Goes in and Explains What Happened, Won't the State Drop Charges? No. The "Victim Advocate" or court order domestic violence counselor will try to talk you partner out of recanting. Over the years, there have been many instances of "victims" being told that while perjury is a felony, if the "victim" recants, then they will be immediately arrested for filing a false police report.

When law enforcement officers are called on in response to a case involving Florida domestic violence assault or Florida domestic violence battery (or the aggravated variants), the officers must follow Florida law regarding a "primary" aggressor and the "primary aggressor" is going to jail and will be held until First Appearance. In the case of a lie, the result is rather predictable. In the case of "calm things down" scenario, both parties are separated and usually, only part of the story is told. For example, one party will refuse to tell the officers anything, but the other one may tell about being slapped - leaving out the part that they hit their partner first. As result, the wrong person is determined as the "primary aggressor" and charged with domestic violence assault or domestic violence battery.

Since most assault or battery cases arise outside of the presence of a law enforcement officer, they are one of the most seriously abused criminal laws, especially in domestic cases. False allegations of domestic violence in Florida are at epidemic proportions because couples having problems will often a) call the police "to calm things down" or, b) lie to the responding officers. These laws are very politicized and are prosecuted vigorously. Florida domestic violence Attorney Stephen G. Cobb knows to take these "crimes of violence" very seriously.

Florida Domestic Violence Lawyer Stephen G. Cobb

Do you need to find a Florida Domestic Violence defense lawyer or do you want a Florida Domestic Violence defense lawyer who is a specialist in Florida Criminal Trial Law? Florida Domestic Violence Defense Lawyer Stephen G. Cobb is a Florida Bar Association certified Criminal Trial Law Specialist. What does Board Certification mean? According to the Florida Bar Association's educational pamphlet: "Board Certification is the highest level of recognition by the Florida Bar." Learn about Florida Domestic Violence law, cases we have handled in the past (representative cases), and learn more about how Florida Domestic Violence Defense Lawyer Stephen G. Cobb builds high quality legal defense teams.

Our consultation process is longer than most other law firms. A Domestic Violence case is a very serious legal matter, especially due to the collateral consequences regarding contact with family members, employment and firearms. Our firm practices Florida criminal law exclusively. We handle all judicial aspects of new charges, violation of probation or community control cases, and juvenile Domestic Violence law cases.

Crestview, Florida, Courthouse

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Assault & Battery (Domestic Violence)