Affirmative Defenses To Domestic Violence
Posted on: 6 January 2018
Domestic violence is one of the heinous crimes you can ever be charged with not only for the consequences it attracts but also for the long-term consequences it attracts. Fortunately, denying the act of violence isn't the only way of defending domestic violence charges. Here are some of the affirmative defenses you can deploy:
Self Defense
This is one of the most viable defenses in cases of domestic violence, but it is also one of the hardest to prove. It is viable because the law allows you to use limited violence to defend yourself from a physical attack, especially if your attacker has boxed you into a corner and you have nowhere to run. To succeed with this defense, you will need to prove that you did not provoke the attacker, their threat to you was real, and there was nothing you could do apart from fighting back.
Unfortunately, this defense difficult to execute because proving the self-defense elements is not easy. For example, you are required to prove that you were not the aggressor, but in most cases, it will be your word against the victim's word. Don't forget that the victim will be injured at this point and probably have the sympathy of the court and jury.
Lack of Intent
This is also a viable affirmative defense because domestic violence is an intentional crime. The intent in question here is not necessarily that of injuring the victim, but the intent to commit the act that ends up causing the injury.
For example, you can be charged with domestic violence if you wanted to "give your partner a little slap on the cheek," but ended up knocking out their tooth. This is because you clearly intended to commit the physical violence. This is different from, say, accidentally dropping a hammer while working on the roof, with the hammer then knocking out your partner's teeth. In this last example, you may escape the domestic violence charges because you did not intend to drop the hammer.
Consent
This third example is not that common, but you can also use it as long as you can prove it. For example, if you both consented to some rough acts between the sheets, and your partner then gets injured, you may be able to defend the domestic violence charges against you if you can prove it.
Of course, you will need to prove each defense you employ, and a criminal defense lawyer can help you with the defense.
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