For those people who either have been arrested for domestic violence or who have a loved one who has been arrested for spousal abuse, domestic violence, California Penal Code Section 243, Penal Code Section 242, or the most commonly charged Penal Code Section 273.5.
You may be looking for a definition of domestic violence - what it is, whether or not based on the facts of your case - the prosecutors can prove that you have committed domestic violence.
You first have to start with the most basic concept: the battery. A battery is a harmful or offensive touch. So, harmful would be hitting somebody, slapping somebody, or causing some damage to somebody that's harmful, breaking the skin, or causing a bruise. That's one aspect of the battery.
Of course, the other one is offensive. Let's say you spit on somebody. That could be a battery because being spit on is quite offensive to the average person. Other actions could be offensive, such as tearing someone's phone out of their hand or pushing somebody, which could all be put in the battery category.
Charges of Battery
I will tell you, though, that in LA County, depending on the circumstances, the prosecutors are not usually going to prosecute these offensive batteries.
It's up to them. They'll look at everything, including your criminal record and the facts and circumstances of the case. The bottom line is that you need some harmful or offensive touching to have the battery.
The second component is that there's got to be some sort of familiar relationship or you live with the person. That's why you see a lot of people who may not be married but are living together, and therefore, they fall in the category of a domestic violence case.
They might be charged with Section 243 instead of Section 273.5 because they're unmarried. If the parties are married, some domestic violence takes place; you're usually going to see 273.5 charges filed against them.
Harmful or Offensive Touching
Also, when defining battery, we have some harmful or offensive touching, some familiar relationship where the people live together, and now you've got the battery. Still, you also have to factor in self-defense.
If somebody attacks you while you defend yourself, you have to use some force as long as the force is reasonable and the other party is the aggressor; then you have the defense of self-defense.
Therefore, you can prevent being prosecuted and convicted of a domestic battery charge. Defense of others would also cover it.
Maybe one of your children is being attacked, for example, by your significant other, and in the process of defending your child, you have to do something physical to that significant other; indeed, that could be a defense - defense of others to the battery case.
Mutual Combat
You have to take these into account when you assess things. I can even give you more details. Let's say both parties battery each other. I've seen that before, where the police come out, both parties are injured, they take pictures of both parties, and they arrest both parties.
Now, the prosecutors have a big mess of trying to figure out who the aggressor was and who the individual should be charged with a domestic violence case.
As you can see, these cases are complex. That's why they have to be handled the right way. I've been handling them for over 30 years. I started out working for the prosecutors in East Los Angeles and then a superior court judge in Burbank, and finally, in the early 1990s, I represented thousands of clients for domestic violence.
I've been down the road you're about to travel, so I know what it takes to be successful. If you need the best, pick up the phone now and ask for a meeting with Ron Hedding. The Hedding Law Firm has offices in Los Angeles, CA.
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