Will a Domestic Assault and Battery Charge be Dismissed if My Wife Does not Wish to Press Charges?

Attorney DelSignore will work to have your domestic assault and battery case resolved as quickly as possible. His purpose as a lawyer is to help people get their life back; his years of training and learning to be the top in his field is all aimed at that goal, to ease the anxiety of someone charged with a criminal charge.

Read here to learn about the Court Process and strategy to resolve your case.

As a Massachusetts criminal lawyer, the most frequently asked question regarding domestic assault and battery charges is will the case be dismissed if the victim does not wish to go forward. Criminal charges in Massachusetts are brought on behalf of the Commonwealth; once charges are brought it is no longer up to the victim to decide whether to prosecute the case.

In the majority of domestic assault and battery cases, the alleged victim does not wish to testify. However, the Commonwealth will typically not dismiss the case on the first court date, but will try to prove the case in the following ways:

1. The Commonwealth may compel the victim to testify; this can occur if the victim does not have any privilege not to testify such as a martial privilege or 5th Amendment privilege;
2. The Commonwealth may rely on the testimony of another witness who saw the encounter;
3. The Commonwealth may attempt to offer the 911 call into evidence. If this occurs an objection can be made that this evidence violates your Sixth Amendment Right of Confrontation.
4. Through admissions or statements made by the defendant.

Prosecutors do not want to dismiss a domestic assault and battery charge on the first court date and often will delay dismissing the case. In many cases, a trial date will have to be set to have the case resolved. Often, if the alleged victim is not willing to cooperate the case will get dismissed. However, it is important to have a lawyer prepared to contest the case should it go forward with or without the cooperation of the alleged victim. Attorney DelSignore has handled criminal trials all over Massachusetts and understands the legal issues surrounding a domestic assault and battery. He Wrote an Article for Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly on domestic assault and battery cases and spoke at a seminar for Massachusetts lawyers that was given at MCLE.

What complicates a domestic assault and battery charge is that often a prosecutor will offer a very restrictive probation to a defendant that wishes to resolve the charge even if the defendant has little or no record. This probation typically is a supervised probation with the requirement that a defendant complete the Certified Batter's Program, which is a very intensive program that many have difficulty successfully completing.

There are other related charges that sometimes accompany a domestic assault and battery charge, such as a Witness Intimidation charge or Threats charge. Witness intimidation sometimes occurs when the alleged victim claims that the accused destroyed a cell phone, or took away a phone preventing the alleged victim from calling the police department.

Any charge of domestic assault and battery should not be taken lightly even if the alleged victim does not wish to prosecute the case.

Frequently, when I have a client charged with domestic assault and battery and I do not expect the Commonwealth to have enough evidence to prosecute the case, and they are unwilling to dismiss it, I will schedule the case for what is known as a bench trial date. Often, a defendant can get a quicker date for bench trial than jury trial. At the bench trial date, if the case complaining witness is not on board with the prosecution of the case, it will get dismissed. If unexpectedly the victim, does want to prosecute, there is the option to continue the case for a further date for a jury trial.

To learn more about Domestic Assault and Battery charges, you can call or text at 781-686-5924 to discuss your case. It is never too late or too early to call. We are here to help.

You should also read the about other frequently asked questions and the Court Process to understand what lies ahead in defending your case.

DelSignore Law has successfully defended many domestic assault and battery cases. It is a type of case we handle everyday and can guide you through the process so you can ease your anxiety and get your life back. We understand what you are going through and know how to help you.