1. Lack of Willful Intent

sddvattorney.com If you genuinely believe that you didn’t take intentional willful action in order to affect the domestic battery you are being accused of, you can attempt to fight off the charge by claiming a lack of willful intent. A lack of willful intent does not mean that you did not mean to break the law or cause the victim harm of any kind, as someone can carry out a use of force with willful intent while simultaneously not intending to break the law or cause anybody harm, as mentioned above in the paragraph about willful intent. Lack of willful intent will only work as a legal defense if you can show that you didn’t at all mean to take the action that resulted in the alleged battery. It must be confirmed that the very action itself was only carried out completely by accident, and was not the fault of the person carrying out the action.

Example: Say you and your spouse were at a crowded party. At the party, someone shoved you from behind, causing you to bump into your spouse and knock her onto the ground. She then charges you with domestic battery. In this case, you would be able to successfully argue a lack of willful intent, as you clearly didn’t willfully take the action to bump into her, but rather only bumped into her as the result of a complete accident.

2. Self-Defense

www.sddvattorney.com To right an accusation of domestic battery, you and your legal team can argue that you only engaged in forceful action as a measure of self-defense. To claim self-defense, you must prove more than just that your domestic partner was inflicting harm upon you at the time when you decided to act in self-defense. First, you are required to prove that you felt you had no other option but to use self-defense in order to prevent yourself from suffering immediate harm. If you can show that you could have employed other methods to avoid harm, such as leaving the scene, or using verbal communication to defuse the situation, then self-defense cannot be successfully claimed. Also, you must be able to show that you didn’t use more might than was necessary to defend yourself from bodily harm. If it is shown that you continued to use physical force even after a threat to your safety no longer existed, then a claim of self-defense will be rejected. A self-defense claim will also be rejected if it is shown that you responded to a threat disproportionately, such as by responding to a shove with a gun.

3. Mutual Consent

A charge of domestic battery can be rebuffed by claiming that the two intimate partners agreed to engage in an activity that might bring about some form of harm through harmful/offensive touching. Some couples choose to consensually participate in activities that take place in the bedroom, in which the members of the intimate relationship choose to inflict harm upon one another. This behavior is called sadomasochism, and often involves partners hurting each other for pleasure. If you are being charged with domestic battery, and strongly believe that the harm you inflicted was fully agreed to by your accuser, then you can argue in court that the battery was a result of mutual consent, and that the charges should therefore be dropped.

4. False Charges

Unfortunately, it isn’t unheard of for a suspect to be dishonestly accused of domestic battery. An individual may accuse an intimate partner of domestic battery out anger, or in order to gain an upper hand in a divorce settlement. A record of domestic violence may make it easier for an ex-spouse to gain custody of children, or be awarded a larger alimony payment. While it is often difficult to prove that somebody is not telling the truth about an accusation, our attorneys are experts at poking holes in people’s stories in an effort to unveil the truth. They understand how to question witnesses and present evidence in a manner that can convince a jury that an accuser is not being truthful.