If you’ve been charged with domestic assault you must proceed cautiously. Lawyers in Winnipeg and throughout Manitoba will all you tell you the same thing: domestic violence is a zero-tolerance crime that is not taken lightly by the criminal justice system.
If you’re convicted, you could be sentenced with jail time, fined, put on probation, and/or mandated to undergo counselling. Furthermore, you may be endowed with a criminal record that could make it difficult to travel internationally and even interfere with future employment prospects. Thankfully, we can try to assist.
But my spouse/partner doesn’t want to lay charges…
Even if your partner doesn’t wish to proceed legally, the choice of whether or not the case goes to trial is not in their hands. Police are obligated to lay criminal charges in any instance where there are reasonable grounds to do so. Afterwards, only the Crown Attorney can decide if charges should be dropped. The complainant (your partner) doesn’t have this power. Unless the Crown Attorney is presented with compelling reasons not to proceed, your case may go to trial.
The best case scenario and how to achieve it
The preferred final result is one in which the charge is withdrawn. If the Crown Attorney chooses to go this route, you’ll never stand before a judge, and won’t wind up with a criminal record. But criminal lawyers in Winnipeg and throughout the province have to provide Crown Attorneys very convincing reasons to get a domestic assault charge withdrawn. Your case could be helped by any of the following scenarios.
This is your first criminal offence.
You are a law-abiding member of society with a good reputation, a solid employment history and a decent education behind you.
The assault is very minor or negligible. No serious injuries occurred as a result.
There were no weapons used in the assault.
You have undergone counselling.
The crown may consider diverting your charge.
What your lawyer’s role is in helping to get charges stayed At Saheel Zaman Law Corporation, our firm of Winnipeg lawyers can provide you with the legal expertise and advocate on your behalf to get the domestic assault charges laid against you dropped. In certain cases, if this is your first involvement we can try to establish that this is an isolated incident and will not be repeated. In some cases, we may be able to demonstrate that the incident that took place was out of character and as a result of external forces that are now being successfully managed. You’ll have our full team at your disposal to secure this best possible result. When to get a hold of us Though these charges won’t disappear overnight, it’s important to take legal action immediately. If you haven’t already done so, contact us right away. Our team is standing by to help.