Alcohol, Alcoholics, and Testimony

Alcohol is a powerful substance as it can have significant effects on the mind and body.  Alcohol changes people's conscious perception of events and alters people's decision making and their personalities.  Everyone is affected differently.  As everyone is aware, some people are able to handle alcohol in a manner that is socially acceptable and others are not.  Some people become chemically dependent on alcohol.  Some people always find themselves making bad decisions after drinking alcohol.  Others become violent after drinking alcohol.
Alcohol can be a very important factor in criminal cases.  Use of alcohol can actually negate the intent necessary to commit certain crimes, but alcohol use is is more frequently a factor with witness testimony.   Witness testimony is necessary in all criminal cases, and a witness's ability to perceive and recall events is crucial.  Alcohol use creates doubt as to the reliability of the witness's perception and recall.   Doubt regarding a witness's testimony, which a Defendant can introduce to a trier of fact (judge or jury) in a criminal case, makes a not guilty verdict more likely.
The testimony of someone who drinks alcohol in large quantities on a regular basis (for the purposes of this blog "an alcoholic") can be even more unreliable.  The effects on the brain of substantial alcohol use, especially over long periods of time, are undeniable.  The brain is not able to function in the same way as it was without the alcohol.  In a criminal case, this can bring doubt into a case when an alcoholic witness has been drinking, or even when an alcoholic witness has not been drinking.  This can work against Defendants as well, so strategy is important.  It can also be difficult to introduce evidence of alcoholism into a case because of certain interpretations of the rules of evidence.  Defendants must make sure that their attorneys take a witness's alcohol use and/or abuse into consideration when negotiating a case or especially at a hearing.  
If you have been charged with Battery, Battery Domestic Violence, or any crime related to a Domestic incident, or if a TPO has been issued against you, please visit gerobinsonlaw.com or call 702-233-4225 for help.

Using Protective Order Hearings to Your Advantage

Suddenly, you have been charged with Battery Constituting Domestic Violence, and a Temporary Protective Order has been served on you.  These are serious matters, especially the criminal charge.  From a defense perspective, the protective order hearing may give a Defendant an opportunity to employ strategies to help the criminal case.  Due process dictates that if the Applicant wants to extend the protective order against the Adverse Party (for up to one year), the Applicant must appear and testify at a hearing.  At this hearing, there are not many rules, but the parties are sworn in and testify under oath.  Although normally a Defendant does not want to testify as to the underlying facts in the criminal case, there may be an opportunity for the Defendant's attorney to question the Applicant. Sometimes this questioning can bolster the Adverse Party's arguments at the criminal trial or lead to other discoveries.  The hearing master probably will not let the attorney go too far, but this is another reason hire competent counsel to not only represent you at the criminal trial, but also at the hearing on the protective order.  The protective order might even be extended, but, more importantly, your attorney has received information that may help to win the more serious criminal trial.
Every case is different, but you should consult an attorney immediately to inquire as to whether these strategies may work for you.  
If you have been charged with Battery, Battery Domestic Violence, or any crime related to a Domestic incident, or if a TPO has been issued against you, please visit gerobinsonlaw.com or call 702-233-4225 for help.

No Victim, No Problem

Does a prosecutor need the victim of Domestic Violence to testify in order to obtain a conviction?  The answer is not always.  The easiest way for a prosecutor to move forward with a case without the alleged victim is when there were other people present to personally witness the event.  This happens often in Las Vegas because of the nature of the town.  Las Vegas encourages drinking alcohol in order to ease inhibitions with money, particularly for gambling.  In some people, this can cause large amounts of stress or loss of control.  This can lead to verbal arguments and sometimes physicality.  Some of these events occur in casinos.  If an event of Domestic Violence occurs in a casino, it is very likely that there will be witnesses to the event other than the victim, so the prosecutor does not need the victim to testify as to the event because they have a third party that can testify that "I was there, and I saw the woman hit the man with her purse."  In most situations, a prosecutor does need an alleged victim to testify as to an event because the only witnesses to the event were the alleged victim and the defendant.  It is still very important to have a competent attorney representing you as sometimes prosecutors will attempt to use tactics which can be challenged as unconstitutional or illegal in some other way.
If you have been charged with Battery, Battery Domestic Violence, or any crime related to a Domestic incident, or if a TPO has been issued against you, please visit gerobinsonlaw.com or call 702-233-4225 for help.

Domestic Violence and Kidnapping

In incidents of Domestic Violence, even where there is relatively minor physicality and/or threats, a major charge can be levied by the State in certain circumstances.  That major charge is kidnapping.  The Nevada kidnapping statute is below: 

Degrees [of Kidnapping].

  1. A person who willfully seizes, confines, inveigles, entices, decoys, abducts, conceals, kidnaps or carries away a person by any means whatsoever with the intent to hold or detain, or who holds or detains, the person for ransom, or reward, or for the purpose of committing sexual assault, extortion or robbery upon or from the person, or for the purpose of killing the person or inflicting substantial bodily harm upon the person, or to exact from relatives, friends, or any other person any money or valuable thing for the return or disposition of the kidnapped person, and a person who leads, takes, entices, or carries away or detains any minor with the intent to keep, imprison, or confine the minor from his or her parents, guardians, or any other person having lawful custody of the minor, or with the intent to hold the minor to unlawful service, or perpetrate upon the person of the minor any unlawful act is guilty of kidnapping in the first degree which is a category A felony.
2. A person who willfully and without authority of law seizes, inveigles, takes, carries away or kidnaps another person with the intent to keep the person secretly imprisoned within the State, or for the purpose of conveying the person out of the State without authority of law, or in any manner held to service or detained against the person's will, is guilty of kidnapping in the second degree which is a category B felony.            NRS 200.310.  

This statute is very broad in its scope, and, with relatively minor physicality and/or threats, a person can be charged with kidnapping.  A child does not need to be involved.  Kidnapping in the first degree is one of the most serious charges that can be levied upon a person in the state of Nevada.  If convicted, a life sentence will be imposed.  The difference between a misdemeanor Battery Domestic Violence case and a life sentence is not as broad as one would think. 
If you have been charged with Battery, Battery Domestic Violence, Kidnapping, False Imprisonment, or any crime related to a Domestic incident, or if a TPO has been issued against you, please visit gerobinsonlaw.com or call 702-233-4225 for help.

Battery Domestic Violence and False Imprisonment

In many instances where there are allegations of Domestic Violence, there are also allegations of restricting the alleged victim's movement.  A typical, general allegation is "he was angry and pushed me and told me I could not leave the apartment, so i stayed there until he fell asleep."  A accusation like this may lead to a charge of false imprisonment.

Pursuant to Nevada law: 

1. False imprisonment is an unlawful violation of the personal liberty of another, and consists in confinement or detention without sufficient legal authority.
2. A person convicted of false imprisonment shall pay all damages sustained by the person so imprisoned, and, except as otherwise provided in this section, is guilty of a gross misdemeanor.
3. Unless a greater penalty is provided pursuant to subsection 4, if the false imprisonment is committed:
   (a) By a prisoner in a penal institution without a deadly weapon; or
   (b) By any other person with the use of a deadly weapon,
   the person convicted of such a false imprisonment is guilty of a category B felony and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not more than 6 years.
4. Unless a greater penalty is provided pursuant to subsection 5, if the false imprisonment is committed by using the person so imprisoned as a shield or to avoid arrest, the person convicted of such a false imprisonment is guilty of a category B felony and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not more than 15 years.
5. If the false imprisonment is committed by a prisoner who is in lawful custody or confinement with the use of a deadly weapon, the person convicted of such a false imprisonment is guilty of a category B felony and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not more than 20 years.

      NRS 200.460

A charge of False Imprisonment can compound the difficultly of a Domestic Violence charge.  First, False Imprisonment is a more serious criminal charge than misdemeanor Battery Domestic Violence as it is a gross misdemeanor as opposed to a regular misdemeanor.  Gross misdemeanors carry a possible jail sentence of 1 year, which is double that of a regular misdemeanor.  Also, the gross misdemeanor charge is more complex to defend, procedurally, so you will pay an attorney more money for competent representation.  The more serious charge also forces a less desirable negotiation in many cases.
If you have been charged with Battery, Battery Domestic Violence, False Imprisonment, or any crime related to a Domestic incident, or if a TPO has been issued against you, please visit georgeforjustice.com for help.  

familylawlv.com - Domestic Violence, Divorce, and Child Custody

The gradual decay of a relationship can lead to incidents of Domestic Violence.  Although violence is rarely legally acceptable, it does happen frequently in our society among people with a domestic relationship.  Relationships are very complex, and these situations can develop in a multitude of different ways.  One example of this downward progression is when non-physical arguments become arguments with minor physicality, which become arguments with more and more physicality.  This escalation of violence may cause irreparable damage to a relationship as the physical and emotional toll of these incidents is usually large.
When a relationship ends, there are legal implications if the couple has kids and/or is married.  Domestic Violence can play a large role in the custody of children and the division of assets.  Because of the connection between Domestic Violence and family law issues, George E. Robinson, Esq. has handled family law issues in the past for his criminal clients, but now he has formally expanded his practice to include family law.  A website is now online, familylawlv.com.

Subpoenas and Continuances

In many Battery Domestic Violence cases, a prosecutor must have testimony from the alleged victim of the  incident of domestic violence in order to secure a conviction at trial or present a sufficient amount of evidence at a pretrial hearing.  This is because in many cases of domestic violence, there are no other witnesses to the allegation.  Sometimes, Defendants attempt to rely on the nonattendance of witnesses to resolve their legal problems.  This may work, but there are many reasons why it may not. 
One reason this may not work is because the prosecutor may attempt to continue the hearing in order in find the non-attendant witness.  There are statutes and cases that detail when a prosecutor can and cannot continue an evidentiary hearing.  Normally, the Court is more concerned with the setting of a hearing when a defendant is in jail.  "If the defendant does not waive examination, the magistrate shall hear the evidence within 15 days, unless for good cause shown the magistrate extends such time."  NRS 171.196.
NRS 174.515(1) states, "When an action is called for trial, or at any time previous thereto, the court may, upon sufficient cause shown by either party by affidavit, direct the trial to be postponed to another day."
Before a magistrate may decide whether statutory "good cause" exists, the party seeking a continuance of a preliminary examination upon the ground of the absence of witnesses must prepare and submit to the magistrate an affidavit stating: (a) the names of the absent witnesses and their present residences, if known; (b) the diligence used to procure their attendance; (c) a brief summary of the expected testimony of such witnesses and whether the same facts can be proven by other witnesses; (d) when the affiant first learned that the attendance of such witnesses could not be obtained; and (e) that the motion is made in good faith and not for delay.  Hill v. Sheriff of Clark County, 85 Nev. 234, 235-236 (1969).
These factors and others must be taken into account when your attorney is handling your case.  Sometimes a case can be dismissed and not be refiled.  Sometimes there are specific strategies that can be employed to help you when it comes to the timing of a hearing.
If you have been charged with Battery, Battery Domestic Violence, or any crime related to a Domestic incident, or if a TPO has been issued against you, please visit georgeforjustice.com for help.