Florida Law on Domestic Violence
Recently, several incidents have emerged involving celebrities or high profile individuals and domestic violence. Probably, the most notorious of these incidents involves football player Ray Rice. Rice, a former player of the Baltimore Ravens, was arrested and indicted for a third-degree aggravated assault against his then-fiancé, Janay Palmer. While the criminal charges were later dropped after Rice agreed to undergo court-supervised counseling, Rice did receive a two game suspension from the NFL for the upcoming 2014 season. After more detailed footage of the incident was revealed by TMZ showing Rice punching Palmer and knocking her unconscious, the Baltimore Ravens terminated their contract with Rice and the NFL suspended Rice indefinitely.
This incident draws attention to the repercussions involved in domestic violence cases. While Rice was not given a severe sentence from the court, he did endure various long-term consequences in other areas of his life specifically one affecting his employment status. Domestic violence charges can have various implications. Domestic violence sentences can include jail time, probation, community service; court mandated counseling programs, and fines. A criminal defense attorney can help achieve the best possible results in a domestic violence case. Domestic violence laws vary between states. Consult a criminal defense attorney in your area to learn about the laws affecting you.
Florida law protects domestic violence victims under both the civil court system and the criminal court system. Therefore, a victim of domestic violence can seek remedies and protections from both courts. The civil court system can provide victims with restraining orders and other types of injunctions, while the criminal court can seek the imposition of jail time and fines on offenders.
Florida law defines domestic violence as specified types of violence committed against a family or household member. Therefore, there are two elements to a domestic violence act in Florida. First, there must be an act – an act can include a threat. Second, that act must be committed against a family or household member. Many types of crimes such as assault, aggravated assault, battery, aggravated battery, sexual assault, sexual battery, stalking, aggravated stalking, and kidnapping fall under domestic violence.
Domestic violence is a crime taken very seriously in Florida. Domestic violence laws in Florida typically mandate a minimum five-day county jail sentence. However, a convicted offender can also be imposed a longer jail sentence to be served in state prison. Florida laws also call for a probation or community service sentence to offenders. Moreover, state prosecutors also have the ability to charge offenders with other criminal offenses besides domestic violence thereby increasing the penalties.
Contact a criminal defense attorney today to learn about your legal options. Stroleny Law: Criminal Defense Attorney is a criminal defense firm that handles cases in Miami Dade and Broward county. Contact experienced attorney Julian Stroleny to solve your case. Call today at 305-615-1285 to schedule a free consultation or visit strolenylaw.com to learn more.