Battery Charges Reduced From Misdemeanor to Infraction

My batterer agreed to a plea bargain during the Readiness Conference yesterday. This changed his charge from Misdemeanor 243(e)1 Battery on Spouse/CoHabitataing Non-Cohabitating to an Infraction PC 1415 Fighting; Noise; Offensive Words. He plead Guilty to the Infraction. Although I was upset at first, I did find out that he was given the same sentence as I thought he would, 3 years probation, has to pay $400 fine to the Domestic Violence Trust, attend a 52 week Batterers Treatment Program, Serve 1 day in jail and not annoy, harrass, stalk, batter etc..me, the victim.

Can someone tell me why he was sentenced as though he plead or was found Guilty of the original misdemeanor?

I've read in other posts that infractions cannot be punishable by jailtime, which is not true in this case.

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Quoting hotmawmaof2

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My batterer agreed to a plea bargain during the Readiness Conference yesterday. This changed his charge from Misdemeanor 243(e)1 Battery on Spouse/CoHabitataing Non-Cohabitating to an Infraction PC 1415 Fighting; Noise; Offensive Words. He plead Guilty to the Infraction. Although I was upset at first, I did find out that he was given the same sentence as I thought he would, 3 years probation, has to pay $400 fine to the Domestic Violence Trust, attend a 52 week Batterers Treatment Program, Serve 1 day in jail and not annoy, harrass, stalk, batter etc..me, the victim.

Can someone tell me why he was sentenced as though he plead or was found Guilty of the original misdemeanor?

I've read in other posts that infractions cannot be punishable by jailtime, which is not true in this case.

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Are you sure it was Penal Code 1415 and not PC 415?

Also, this is California?

Sorry about that... Yes, this is CA, San Bernardino County. And yes, you are correct the charge is PC I415.

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Quoting hotmawmaof2

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Sorry about that... Yes, this is CA, San Bernardino County. And yes, you are correct the charge is PC I415.

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That must be an "I" in front of the numbers (meaning infraction).

The California Penal Code 415 states:

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415. Any of the following persons shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not more than 90 days, a fine of not more than four hundred dollars ($400), or both such imprisonment and fine:
(1) Any person who unlawfully fights in a public place or challenges another person in a public place to fight.

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So if that is the charge he plead guilty to, he could have received even more jail time.

Thanks for this information. Do you know if this will show up on his criminal record since it is an infraction? He was sentenced to jail time.

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Quoting hotmawmaof2

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Thanks for this information. Do you know if this will show up on his criminal record since it is an infraction? He was sentenced to jail time.

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That is a good question.

Cdwjava, a member here from California, would be able to provide you with an answer to that question. Or possibly another member from California.

I'll Private Message him with a link to your thread. Hopefully, he can answer you when he is on the board.

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Quoting hotmawmaof2

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Thanks for this information. Do you know if this will show up on his criminal record since it is an infraction? He was sentenced to jail time.

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How did that happen? California infractions are not punishable by imprisonment.

I'm not sure. I'm thinking that in the plea bargain, the DA offered to reduce the charge to an infraction so it wouldn't show up on his criminal record but gave him the same sentence as though he was charged with the battery. But what I don't get is that he was sentenced to 1 day in jail and is put on 3 years of probation, won't that show up on his criminal record anyways?

He should get clarification from his lawyer.

I have no communication with him since he was my batterer. I was told he most likely took that plea deal due to the pending trial and knowing that I was going to testify against him, unlike 75% of other domestic violence victims. He would most likely have to do jail time if convicted.

PC 415 is a misdemeanor. Why do you think this was charged as an infraction? What you think might be an "I" may well be a "1" representing COUNT 1. Without knowing what you are reading, no one can really say. He really needs to ask his attorney what the story is.

The benefit to pleading to 415 is that it does not bar him from firearms possession, and is not likely to result in a criminal protective order. There are other reasons as well, but those are the most obvious.

- Carl

Are you sure? This is what the court documents are showing. Please note the Severity.

Count 2 Charge PC I415 Severity I Description FIGHTING;NOISE;OFFENSIVE WORDS Violation Date 10/12/2006 Plea GUILTY

Also, in response to the protective order and firearms, I have a TRO on him anyways. And it looks like I was granted a protection order in the sentencing. See below for the exact wording.

NOT ANNOY, MOLEST, ATTACK, STRIKE, THREATEN, HARASS, STALK, SEXUALLY ASSAULT, BATTER NOR DISTURB THE PEACE OF THE VICTIM, (insert my name here).

This became confusing, so I called the courts and it was explained to me that he had Count 1 Battery on Cohab and Non-Cohab and Count 2 FIGHTING;NOISE;OFFENSIVE WORDS. Count 1 was dropped and he plead Guilty to Count 2. I did verify that Count 2 FIGHTING;NOISE;OFFENSIVE WORDS is a misdemeanor, although it says Severity I.

Thanks to all that helped out with this. :)