Domestic Violence, First Offence, False Accuations

[misterguy]

My question involves criminal law for the state of: California.

This is kind of scary. I just bailed out of jail after 18 hours of hell and I am freaking out.
my charge is 243 (E)(1)PC
There is a girl I have been dating for about a month. She came to visit me at my hotel in the city and we went out for drinks. After it got late I was tired and went to sleep in my room. She came in 1 hour later really drunk, woke me up and started yelling and throwing things saying that i was no fun and yadda yadda so i kicked her out of the room but she wouldnt leave so i pushed her out with one hand on her middle back and on hand on her hip. I pulled her to the door, pushed her out (not hard, she didnt fall or anything) and closed the door, climbed back in bed and went to sleep. A little while later the cops busted in and dragged me out of bed and took me to jail for domestic violence. They took pictures of us both at the hotel (no marks, bruises or anything on either of us) and she went back to the room while i spent an agonizing night and the next day in jail. Im hoping she will not pursue this but I have a court date in about a month. I cant afford an attorney and will plead not guilty. Also im pretty sure she wont pursue this or even show up to a trial. My question is, if she drops the case or doesnt press charges, will i go free? what sort of sentence am I looking at? can i sue her for false accusations? Thank you very very much!

also, I have no prior record except DUI about 6 years ago., hell I've never even been in a fight before.

[cdwjava]

My question involves criminal law for the state of: California.

This is kind of scary. I just bailed out of jail after 18 hours of hell and I am freaking out.
my charge is 243 (E)(1)PC

Don't freak out. The world has not ended.

There is a girl I have been dating for about a month. She came to visit me at my hotel in the city and we went out for drinks. After it got late I was tired and went to sleep in my room. She came in 1 hour later really drunk, woke me up and started yelling and throwing things saying that i was no fun and yadda yadda so i kicked her out of the room but she wouldnt leave so i pushed her out with one hand on her middle back and on hand on her hip. I pulled her to the door, pushed her out (not hard, she didnt fall or anything) and closed the door, climbed back in bed and went to sleep.

When you pushed her out the door, you committed battery. And since she was someone you had been dating, this was domestic violence (hence the PC 243(e) charge).

A little while later the cops busted in and dragged me out of bed and took me to jail for domestic violence.

What do you mean they "busted in and dragged [you] out of bed?" If they made entry without your consent, it is possible that this arrest was unlawful. That does very little to help you, however, but if you made any statements after the arrest that they intend to use against you, your attorney may be able to get those suppressed.

However, if she was also a guest in the room, she could have given them consent to make entry. Whether she was a guest (with lawful access to the room) or not would depend on whether or not she was registered in the room, whether she had her belongings there, etc.

Im hoping she will not pursue this but I have a court date in about a month.

The choice is NOT hers to make. The DA will decide on prosecution, not her.

I cant afford an attorney and will plead not guilty.

You can ask for appointed counsel at the arraignment.

Also im pretty sure she wont pursue this or even show up to a trial.

She has no choice. And, if she is subpoeaned, then she must show up in court and testify ... failure to do so can result in her arrest.

My question is, if she drops the case or doesnt press charges, will i go free? what sort of sentence am I looking at? can i sue her for false accusations? Thank you very very much!

As mentioned, this does not matter whether or not she pursues the matter. It's up to the DA.

In theory the offense is punishable by up to a year in county jail and/or a fine of $2,000. Typically, it involves counseling (anger management and maybe relationship counseling), probation, and maybe a protective order preventing or restricting contact with the victim.

No, you cannot sue her for false accusations - you pushed her! What's false about that? If she made any truly false accusations, you can TRY to sue her, but you could probably no more prove they didn't happen than the state could prove they did ... and if you are convicted, it will be hard to sue her for anything.

[rebeka]

Having a prior record for drinking is not going to work in your favor. If I were you I'd quit drinking and start going to AA meetings. It will look good to the judge.

[misterguy]

Don't freak out. The world has not ended.


When you pushed her out the door, you committed battery. And since she was someone you had been dating, this was domestic violence (hence the PC 243(e) charge).


What do you mean they "busted in and dragged [you] out of bed?" If they made entry without your consent, it is possible that this arrest was unlawful. That does very little to help you, however, but if you made any statements after the arrest that they intend to use against you, your attorney may be able to get those suppressed.

However, if she was also a guest in the room, she could have given them consent to make entry. Whether she was a guest (with lawful access to the room) or not would depend on whether or not she was registered in the room, whether she had her belongings there, etc.


The choice is NOT hers to make. The DA will decide on prosecution, not her.


You can ask for appointed counsel at the arraignment.


She has no choice. And, if she is subpoeaned, then she must show up in court and testify ... failure to do so can result in her arrest.


As mentioned, this does not matter whether or not she pursues the matter. It's up to the DA.

In theory the offense is punishable by up to a year in county jail and/or a fine of $2,000. Typically, it involves counseling (anger management and maybe relationship counseling), probation, and maybe a protective order preventing or restricting contact with the victim.

No, you cannot sue her for false accusations - you pushed her! What's false about that? If she made any truly false accusations, you can TRY to sue her, but you could probably no more prove they didn't happen than the state could prove they did ... and if you are convicted, it will be hard to sue her for anything.

Thank you for the detailed advice, I didnt realize pushing is assault. Nobody at the jail really discussed anything with me. Anyway I guess Im ****ed. I hope I dont get jail time.

[Dogmatique]

Very broadly speaking, putting your hands on anyone without their consent can - in most states - be considered battery.